Art 310

Implementation:

In an effort to introduce students to the idea of play and artmaking, I wanted to start with an activity that would loosen them up, but also do something that would be familar to them which is why music was incorporated.

Students were told that their focus should be on themselves and the music; no talking was allowed during this activity. Once they were ready at the work station they chose, they were instructed to make marks in response to different types of music I would play(fast, slow, calm, chaotic). The songs I used for these music types were “William Tell Overture” for fast, “Moonlight Sonata” for slow, jazz music from our SEL playlist in class for calm, and “Galop Infernal” for chaotic.

At the start, I encouraged students to use their whole bodies. I demonstrated what that could look like from arm swings, trunk twists, and different shoulder motions. I showed the activity on the giant Post-It sticky notes as that is what the students would have been using.

Students were given their own giant Post-It and the ability to choose the colors they wanted to use. They were given the descriptors for each type of music and told to select colors that might represent their emotions for those particular types of songs. They were to draw division lines on their paper into four sections before the music began playing. I played each song and gave a brief pause between songs for students to observe and take in how movement changed their marks.

As I played each song, students listened quietly and began making marks on their papers. I was happy to see so many students with their eyes closed, really taking in what they were hearing, and also a lot of movement and/ or dancing to the sounds they heard. I made sure to give a minute between each song so they could re-center before the next one.

Reflection:

After the activity, the students did a gallery walk to view their classmates’ work. I didn’t assign them a prompt at that moment and decided to just hang back and listen to the conversation as they freely walked the room, looking at all the colorful artwork. They noticed for themselves that most used zig-zag lines for both fast and chaotic. They also noticed that several of them had drawn heart shapes or shapes similar to hearts where “calm” music was played.

After the gallery walk was concluded, they were given their exit survey for the activity. The exit ticket questions the students were given were as follows:

1. How did the music affect the way you moved and the kinds of marks you made on your Post-it?
   What changed when the tempo or mood shifted?
2. What emotion or feeling showed up for you the most during this activity, and where can you see it in your marks? (Think color, line quality, speed, pressure, etc.)
3. What did you notice about yourself when you had to create without talking—did it change your focus, your comfort level, or your creativity?

As for myself, I thoroughly enjoyed watching them do this activity. There was some laughter, a lot of dancing, and students who usually struggle to stay on task or even awake were engaged in the activity because it was my 1st period. I was also extremely pleased to hear some color and line explanation descriptions because they were using terminology from when I taught them in 5th grade; they’re 8th graders now.