26 classes of projects? Oh my!

by Elizabeth Van Allen  for scribblesbyartteachervanallen.blogspot.com
 

I hang up 'no name'
projects on clotheslines
near the door so there's
no missing them!

Keeping 26 classes of students straight is no easy task.  Every week I teach between 590 & 700 students, depending on this year's enrollment.  Getting all of their names right might a challenge, but it's a piece of cake compared to keeping track of their artwork!  

I'm going to go all interdisciplinary and do a little math: if each student is working on a project that involves a planning paper and a good paper, that's between 1180 and 1400 pieces of paper in play at any given time.  Now add their journals and past projects that are ready to be given back, and factor in students who forget to (or can't) put their name on their work.  If you don't have a good organizational system in place from day one, you're drowning in random papers and upset students.

After years of trial and error, I've finally come up with a system that works for me.  Hopefully there is something here that you can use to improve your systems and iron out any issues you may be having!
 

The secret to success: insist on
clear, thorough labeling of all projects!

Student Accountability
My students are all pretty familiar with these phrases:
No Name=No Grade
Leave it out=Lose it
Not put back=Not the teacher's fault
Once students realize that I actually say what I mean and I mean what I say, we have very few issues with missing projects.

Organization by Day & Class 

Storage for Monday's classes

Say it with me folks... color coding.  My storage cabinets are organized by weekday, then each class has a recycled cardboard container from a big box store that's wrapped with colored duct tape.  Red for the Kinders, orange for grades 1-2, yellow indicates special education, green says grades 3-4, blue means grades 5-6 and purple is for my 7th and 8th graders.  First class of the day is on the top shelf and last class goes on the bottom.  Every box has the weekday, class, teacher, period, and grade level printed on the tape.
Note: this color coding system is just for me.  If I shared it with the students it would just confuse them because their rows are color coded too!

Keeping Track of Classwork

Above: Color-coded row folders
Below: Color-coded table tags

Organizing smaller 2D projects and journals by row or group helps keep papers in the right place.  It also makes it easier to distribute and collect them when the time comes.  Make sure everything is clearly and boldly labeled to prevent the frustration of re-explaining and re-organizing!  My students sit in 4 rows: red, yellow, blue, and green.  I label everything that goes out to them based on their row name/color, from their storage folders to their supply baskets.  I even have them write their row color on the back of their projects right next to their name, class and date!  This may sound like overkill, but if (or when) a project is misplaced this makes it way easier to re-file without wasting lots of time.

No matter how well you are organized there is always room for improvement.  Each school year brings it's own challenges, so when it comes to organization I'm always adjusting something.  Click on these links to see some of my ideas on assignment boards, materials and handouts, streamlining seating charts & paperwork, and grading methods.

What was your most successful organizational adjustment? 

el-cheapo art game fun

Well worth the slightly higher price: 
Fresh Artists has produced several
high-quality memory games, and all
proceeds go to help art programs in
underfunded schools like mine!

by Elizabeth Van Allen  
scribblesbyartteachervanallen.blogspot.com

I am always looking for good, art-centric games for my classroom.  I don't take them out very often, but that's part of what makes them so special. Art games are also an easy and convenient way to keep those 24-minute periods during half days content-focused.  I set up stations around the room, let my students know what's available, and let them follow their interests.

As the after-Christmas sale season is upon us, take advantage of the  deals many stores have to offer.  Below I've listed several games by price point.  
Where to find them: CVS/Rite Aid, target, 5 below, dollar tree, Toys R Us and (of course) Amazon.  Happy bargain hunting!

Super Affordable ($1-5)

*Shape & Color Bingo

*Pictureeka (my students spend more time using it as a seek-and-find than anything else)

*Scribble Dash

*Pixel Flip (tint-matching memory)

*Crayola Puzzles

Mid-Range Fun ($6-12)

*Rory's Story Cubes (my go-to for last minute class coverages, I have students roll the dice, then write a story or draw a picture that incorporates the images)

*Modern Art Memory

*Color Scheme (think connect 4 meets color mixing- made by Educational Insights)

Modern Art Memory comes with an
illustrated guide to the artworks and artists!

