Handout coming as soon as I figure out how to upload .pdfs from this computer.
Any time we are required to create a handout, I think first of all about the ways in which I can make the information accessible to the different learning styles of the teachers who may read the handout. In the case of advocating for integration of the arts, something which is not wholeheartedly embraced by educators, the information must primarily be compelling and clearly stated and appeal to teachers' fundamental goal of meeting the developmental needs of every student in their care. I also believe it necessary to address the expected concern that integration of the arts requires additional, time, effort, and focus that are not currently available in the standard early childhood classroom.
To that end, I felt the handout had to be visually interesting for “picture smart” people as well as informational and well written for “word smart” people, and present data to appeal to “logic smart” people as well. Each of the other intelligences held by teachers can be covered through careful design of the presentation. By designing this handout and training session in this way, the point being made through the topic itself – the vital way in which the Arts meet the needs of various learning styles in our students – can become internalized by those who may otherwise disagree with the need for the Arts in the classroom.
When creating an introductory pamphlet, there must be a definition of terms. In this case, I used the phrase “the Arts Classroom”to explain an environment in which the Arts hold equal importance with all other content areas and means of learning. Each area within the Arts also was defined, and examples provided on how the environment is affected by their presence, and ways in which each content area benefits from exploring in each art area. There was also the need to support the idea with scientific research, primarily through the work of Dr. Gardner. Although space did not allow me to present a lesson plan of a Project which includes exploration and learning through all areas, a resource link to Education.com in the section “Content Areas through the Arts” provides forty-three web pages of example hands-on arts activities cross-linked to each content area for the preschool level.
Finally, I felt it vital to demonstrate the ease with which the arts can be integrated physically into the classroom environment. Throughout my coursework at Walden I have had many opportunities to design a classroom through the aid of free Classroom Architect software online. At each step, I use my prior classroom layout and adapt it to include the new information I have learned. Initially, the Literacy Center held primary focus. Following a course on projects and integrated learning, I adjusted to re-prioritize the importance of research space and group technology use. After these changes to the layout, I discovered that a new arrangement to balance the Arts into the classroom took nearly no effort at all. Visual Arts shares space with the Writing Center and work tables, which were already positioned near sinks on hard floors for messy Science work. Music shares the space with the Listening Center, and moving one table allowed sufficient space for Movement in the same area. A drama stage was built-in with the addition of a climbing loft (also used for Movement activities) in the Pretend Play Center. In all, rearranging a classroom to encourage the arts took approximately five minutes. Providing the layout in this handout, along with examples and descriptions, helps to emphasize how simply and quickly these adjustments can be undertaken.
Integration of the arts is vital for the way in which children learn today. Not only do they fit perfectly with the developmental level of preschoolers, but today's children have moved from reading books to surfing the internet, television has become more flashy and loud to appeal to shrinking attention spans, and children struggle with real life stresses at much younger ages than ever before. Integrating the arts at every age level reaches out to these kids who fall behind and have no access to methods of learning that allow them to succeed. I hope to have made the vital importance of this concept clear through this teaching handout on the Arts.
References
4Teachers.org. (2008). Classroom architect. Flash software. Accessed November 13, 2010, from http://classroom.4teachers.org/
Edutopia.com (2009). Learning styles: The multiple intelligences redefine “smart”. Retrieved November 13, 2010, from http://www.edutopia.org/multiple-intelligences-introduction
Gardner, H. (1999). Multiple intelligences. Retrieved November 13, 2010, from http://www.howardgardner.com/MI/mi.html
Kaser, M. R. (n.d.) Multiple intelligences theory by Howard Gardner. JPG Image. Retrieved November 13, 2010, from http://www.evangelchristianschool.org/news/?m=200903&paged=4
Showing posts with label Multiple Intelligences. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Multiple Intelligences. Show all posts
Thursday, December 9, 2010
How am I smart?
Originally published 12 November 2008.
This week we're learning about Lilian G. Katz, Howard Gardner, and Daniel Goleman. They offer us the Project approach, Multiple Intelligences (different strengths and weaknesses we have that affect our learning), and Emotional Intelligences (like your IQ, this tests your Emotional levels instead of your Intelligence levels).
Here's some fun quizzes we had to take for our discussion post:
Book recommendation for Multiple Intelligences: How am I smart? by Dr. Kathy Koch (pronounced 'cook'). Originally written for jr. high/high school kids, it's now marketed to parents. It's a very easy read, quite fascinating; she also includes tips and ideas for how to create an environment to implement them in learning and every day life.
Here's the results of my Emotional Intelligence (EQ - test 2). Sorry, no spiffy chart. I wish there was!:
"Your results indicate an above average score on emotional intelligence.
What Does Your Score Mean?
People with a better than average score on emotional intelligence tend to be good at interpreting, understanding, and acting upon emotions. They are usually quite good at dealing with social or emotional conflicts, expressing their feelings, and dealing with emotional situations.
