AestheTECH

Vocabulary is an important part of learning in the art room.  We spend part of every class reviewing art terms and academic vocabulary.  As a parent and a teacher, I struggle with ways to motivate some children to learn new words.  SpellingCity.com is fun site which may encourage youngsters to spend time learning important words through games such as "hang mouse" and crossword puzzles. 

Teachers or parents simply type in the list of words and students can click on the "Teach Me" button to hear words pronounced, spelled and used in a sentence.  Or click on the "Play a Game" button to interact with the new words in a fun and meaningful way.  Once a student is ready, click on the "Test Me" button to take a test and then review the words missed. Teachers and parents may also print handwriting sheets.  This is a great site to add to your classroom centers or "at home" studies!

Developing a web site for my art classroom has been on my ‘to-do’ list since I returned to teaching one year ago.  Instead, I ended up feeling a little like a newbie and spent most of my time planning, prepping, fundraising, and organizing for all of my little artists.  The web site took a back seat.   

This fall, I decided the web page was a must and I set out to have it complete (or nearly so) before the first day of school.  The web site www.mrschristopher.com includes standard information such as class rules and grading policy as well as a student art gallery.  I have also included a teacher blog and wish list.  Not only have I received great feedback from teachers and parents but also, in only three days, parents have responded with bags of donations for our creative classroom!  What great support – why didn’t I think of this last year?  

The teacher blog will be updated weekly with information about our featured artist, class projects, photos, local art events and fundraiser information.  Next week, I will share the site with my students and encourage them to explore the pages, visit the links and respond by commenting on the blog.  For student safety, I have set comments on the blog to require teacher approval prior to posting.  Later this fall, I hope to begin an “Art Tech Club” and I will be adding additional pages to showcase our art with technology.  

Web pages are becoming more and more popular among teachers and are often taking the place of newsletters.  In a country where so much emphasis is placed on standardized tests, the Internet provides art teachers like me an opportunity to get a little PR!  It is the perfect place to show the world that critical thinking, problem solving and cooperative learning does take place in the arts – at least it does in my room and I can’t wait to brag about it ☺