What games have you discovered to be both fun and content-rich?

Just another ordinary day...

by Elizabeth Van Allen

scribblesbyartteachervanallen.blogspot.com

When people ask about my profession, the most common response tends to be "Wow, you're an art teacher?  That must be fun!"  While it can indeed be a fun time, it's also a LOT of hard work.  For the majority of the public who haven't participated in a normal K-8 school day since they were young, it is my distinct pleasure to help you understand why the 'fun' classes can be very tough to teach.  

Warning: the following fictional advertisement is completely accurate.  

Daily Routine
When it comes to my daily schedule I consider myself to be very lucky.  Most of my days start with older students for 3 periods, followed by my lunch and then lunch duty.  After that I have 2 periods of younger students.  

KEY- #=Grade Level, K=Kindergarten, AS=Autistic Support, LSS=Life Skills Support
Anything else... keep reading!

Class sequence really matters! 

Some days it takes more energy 
than expected to meet my 
students at their level with 
the dignity and respect 
they deserve... especially 
the more imaginative ones.

Having grade levels in descending order helps me to transition more smoothly from one age group to the next. Some years I've taught grade levels in what seemed to be a completely random order. This means that not only is there a materials "set change" every 45 minutes, I also have to change my demeanor, vocabulary, class format, and even the way I give directions in order to keep the subject matter accessible to all age groups.   

The next time you spend time with a young child, take notice of the small changes you make while interacting with them. What does your body language say?  How simple or complex are the words that you use?  Would they respond better to a silly song about colors or a story about how a graffiti artist layers paint in order to create 

Teaching strategies vary widely depending 
on the level of the students being taught. 
 Just imagine this scene with teenagers!
http://www.donorschoose.org/we-teach/851213/?historical=true

 different effects?  How would you adjust your demeanor when shifting between talking with a 5-year old and a teenager?  The type of vocabulary, body language, and subject matter you use with older students can be pretty different than how you would present yourself to the little ones.  Imagine having to make that type of shift five or six times in one day in order to teach appropriately to your students' developmental level.  I get exhausted just thinking about it!  For many teachers, this is what happens on an ordinary day. 

Scheduling Wild Card: Lunch Duty
At first I was very apprehensive about lunch duty.  Now I see that it's given me the opportunity to interact with my students a little less formally and in a different way.  This strengthens our teacher-student relationship by allowing us to get to know each other on another level.  For me, the secret to lunch duty success is to provide something for the students to do.  I noticed a while ago that my students love playing mancala.  I went out and purchased a couple of sets and in no time there was a race between students to borrow my games.  

Behold the awesome calming powers of MANCALA!

After 5 months we've only lost a few pieces and the boxes are still in great shape.  Why?  Because I stress that the person who borrows it is 100% responsible to return it in tip top order.  If I have to go looking for the games or they are brought back in bad shape all of my mancala sets go on vacation for a week.  

Reality Recap
So what does this all add up to?  
To summarize my day: 

• I usually teach 5 classes a day of up to 33 students ranging in age from 5 to 15.  That's a weekly total of 26 classes and up to 700 students.
• Each class is 45 minutes long with no break or transition time in between periods.  (that means no emergency bathroom breaks!)
• I never have the same age or developmental level two classes in a row.  
• I get 45 minutes for lunch and 39 minutes to prepare my lesson plans and supplies for the next day. If my lessons require more prep time than that, it's done on my own time either before or after school.
• For 45 minutes each morning I could be asked to teach any grade level in any subject at a moment's notice.
• 45 minutes in the afternoon are dedicated to making sure that all of the girls in grades 6-8 are fed and safe in the lunchroom.
• I put my own resources into extras not because I enjoy a lighter wallet, but because it makes the quality of life better for others, which in turn makes my job a little bit easier.

