Journal entry

What worked well for this art experience? Why?

What went well was, I felt like most of the students worked individually. Which was so great! In the beginning of class, the students seemed to be really engaged. And I think that was because we had colored picture of examples of hot air balloons.  And we passed those around while we were explaining things. And they seemed super engaged and excited about what we were going to be making. Most of the students had paper mache before so I think that worked in our favor. They also seemed to be really invested into their project and seemed to really like what they were creating. I think how we presented it in class 2 about how we are going to be working on paper mache in the next class was a smart choice on our part because it prepared them for the next class and it helped with them to know what to expect next. 

What didn’t work well for this art experience? Why? 

I think what didn’t work was we as the teachers were a bit confused on how we were going to do the paper Mache glue for each student. We could not figure out if we should do small bowls, or large bowls that they would share. We figured it out and each student had enough. I think the beginning of the class was a bit rocky, because at least for me I was worried that they students were grasping the concept of how to do paper mache. I think we should have had the glue with the paper and show them what we were expecting. Because we had to basically explain it to each student individually because they weren’t sure what the next steps were. And I think that was the teachers fault because we didn’t think about the different types of learners. I also think that no one was understanding that we wanted them to make 3d forms that you can add to you hot air balloon. And so most of the students just got a balloon and paper Mache over it. Which is totally fine, but we were hoping that there would be more sculptural elements added. But again, that I think had to do with the explanation of the project. I think something we have been struggling with is, who is going to talk as a teacher during class. I think there is some teachers that talk more than others, and when that talks for the teacher that is really supposed to be talking, it gets all of us flustered. And then it throws us off because we are not sure what talking to talk next. Maybe that is just how I feel, but I think that is something we need to work on. 

What would you do differently?  Why?

What I would do differently is, I would have step by step demonstrations and break it down of the process. I think that was something that we were really thinking about, because we thought that we could just talk about it. And we have to be constantly be thinking about all the different types of learners. I would find better ways to hold up the forms when paper maching. That was something that needed to be fixed, most of the pieces were falling over because the balloon wasn’t heavy enough. I think with how little time we had to do this project, it might have been smarter to reduce the sketching time. But the issue with that is, some students took longer than others on sketches, and that is why they ran out of time when paper maching. Although all the students did finish their project, they had to have help from the teacher to speed up the process. Overall, the class went well and the students really seemed to be enjoying what they were doing and they were extremely engaged. And at the end of the day, that was what mattered. I have to remember that is all about the process and its okay if there is not an end product. 

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