It's important to remember that no matter how good your score is, there is always room to improve your emotional intelligence. Consider areas where you are not as strong and think of ways that you can learn and grow. Take stock of your strong points and find ways to continue to develop and apply these skills."
How about you?
This week we're learning about Lilian G. Katz, Howard Gardner, and Daniel Goleman. They offer us the Project approach, Multiple Intelligences (different strengths and weaknesses we have that affect our learning), and Emotional Intelligences (like your IQ, this tests your Emotional levels instead of your Intelligence levels).
Here's some fun quizzes we had to take for our discussion post:
- Multiple Intelligence Interactivity
http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/mi/index.html
Note: Scroll down and click on the “Interactivity” to create your “M.I. Snowflake.”
- Quiz for Emotional Intelligence
http://psychology.about.com/library/quiz/bl_eq_quiz.htm? - Multiple Intelligences for Adult Literacy and Education.
http://literacyworks.org/mi/assessment/findyourstrengths.html
Book recommendation for Multiple Intelligences: How am I smart? by Dr. Kathy Koch (pronounced 'cook'). Originally written for jr. high/high school kids, it's now marketed to parents. It's a very easy read, quite fascinating; she also includes tips and ideas for how to create an environment to implement them in learning and every day life.
Here's the results of my Emotional Intelligence (EQ - test 2). Sorry, no spiffy chart. I wish there was!:
"Your results indicate an above average score on emotional intelligence.
What Does Your Score Mean?
People with a better than average score on emotional intelligence tend to be good at interpreting, understanding, and acting upon emotions. They are usually quite good at dealing with social or emotional conflicts, expressing their feelings, and dealing with emotional situations.
It's important to remember that no matter how good your score is, there is always room to improve your emotional intelligence. Consider areas where you are not as strong and think of ways that you can learn and grow. Take stock of your strong points and find ways to continue to develop and apply these skills."
How about you?
The arts in education
Originally published 09 November 2010.
I felt that this topic brought up enough emotional heat that I'd just share it with the rest of you!
Definition: "The Arts" in my textbook includes visual arts (painting, sculpting, etc.), music, movement, dance, and theatre.
The assignment: "What responsibility, if any, do early childhood professionals have to advocate for arts education in a community’s public schools? Explain your views. Then choose one area of the arts and describe an argument you would use to make a case for a visual arts, music education, or creative movement program for children of all ages."
This subject is one in which I struggle to productively structure my thoughts because it simply seems too obvious. As educators we must somehow reach into every child and trigger motivation and a love of learning. People, regardless of age, are extremely complex creations. We know that people have different strengths and weaknesses and different ways of viewing the world, and that identifying and strategizing with each of these unique things is the key to accomplishing our goals with our students. To leave out the arts - visual arts, music, movement, dance, and theatre - excludes a significant segment of children from the potential of success. In a developmentally appropriate classroom that meets every child's needs, the arts must be available in equal measures with other styles of learning.
Not only do children often express their conscious thoughts, as well as process learning, by working creatively with their hands and bodies, but research has shown that the arts tap into a deeper subconscious that allows children to process things of which they are unaware. Music and visual arts are often used in therapeutic settings for children recovering from trauma or learning to cope with severe disabilities, emphasizing the vital importance of these methods of interaction (Kozlowska & Hanney, 2001), (Carpente, 2002). Allowing children daily experience with this part of their minds and souls gives them the opportunity to more easily access these areas in times of trouble or difficulty, and feel safe within themselves throughout those learning processes.
In the same way that some people learn best by listening, or learn best by seeing pictures, or learn best by reading text, other people learn best through a connection to music. In infancy, sounds enter the brain before the eyes are able to properly intake vision. Extremely young children are able to process and acknowledge differences in tones and pitches, and learn to identify individuals by their voices before they are able to see them clearly. Sound, and the processes of it through music, relates to our earliest natural abilities to learn. Many people find it much easier to memorize facts as lyrics to songs. The structure of sung speech imitates sound patterns required for developing strong reading skills. Many songs for young children are fundamental early literacy elements, such as rhymes and poetry, put to music.
I was somewhat dismayed, however, to see how little attention our textbook gave to the ways in which music links to more concrete elements. The structures of music follow the same structures of beginning mathematics, providing patterns and repetitions, the abilities to compare, contrast, and serialize in audio form, and the rhythms necessary for counting and number sense. "Early childhood educators, knowing that math and music share similar inherent characteristics, can use simple musical elements to introduce mathematical concepts, interactions, and ideas to infants, toddlers, and preschoolers" (Geist & Geist, 2008, p. 21).
Music also creates a direct link to science learning, as children can study sound itself, experiment with what kinds of substances carry sound and how, and learning about physiology and the ears, as well as developing empathy for the deaf and hard of hearing. Experiments can be done such as at the end of the movie, "Mr. Holland's Opus", in which orchestra music is translated into colored lights for the deaf audience.