...and I do all of this because I love my students and I'm passionate about giving them a quality public education.

What 'norms' exist in your workplace that people in other professions find surprising?

I'm not Oprah or Julie Andrews.

by Elizabeth Van Allen for scribblesbyartteachervanallen.blogspot.com/

Nobody would ever mistake me for Julie Andrews or Oprah (not that I wouldn't mind having that kind of influence), but that doesn't mean I can't give a shout out to a few favorite everyday, make-life-a-little-easier things that I love.  I can't give them away and if I sing about them you might change the channel, so I'll make this a quick commercial break of unsolicited and unpaid (hint hint ahem) product plugs.

Tip: Attach a piece of cardboard
to the inside lid of a storage
case to test your markers!

Favorite Tool: Paint Pens

I use sharpie oil-based paint pens for everything in the classroom from posters and signs to labeling student tables.  These amazing paint pens don't bleed, run or fade.  When laminated the paint stays true to color and keeps a sharp edge.  While I wouldn't let my students use them due to their slight odor, extreme permanence and cost, they are a permanent addition to my teacher toolkit. 


Favorite Comfort: 2 oz Miracle Insole

If your feet ache at the end of the day give these a try!  Your tootsies will be back to normal in no time thanks to the magic of the 2 oz Miracle Custom Molding Insole.  I've tried just about every reasonably priced insole on the market and I keep coming back to these.  The 2 oz miracle costs less than $10 and can usually be purchased in more budget-minded grocery stores.  They last forever and are easy to trim to the right shape/size.  I've used them in everything from flats to heels to boots.  Since they're super thin they work without changing the fit of the shoe.  

Favorite Impulse Buy: Stoppy

My art room has very heavy doors that are not a normal distance from the ground.  Consequently, regular doorstops are useless in my classroom.  For two years I had to tie my door handle to the handle of an exit door in order to keep it open for conferences and back-to-school nights.  In my head I sound like a bad infomercial salesman as I write this, but I've finally found my answer.

I have the solution to all of your doorstop needs and it's called the Stoppy.  Now go back and re-read that last statement, but imagine that the sound in your brain has just been turned up to 11 and I am shout-talking in a very enthusiastic manner.  Go ahead, I'll wait.  Seriously though, this Stoppy door stop is amazing.  If you ever see these in the store, get one.  Infomercial over.  

What products have made 
your everyday life 
a little more user friendly?

Winning The Paperwork Game

Apple crates make great shelves. 

by Elizabeth Van Allen 

scribblesbyartteachervanallen.blogspot.com

Work smarter, not harder.  If you teach multiple classes like I do (26 each week, thank you very much), do yourself a favor and streamline all of those required plans and charts into one multi-purpose document.  I finally figured this out during my 8th year of teaching and my daily life miraculously got less complicated.  I now have 10 weeks of attendance, seating, behavior and planning on one double sided sheet of card stock (see pictures below).  My binder stays with me wherever I go.  I have a much better memory for patterns than names, so when I see a student in the hall I usually associate them with the weekday/grade/period/seat that pertains to them.  I flip to the appropriate chart and can address them by name when I greet them.  

Re-think your format and reclaim wasted space.  What's the point in wasting the left half of your open notebook with the back of another form?  Hole punch the sheet you use for grades, phone call logs, or whatever else you need to have close at hand during class on the right side instead of the left.  Insert it face-to-face with the attendance/seating/planning chart and you'll have all the information you need directly in front of you at all times.  Are you a lefty?  Switch sides so that your most frequently used document is on your dominant side.  As you use up both sides of your charts and need fresh ones, put the old ones in another binder for future reference.

I recently attached a wired pen to my binder, now I always have something to write with!

