BP15_2009103_Reflective Media Asset NGAkids Art Zone

The National Gallery of Art kids' zone.

Images from http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/zone.htm

BP14_2009103_Comment on Boz's Blog

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2009

BP12_2009103_Web2.0 Evaluation_SurveyMonkey.com

I have seen SurveyMonkey on several occasions, as my school system will frequently utilize it for staff development feedback, or other matters requiring feedback from a large number of personnel in the county. I have found my first use for it in the new computer programming club I am starting at school. As we do not have such courses in our school system, I am using the online survey to get personal info, and computer interest/exoperience information from the students who have expressed interest. Although I have a particular platform in mind for helping to teach computer programming, if I don't cater to the club members' interests there will be no club. A similar welcome survey could be used in my math class setting during the first week to gather info as well as introduce students to the form of the online survey.

Getting started on a free-service survey

A survey program could serve several purposes in a classroom setting. For my math classes, an assignment that includes the accumulation of data could take advantage of such a method of data collection. SurveyMonkey's customizable templates can be suited to nearly any form of data. Surveyors can collect numerical data, demographic data, user input data, and even have users give rated feedback. The online survey could be used to reach a larger audience with less work, producing more data for a better math lesson. For the purposes of the instructor, feedback from multiple courses could be easily compiled into a single survey during a given time window. The instructor merely has to make the survey available to those being surveyed.

Sample survey page: demographic information

images from http://monkeysurvey.com

BP13_2009103_Web 2.0 Brushter

The concept of abstract art is difficult for young kids to understand. I, myself, sometimes have to force another style from my hand, and brush away those pretty lines. Practice is the only way to improve on the different abstract styles. There is often not enough time in the classroom to set up materials and have enough practice time before getting ready for the assignment.

According to the National Gallery of Art, “BRUSHter is an online painting machine for all ages” (2009). This is why I have looked into BRUSHter as the third Web 2.0 tool from NGAkids Art Zone (http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/brushster.htm). Not only does this “online painting machine” contain a variety of over forty brushes, it includes several added effects to blur, smudge, fragment, spread, and ripple the artwork (National Gallery of Art, 2009). It begins with a blank canvas in which the online artist can use any brush and any color. There is no need to worry about the mess or starting over with a different design. The undo and erase options are there to use at the students’ discretion. I have included a short video below showing the many options BRUSHter permits in brush size, effects, and color.

NGAkids Art Zone provides an online book titled Teaching Art Since 1950 by the National Gallery of Art in Washington (http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/artsince1950.pdf). This book includes the major artists and art that affected abstract expressionism from Jackson Pollock’s Lavender Mist to Elizabeth’s Murry’s Careless Love. The resources alone are great instruments for young artists interested in abstract work. Several Art History lessons can be learned through this tool.

Jackson Pollock

Number 1, 1950

(Lavender Mist), 1950

Oil, enamel, and aluminum on canvas,

2.210 x 2.997 m (87 x 118 in.)

Elizabeth Murray

Careless Love, 1995–1996

Oil on shaped canvas,

2.705 x 2.527 x 0.686 m

(1061/2 x 991/2 x 27 in.)

I am aware that the students must not only practice how to create abstract work through simulation in BRUSHter, but must use actual brushes and canvases in the art classroom. By simulation, students will better understand control and strokes and hopefully knowing more about their skills and limitations.

References

National Gallery of Art. (2009). NGA kids brushter. Retrieved October 18, 2009 from http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/brushster.htm

National Gallery of Art. (1999). Teaching art since 1950. Available from http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/artsince1950.pdf

Images from http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/artsince1950.pdf and http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/brushster.htm

BP12_2009103_Web 2.0 Still Life

Creating a Still Life is one of the very first lessons I have my students do because it shows them the basics for creating any work of art through shape, proportion, color, arrangement, and all the elements of art. It is very difficult to get my students interested in drawing or painting a Still Life, yet I know it is necessary for them to learn this. I have tried live fruit, and something always happens to these objects as they get handled by several classes a day and end up rotting or in the trash. Fake fruit has worked, yet also somehow goes missing or dented in the process. I think my students would very much enjoy creating their own Still Life online in a quick and simple way.

The next Web 2.0 tool that I would very much like to use in my art class is NGAkids Still Life. This tool contains a Composer in which students can choose what items to add to their still life via a menu under the screen. It starts with a template of an apple and table. These items can be removed and replaced with anything from the menu. The menu includes small wooden animals and people, apples, vases, books, bowls, fabrics, flowers, fruit, mirrors, papers, shells, tables, and the background wall. All of these items can be manipulated and moved around to create any Still Life.