Music instruction goes far beyond simply being enjoyable, providing the opportunity to move the body, and putting early literacy to melody. It also goes beyond easy integration into other content areas. Music is another area in which people are able to express the deepest emotions and thoughts, that carries the hopes and dreams of many cultures. By providing daily music education, our children can have another avenue through which they are valued and know that they are able to express their true selves and be accepted.
References:
Carpente, J.A. (2002). Creative Music Therapy with a Boy with Multiple Impairments: Stepping out of isolation into new experiences. The Rebecca Center for Music Therapy. Retrieved from http://www.therebeccacenter.org/library/casestudy1.html
Geist, K., & Geist, E.A. (2008). Do re mi, 1-2-3, that's how easy math can be. Using music to support emergent mathematics. Young Children. National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Kozlowska, K. & Hanney, L. (2001). An Art Therapy Group for Children Traumatized by Parental Violence and Separation. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, January 2001; vol. 6, 1: pp. 49-78.
Prairie, A. P., Isbell, R. T., & Raines, S. C. (2010). Teaching across the content areas: Math, science and the creative arts (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
I felt that this topic brought up enough emotional heat that I'd just share it with the rest of you!
Definition: "The Arts" in my textbook includes visual arts (painting, sculpting, etc.), music, movement, dance, and theatre.
The assignment: "What responsibility, if any, do early childhood professionals have to advocate for arts education in a community’s public schools? Explain your views. Then choose one area of the arts and describe an argument you would use to make a case for a visual arts, music education, or creative movement program for children of all ages."
This subject is one in which I struggle to productively structure my thoughts because it simply seems too obvious. As educators we must somehow reach into every child and trigger motivation and a love of learning. People, regardless of age, are extremely complex creations. We know that people have different strengths and weaknesses and different ways of viewing the world, and that identifying and strategizing with each of these unique things is the key to accomplishing our goals with our students. To leave out the arts - visual arts, music, movement, dance, and theatre - excludes a significant segment of children from the potential of success. In a developmentally appropriate classroom that meets every child's needs, the arts must be available in equal measures with other styles of learning.
Not only do children often express their conscious thoughts, as well as process learning, by working creatively with their hands and bodies, but research has shown that the arts tap into a deeper subconscious that allows children to process things of which they are unaware. Music and visual arts are often used in therapeutic settings for children recovering from trauma or learning to cope with severe disabilities, emphasizing the vital importance of these methods of interaction (Kozlowska & Hanney, 2001), (Carpente, 2002). Allowing children daily experience with this part of their minds and souls gives them the opportunity to more easily access these areas in times of trouble or difficulty, and feel safe within themselves throughout those learning processes.
In the same way that some people learn best by listening, or learn best by seeing pictures, or learn best by reading text, other people learn best through a connection to music. In infancy, sounds enter the brain before the eyes are able to properly intake vision. Extremely young children are able to process and acknowledge differences in tones and pitches, and learn to identify individuals by their voices before they are able to see them clearly. Sound, and the processes of it through music, relates to our earliest natural abilities to learn. Many people find it much easier to memorize facts as lyrics to songs. The structure of sung speech imitates sound patterns required for developing strong reading skills. Many songs for young children are fundamental early literacy elements, such as rhymes and poetry, put to music.
I was somewhat dismayed, however, to see how little attention our textbook gave to the ways in which music links to more concrete elements. The structures of music follow the same structures of beginning mathematics, providing patterns and repetitions, the abilities to compare, contrast, and serialize in audio form, and the rhythms necessary for counting and number sense. "Early childhood educators, knowing that math and music share similar inherent characteristics, can use simple musical elements to introduce mathematical concepts, interactions, and ideas to infants, toddlers, and preschoolers" (Geist & Geist, 2008, p. 21).
Music also creates a direct link to science learning, as children can study sound itself, experiment with what kinds of substances carry sound and how, and learning about physiology and the ears, as well as developing empathy for the deaf and hard of hearing. Experiments can be done such as at the end of the movie, "Mr. Holland's Opus", in which orchestra music is translated into colored lights for the deaf audience.
Music instruction goes far beyond simply being enjoyable, providing the opportunity to move the body, and putting early literacy to melody. It also goes beyond easy integration into other content areas. Music is another area in which people are able to express the deepest emotions and thoughts, that carries the hopes and dreams of many cultures. By providing daily music education, our children can have another avenue through which they are valued and know that they are able to express their true selves and be accepted.
References:
Carpente, J.A. (2002). Creative Music Therapy with a Boy with Multiple Impairments: Stepping out of isolation into new experiences. The Rebecca Center for Music Therapy. Retrieved from http://www.therebeccacenter.org/library/casestudy1.html
Geist, K., & Geist, E.A. (2008). Do re mi, 1-2-3, that's how easy math can be. Using music to support emergent mathematics. Young Children. National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Kozlowska, K. & Hanney, L. (2001). An Art Therapy Group for Children Traumatized by Parental Violence and Separation. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, January 2001; vol. 6, 1: pp. 49-78.
Prairie, A. P., Isbell, R. T., & Raines, S. C. (2010). Teaching across the content areas: Math, science and the creative arts (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.
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