Bethany Houston - Art Education

Entry #8:

BRAINY Reflection

March 27th, 2022

#cultivatingfuturemuseumlovers

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          This past Friday was my second BRAINY tour day at the Gregory Allicar Museum! The weather was beautiful, and I think it had all the teachers and students in a positive mood overall. I had a chance to talk to more 4th graders, and get a feel for what kind of experience they were looking to have. In the average group size of 4-5 students, there seemed to be half that wanted to share and talk about their connections, and half that were more hesitant to speak, or just weren’t as sure of themselves. All the groups I had, were full of excited students— and it was really fun having groups with unique energy levels. For this BRAINY tour, my first group was SO interested in the old European portrait gallery, (much more interested than myself.) I didn’t have any speciality researched pieces in that particular gallery, so when they asked questions, I read the wall plaque and we learned together. Two students were interested in the large, heavy, wooden antique chest from Italy, and we figured out what it was intended to hold—children’s clothes. I appreciate that there are some pieces in the museum that I might pass by and not even consider, and with the BRAINY group, they point out a work and ask “What is this all about?” 

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      The first tour I did about a month ago, was quite a whirlwind. I was more worried than I needed to be, and I figured out the pacing and flow that the tour needed. This time, I felt much more prepared, and eager to dive right in to the tour. Last time, I tried to adhere to the exact list of artworks I had prepared, and wanted to squeeze in every piece during the tour. Afterward, I realized that it didn’t give students enough time to find their own interesting piece, so that was my goal for this second day. I think I eliminated two works from my list, but ended up talking about several more pieces that the students picked. They wanted to look at some more works in the African gallery, which I totally understand, since there is just so much amazing artwork made with varying materials. Students always seem to admire the size of the large ceramic pots, especially since they are almost bigger than the students are! There were also some nice pieces in the Glorioserias gallery that caught the students’ eye, and since it is a temporary installation, I certainly didn’t mind giving the students more time to look at those special works.

 

       One thing that I hope can be better in the future, is that many of the BRAINY groups had at least 3-4 Spanish-speaking students, that didn’t yet have the ability to communicate in English. They were engaged in looking at works, but I feel like it’s unfair that they don’t get the same museum experience as their peers. Luckily, each time there was a teacher aide or parent that could translate when needed, but it wasn’t the same kind of tour that the English-as-first-language students were having. I would love to see some small plaques below English language ones in the museum. I think that with an exhibit like Glorioserias, where all of the artists were from Mexico, it would make sense to offer dual language plaques. I think I need to learn some basic art terms in Spanish too, as it could clearly help make better connections with the ESL students. When it came to the art activity, less speaking was necessary, and the project sort of speaks for itself, so I feel like that portion of the tour is probably the most exciting for ESL students. 

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     As for teaching methods, I think that the BRAINY tours really have a good push-pull dynamic between teacher and students. Teachers or museum guides have to put in the work, and research the pieces before hand, to make the tour flow well, and be prepared for different student inquiries. I think older students (like high school,) could utilize more self-led or TAB based methods, but the younger students really need a guide to lead them through the gallery. It’s so different than classroom teaching, since the students are mostly standing and continually moving through a space. It’s easy to lose their attention, and I think having a good energy level is key to keeping the students engaged. Also, even though the teacher or guide has an idea of artworks they want students to look at, I think it’s important for students to find what captures their attention. This reflects some of more student-led ideals. I think giving students the sketchbooks is a great way for students to do reflective activities during their time in the gallery. It works as a kind of journal or log book, and they can look back after they go back to school and think about why they decided to draw those things in their sketchbook. 

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     I like that the museum events offer a different type of art teaching experience. Some teachers might only want to teach in the museum, and I’ve met a few teachers that prefer it to standard k-12 classrooms. I do think that k-12 students should get endless opportunities to go to museums of different types, since I believe they offer more than just classroom environments alone. 

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    I feel like I was more prepared in most ways, but could see that each time I do the BRAINY tour, I get better, and have better strategies for unique groups. I think that just doing it more would yield even better results. I’m a little sad that we only do it a few times during the semester. I think I would love to take my future students on a field trip if it worked out in the school I was teaching at. No matter how prepared I am (right now,) there are always odd questions or hyper students that might shift the flow of the tour, but I know that confidence is just something that comes with experience and time.

 

    For my reflective artwork I went more representative for my metaphor landscape. I tried to think of a way to depict a serene and reflective water scene, and thought back to a vacation I had taken to South Carolina. Cypress trees are one of my favorite trees, and I like the little knobby roots that come up out of the water. I like how certain types of trees like aspens and cypresses seem to exist as a community and support the growth of one another, without crowding. Reflection is a key part of these BRAINY tours, and I like how the kids reflect on their museum visits with us at the end. It helps us teachers make better lessons for future students. :)