Log breaking news as it happens.  If you're not keeping detailed records on each student you're leaving yourself open for disaster.  That being said, there are only so many hours in the day.  I don't know about you, but I am not devoting my precious class or personal time to writing full sentences about student behaviors.  Develop a system of symbols and/or letters that stand for common behaviors and note them directly next to that student on your seating chart and/or class attendance documents.  

Get out your magnifying glass and look at the bottom of this image.

The information entered in the boxes under seats A & B at each table
refer to the date found in the corresponding box at the top left of the form.

Under the weekly planning area is a line with my own codes for attendance and common student behaviors.  I use T for talking (out of turn, way too loud or over instructions), U for up or wandering, WO means that the student walked out of class without permission, B is talking back/bad attitude and WS stands for sitting in the wrong seat.  Usually I indicate good behavior with one or more + signs or a word like 'helper'.  NEVER forget to mark down positive behavior, and make sure to tell your students that you do this.  Showing them the +'s next to their names really drives the point home and reinforces your good intentions.

Helful hint:  One slight change that I strongly suggest making in your attendance routine is to substitute a dot for the usual check mark indicating that a student is present and on time.  This small shift reduces your visual clutter and makes it less confusing if you ever use a -/checkmark/+ system for homework or classwork.  

Keep records of all calls to one parent in one place.  I was given a document years ago that was invaluable in logging my parent contacts, mostly due to it's simplicity.  To create an effective, streamlined parent contact form I suggest formatting it with a heading of contact information and columns underneath.  I like having 5 columns: one each for a phone call's date, time, reason/purpose, whether or not the guardian could be reached, and who you spoke to about what. When applicable I use the code LM for left message.  You can fill them out as you need to or have the students write in their own contact info on the first day of school in lieu of a 3x5 card. 

Security note:  I often call parents from my classroom on my cell phone using *67 to block my personal contact information.  This keeps students honest by not giving them the option to get my number from an adult's phone.  It also keeps me from getting after hours calls.  Each student number is labeled as Parent-FirstnameLastname in my contact list.   To find a parent contact, all I have to do now is go to the 'P' section and scroll down to the student's name.  

A big thank you to Ginna D'Alba- starting the name with 'parent' was her idea!

Bonus Tip: Once you have forms that really work for you, keep the originals all together in one place.  I have a 'Necessary Forms etc.' binder that I go to several times a year.  Inside I keep a copy of every log, chart, form, and evaluation/rubric that I use.  I always have my most current welcome letters and first-day-of-school plans, and there is a section in the back for invaluable and pertinent info that I don't want to lose.  I also include office papers that never seem to be there when you need them like fax cover sheets and maintenance request forms.  I often write the word original across the top in yellow highlighter because it doesn't show up in black and white photocopies and ensures that you won't use the form accidentally.  

How have you streamlined or simplified your frequently used files for the sake of sanity?

Positively 90's!

This idea was appropriated
from Lynn Bailey, an art
 teacher in inner city Chicago. 

by Elizabeth Van Allen 

scribblesbyartteachervanallen.blogspot.com

"Call my crib, yo."  I hear this ridiculously dated phrase (usually in a mocking or sarcastic tone) at least once a year during every class I teach.  This normally happens when the first lucky student sees the obnoxiously bright pink sign on an obnoxiously bright pink basket that holds my secret weapon.  I use that opportunity to be loudly exclaim my delight at their discovery... the call my crib slip.  I wish I could take credit for this brilliant idea, but I got it from another inner city art teacher.  During the 2007 NAEA conference in NYC I attended a session by Lynn Bailey called Survival Tips for New Inner-City Teachers.  The information packet she distributed was phenomenal, and it included a slip called Call My Crib.  Although I rolled my eyes at the time, she was really on to something!

The whole idea is that every student has an open invitation to be recognized in a positive way.  He or she picks up a slip from the designated basket, fills it out, and hands it to you.  They get a positive phone call home within 24 hours and everyone is happy.  I can not tell you the number of times that a parent or guardian has said "are you sure you got the right kid?"  That's my favorite part.