Once the student has created a still life, the student may switch over to Painter. Through Painter, students have the option of choosing a painting style on the left side, then applying it to the Still Life. There is also an option to save the painting when completed.

The website, http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/stilllife.htm, also contains a slideshow of the famous works that inspired the program along with a checklist of which artists created which paintings. An entire Art History lesson could be formed from this program.

Like Photo Op, the option to save and continue working after the browser has been closed is not there. My students would then probably have to print their work before the class is over and start anew the next day. However, I think I would have them use this Web 2.0 tool to get the idea of what a Still Life is and how to paint one. Once they print a design, they can then use actual paint and canvas to create their very own Still Life painting. They results may turn out much better this way.

Images from http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/stilllife.htm

BP11_2009103_Web 2.0 Photo Op

For this blog and the next two blogs, I’m going over a few of my favorite Web 2.0 tools from The National Gallery of Art Kids Zone website (http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/zone.htm). It contains many Web 2.0 applications ready for online use with the aid of Adobe Shockwave which is also free to download. One of my favorites is Photo Op, http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/photoop.htm. Photo Op is free and has many of the tools necessary to learn about Digital Photography and Photoshop. The first part of Photo Op allows students to play with digital photography using the Snapper. This is specifically set up for a beginner photographer as the panoramic landscape is already in place. Directional arrows allow students to move to any desired spot in the landscape for a photo opportunity. Focus, aperture, and speed are located under the camera. Students can then move the focus, aperture, and speed to see how each one changes the snapshot. Snaps are taken by clicking the button on top of the camera just like you would on a regular camera. Snapshots may be viewed on the left column or in the section on the camera that says Pix.

Once a good number of snapshots have been taken, roughly ten to twelve, students may click on a snapshot and the screen immediately changes to edit mode. If the student wants to edit another picture, clicking on the snapper icon will take them back to the snapshots and they may choose another photo. The editor has several options for effects lined up on the left-hand side. Adding to these effects are options at the bottom of the screen to blend, change or add colors, brush styles, cropping, and collage for mirror and multi effects. Once a desired effect is achieved, the photo is saved by clicking on the “save” button. The saves can be edited again and again and it holds up to eighteen saves while the student is working.

The only thing I don’t like about Photo Op is that it will only allow you to work and save while the browser is open. Once the browser is closed and refreshed, all work is lost unless you have saved a screen shot on your computer. Photo Op also does not allow you to upload photos that have already been taken. Each lesson must be started over. This is why it is mostly a beginner learning tool for the basics of practicing how to use a digital camera and edit a photograph. If I had Photoshop on all the school computers, I would use Photo Op in conjunction with it so that students can attain the basic information first before saving and editing.

Images from http://www.nga.gov/kids/zone/photoop.htm

BP10_2009103_Flickr Lesson Plan

I found a very basic lesson from Korson at St. Mary’s.

https://www.msu.edu/~korsonm1/Images/year%202/Flickr%20Lesson%20plan.pdf

From this lesson plan, I noticed it began with the very basic information of starting an internet favorite photo search. If I were to use a lesson involving Flickr, I would start with this one just to see what photos my students are interested in. It gives me some background information to start from without knowing anything about them.

In the last class, EDE, our group (DesignPros) created a website using experiential learning for the Digital Photography 101 student which included lessons in iPhoto.

http://sites.google.com/site/fsodesignpros/

On the 4^th day of the lesson, there is section which shows students how to share their photos. Posting to facebook, email, and mobileme gallery are the few areas shown to students. Flickr is also a sharing option on iPhoto, yet was not explained because I did not know how to use Flickr. On day 5 of the lesson, students are invited to Ning to share their photos. Flickr would also be a great option in which the instructor can set up a discussion and sharing session with students as well. I think it would be a great critiquing method for beginner digital photography students.

As for my own classroom, I would use Flickr in a few different ways. I want my students to take photos of their artwork, then post to a class group in Flickr for critique. The other lesson would be involving art as digital photography and having students research professional photographers and photographs. The students would then post a photo that belongs to a professional, titling and giving credit to the professional’s name of course. Then students will take actual digital photographs posting them next to a professional’s work to see how they compare after an extensive lesson in digital photography. It would be interesting to see how the students’ work compared to the professionals’.

BP9_2009102_Google Reflective Media Asset

My all time favorite Web 2.0 tool!

Images from http://www.google.com/