KML Curriculum and Instruction Blog

I am currently reading Art as Experience by John Dewey for an Art History course that I am taking.  As you know, Dewey is a revered education psychology contributor.  He writes, "Life itself consists of phases in which the organism falls out of step with the march of surrounding things and then recovers unison with it--either through effort or by some happy change.   And, in a growing life, the recovery is never mere return to a prior state, for it is enriched by the state of disparity and resistance through which it has successfully passed.  If the gap between organism and environment is too wide, the creature dies.  If its activity is not enhanced by the temporary alienation, it merely subsists.  Life grows when a temporary falling out is a transition to a more extensive balance of the energies of the organism with those of the conditions under which it lives" (13). I have been contemplating a few of Dewey's ideas for awhile now.  Here are my app...

Teamwork in a School Good reminder!

Another great video to watch from the Teaching Channel came my way again today.   This video  focused on different ways to allow students to communicate within the classroom.  It also has great ideas about questioning strategies within a classroom.  Some of the non-verbal communication ideas also seemed useful.

Daniel Pink, TMEA Keynote 2009 Everything is bigger in Texas, and that is true even with their professional conferences. The Texas Music Educators' Association (TMEA) conference is the largest music education conference in the U.S., and they spare no expense in bringing in well-known speakers for their general session keynotes. During the 2014 conference last month, they brought in Sir Ken Robinson, who is arguably the biggest name in education today. In 2009, Daniel Pink spoke at TMEA on the value of arts education. Knowing where my passion lies, you can understand why I found this video interesting. Even if you only have the ability to play the radio, I think you will find this video interesting and informative. I think his discussion of what 21st century skills in the global economy look like will be worth your time. Watch the longer video. It has many implications for American education in general and our vision of our curriculum in the years to come.

Josh S. sent me this interesting article  regarding lecturing in a classroom.  It is really common to hear that lecturing is bad, and that hands-on inquiry is good.  However, this article puts the debate in a new light.  It isn't that lecturing is always bad.  Sometimes it may be good.  However, lecturing prohibits the teacher from truly knowing what the students know.

I ran across an link  with several interesting thoughts today.  It hit at the heart of a potential huge strength of technology.  Technology has the potential to customize education (differentiation) for each individual student.   I really enjoyed its links to  Adaptive Learning Technology Companies like  Achieve 3000  or  The Aleks Corporation .  I could see great potential with this type of curriculum integration at our school.

The KML Schools Art Curriculum Committee recently held it's first Art Make & Take. KML federation grade school teachers from a variety of schools and grade levels attended.  They left with lesson and project plans as well as at least one sample project that they created.  The teachers also had time to build professional relationships and gain insight into how others teach art. The Make & Take focused teachers on the intentional teaching of line, one of the elements of art, while also introducing the work of master artists as examples.  The lesson plan about line offered a comprehensive view of what students should understand and be able to do by the end of eight grade.  Teachers can choose what information is appropriate for their students based on grade level and prior knowledge.  The projects allow for adaptation to a variety of grade levels as well. The committee plans to offer Make & Takes on a monthly basis, each focusing on a different elem...