This is how I get all the 'good' numbers.

Believe it or not, this works better than candy!

  In my school's population, contact numbers change fast.  If a student is injured or in trouble it can sometimes be really difficult to get in contact with their guardian.  The students who are in trouble the most tend to be the ones who really want me to 'call their crib' and deliver some positive news.  This means that I usually have the most up-to-date numbers and the easiest time contacting home.  Plus I develop a good rapport with those parents, resulting in a better response when I call home for a less positive reason.

Word spreads fast. Once I prove that my word is good I develop stronger and more positive relationship with my students.  They want to do well because they know I'll communicate their successes to the right people.  Also, they tell their friends.  Once word spreads my life gets a lot easier.

Positive reinforcement makes a day more enjoyable for everyone involved... especially you.  Try making a positive phone call at the end of a really stressful day, it's like taking a pain killer for a headache.  The rest of your day will feel much, much smoother.

What creative tools do you utilize to form positive relationships with your students and their parents?

Artsandcrafts: the Candy Bar of the Art World

by Elizabeth Van Allen

scribblesbyartteachervanallen.blogspot.com/

When I was young, 'artsandcrafts' was both one word and one subject.  You went to a room/cabin/table/tent, made something fun and walked away with it.  There was no differentiation between aesthetic and functional value.  To be honest, beyond the satisfaction of making something fun or pretty, value of any type -stated or implied- wasn't something that was even touched on.  I understand that this is a more important issue to me as an artist and an art teacher, but I like to make sure my students (and anyone else who will listen) know the difference between 'art' and 'craft' as two separate entities.

http://teachbytes.files.wordpress.com/
2013/02/venn-diagram.jpg

Arts and crafts is not so much a single grouping as it is the title of a Venn diagram.  For the non-initiated, a venn diagram is one of those organizational chart thingies with the two overlapping circles that shows the commonalities shared between two ideas or objects.   

Art-making supplies

The 'Art' category includes expressions and applications of imagination and creative skill that are primarily created for their beauty or emotional power. Paraphrased from google's answer to my search phrase 'definition of art', this best states the nature of art more way more succinctly than I could after literally hours of research on this exact topic over the years.  For the layman, think objects, environments and performances that are created to make you feel a certain way or think about something specific.

Crafts and the materials
they are made from

The 'Craft' side of the diagram includes activity involving skill in making things by hand.  As you may have guessed, I googled that one too.  Why reinvent the wheel when so many people have customized wheels just waiting to be used?  And, if you were wondering, creating customized wheels would be a craft. In layman's terms that means that a craft is usually a functional object fabricated by a real human being, and that it was made using great skill. Think ceramics, weaving, wood working, etc.

Going back to our Venn diagram, for something to qualify for inclusion in the overlapped middle section it would have to be both art and craft.  That means that a highly skilled artisan would have to take their craft beyond function to a place where it was also an expression of a concept or emotion.  As you could imagine, examples of this are fewer and farther between than one might have initially expected.

'Artsandcrafts' supplies

Artsandcrafts is about as similar to Art or Craft as a penguin is to a hawk.  They both share most of the same basic parts, but their function is much, much different.  Artsandcrafts is when you make a fun, sparkly picture.  If that picture were art, it would have purpose and meaning and be well made.  If it were a craft, the picture would probably be three-dimensional and intended for some type of a functional purpose.  While artsandcrafts are usually fun and flashy, for the most part they just don't have the educational or long-term value that a true artwork or a craft does.

So where does artsandcrafts fit into our Venn diagram?  Artsandcrafts is more like the fun picture doodled in the margin of the paper where you drew the diagram.  It's worth is more in practicing a few basic skills that support your art- and craft- making practice than in the finished work itself.  That being said, there is a lot of value in both experimentation with different supplies minus the pressure of creating actual content and the enjoyment you get out of making something just for fun.  While the practice of artsandcrafts might not fit in with the real meaning of art or craft, that doesn't mean you can't enjoy it for what it is... the candy bar of the art world.

