8/20/12

Today was my first day inside the Shawnee Mission North art room. We began the day with four consecutive blocks of Jewelry/Sculpture. Cortney said she's never had one class four blocks in a row and it makes transitions so much easier. It was a good introduction into the clockwork of her room. To have four blocks of the same class gave me the opportunity to pay close attention and discover details in the classroom. The most obvious thing were the students. It was interesting to see the differences in students and recognize how they approached the lesson, project, or Cortney, herself. Most students were respectful. Students worked well and weren't too distracted or disruptive. However, the whole class period was creating journals, so students had an open space of time to work independently and freely. There weren't many restrictions so student's worked well.

It has been fun to see how Cortney reacts to and manages her students. Their relationship is positive.  She jokes around with them a lot and seems to have a laid back sense of class management. Or it seems more casual. She can raise her voice very easily (something I envy!). She begins with a scary "Are you listening"...and ends with a friendlier, "to me?" So I can see that she has or seeks a more friendly attitude with her students. But she stays authoratative and stern with an excited and energetic attitude.

AP STUDIO

AP Studio is different than Jewelry/Sculpture. The students seem more comfortable with each other and thus, chattier. There class is pretty large, which is surprising for AP. Cortney did say that there were more students enrolled in the class that probably shouldn't be. While the students do seem to get along well, I could still see problems arising with the classroom meshing well. It's possible that student's might build each other up. But I'm afraid some student's (on the lower end of the scale) might get left in the dust. But, this is, alas, not up to me! And it's not really up to Cortney either, I think.

HA: "I've been teaching for 12 years and I've seen high school work for 12 years. I'm over it. Do something different!"  - Cortney (ap studio)