Side note/disclaimer: Artsandcrafts should never be confused with the Arts and Crafts movement, a late 19th century push for careful hand craftsmanship and careful attention to overall and decorative design.

Kinesthetic Color Theory

Near: Warm- and cool-
 colored yarn segments
Far: Our project 

by Elizabeth Van Allen

for scribblesbyartteachervanallen.blogspot.com/

I don't scare easily.  Large teenagers looking to fight, real school lock downs, tattooed middle schoolers and parents with anger issues are nothing new to my life.  In contrast, letting small children move around my enormous art room on their own is the stuff that my nightmares are made of.  I have been actively avoiding it for a while now because I keep on involuntarily imagining how all sorts of different worst-case scenarios could play out if I let my sweet little angels loose in the big bad art room.  

This year I've had a few real light bulb moments about ways to connect art with movement in the classroom.  Before I could chicken out, I applied these light bulb ideas to two lessons that I was just starting.  For my first and second graders, I connected student movement with some basic color theory.  In my fifth and sixth grades I tackled the roles of warp and weft in weaving.  Even though it made me a little nervous, I ended up killing 2 birds with 1 stone and successfully taught these concepts to the kids while overcoming my own fear.  Below is a great 5-10 minute color theory activity that can be used with just about any class!

Disclaimer: no birds were actually hurt, maimed or otherwise threatened with any 
number of stones or other objects in the making and execution of this mini-lesson.

The Challenge: 

1. To help 1st and 2nd graders make an actual connection with the concept of warm and cool color families.
2. To guide young students through acceptable new forms of classroom movement.

The Materials: random pieces of yarn (or any other material like buttons or paper squares) in assorted colors, 2 areas of the room that can each be associated with warm or cool colors.

The Activity: 

Note: anything in italics was a key phrase or concept that I included in my classroom monologue.  Take it or leave it in your own unique situation, but they worked for me!

1. After teaching my students about warm colors (think colors that remind you of the sun and fire) and cool colors (think cool water and cool green grass on a hot summer's day), each student is given a piece of yarn.  Helpful hint: While handing out the yarn, take care to keep the balance of warm and cool colors you distribute fairly even.
2. Students are instructed to think (in your head, not out loud): is your yarn a warm color or a cool color?
3. Direct students with warm-colored yarn to stand, push in their chairs, and quietly walk to the _________.  Repeat for students with cool-colored yarn.  Whatever areas you choose, it works best if there is something in that color family there for the students to reference. In my classroom I use two carpets that reside in front of a small teaching easel.  One is marked with warm colored duct tape and the other with cool colored duct tape. Using this location also makes it very convenient to transition into a demonstration.  
4. Check for understanding by having the students hold up their yarns in one area and then the other.  Lavish praise on them for being exceptional human beings.
5. COLLECT THE YARN!!! Oh, and count them as you go to make sure nobody is holding out.  You'd be surprised by what a distraction one little piece of yarn can be!

This 'game' of vocabulary recall, matching, moving around and grouping can be used alone on a 1/2 day or a shortened class, but I've been pairing it with the demonstration portion of my warm & cool landscape lesson. 

Remember to keep a back-up activity on deck in case of over- or under- productive classes.  Not your classes or my classes of course, since we're so amazing with time management and pacing the lesson according to the character of each group.  For those villainous classes that elude our superhuman-like time management skills, I've used warm and cool 'I Spy' as a filler activity.  It's a super sneaky way to reinforce our activity's objective while making it feel like they're playing a game.

• Teacher: "I spy with my little eye something cool colored."
• Student: "Is it the purple bulletin board?"
• Teacher: "No, but good job finding a cool color!" (yay for positive reinforcement!)

What games and tricks have you used to facilitate real learning 

and/or reinforce good behavior?

One 2nd grader decided to plan out her warm and cool 
landscape project in a notebook first.  Color me impressed!