Miranda Lauzon 103322203

Year 1 Semester 2 Practicum Reflection: A Challenging Lesson

My five week placement started the week of February 22, 2016 and ended on April 1,
2016 and this gave me a substantial learning experience. The first lesson that I conducted
through this block was by far the most challenging because I was required to integrate Literacy
for OSSLT preparation; I was teaching two grade 10 classes, period 3 and 4.. For this first year, I
have been working in my Visual Arts teachable so my associate and I thought it would be best to
focus on the opinion essay. The assignment consisted of examining Fishing Boats on the Beach
by Vincent Van Gogh and the students we required to argue whether or not they believed that the
painting was a good composition. Students needed to demonstrate their knowledge of the
elements and principles of design which are foundational concepts in understanding a work as a
whole; otherwise known as the composition. I was nervous to deliver this lesson, though, it
helped that the Literacy Coach, Mrs. Sadie, would team teach with me.
As a class, the students and I wrote out a checklist of components that are important to
have in an essay (introduction, 3 body paragraphs, and conclusion). Next, I handed out a sample
essay that I wrote out and asked different sections of the class to share the argument and
evidence/proof. After this activity, I showed the class the painting of Van Gogh and took a survey
of the students opinions; is it a good or bad composition? On the board I started to write down
the reasons for their opinions, and asked them to use the principles of design as the arguments
(balance, contrast, movement, etc). Once we brainstormed five of arguments, I wrote each
principle on a piece of chart paper as the Literacy Coach, Mrs. Sadie, explained the graffiti
exercise. After splitting the class into groups of five, I explained that the students would travel to
each chart paper around the room and need to argue each principle by describing which elements
of design (line, colour, shape) are contributing to a good or bad composition. The next day, I
distributed graphic organizers for the students to write down their three arguments (principles)
and their proof (elements). At the end of day two, I collected the organizers and wrote feedback
for the next day when they would start writing their essays.
The most challenging element of this lesson was the fact that the students shut down after
I told them we would be writing an essay. It was very difficult to get the students to participate
and prompting them with questions was like pulling teeth. Unfortunately in period 3, I handed
out the actual assignment and rubric before they even needed it; however, this taught me to only
distribute handouts if they are working on them at that time. Thus, some of my sequencing was a
little shaky due to my nerves in having to incorporate literacy, and knowing that the students
would not like this assignment. My associate was also teaching a grade 10 class during period 1
but she used a completely different method. She told me that she did this on purpose just to show
me a different sequence, and I prefer her approach because there was more step-by-step
instruction. The students were not told until the third day that they would be writing an essay so
her process seemed to unfold more smoothly. My lesson by far was not a disaster because most
of the students did very well when I was grading; though a small handful had to rewrite. Next
time, I would definitely give the students an opportunity to choose their own painting for more
engagement.

Year 1 Semester 2 Practicum Reflection: A Strong Lesson

Throughout my whole placement block, I rather enjoyed by landscape and watercolour
lesson the most. In this assignment, students were required to create landscape watercolour
paintings which were created through step-by-step- instruction. These paintings needed to have a
foreground, middle ground, and background, as well as evidence of using 5 out of 10 techniques
learned in class. Examples of techniques included using tissue paper, wax resist, and wet on wet.
On day 1, I delivered a lesson and handout about landscape which included the elements
of a landscape, types of landscapes, and techniques for creating the illusion of space. The lesson
turned into a nice open discussion about students favourite types of landscapes and they created
creative pictures in their chart based on creating space (ex. Overlapping objects, intensity of
colour). On day 2, I conducted a technique workshop on watercolours which consisted of a
Powerpoint to follow along with as they experiments with the different materials that I had set
up. At the beginning of class, the students came went right into the other side of the room, asked
them to pick up one of each item lined up on the table and bring to their desk. Once everyone
was ready, we started with the techniques and I walked around to make sure everyone was
following instructions before moving on to the next technique. At the end of class, each student
now had a sheet of techniques to look at for when we started painting. Day 3, I handed out
rubrics, explained the assignment, and moved on to the rough drafts of their landscapes. Students
started with all creating a landscape in the following order: hills, sun, waves, land/sand, and
flowers. I made sure to have examples of all these elements on Powerpoint but students were
also encouraged to add their own unique elements. If students were ready, they would trace the
good copy on watercolour and start painting by day 5.
Even though not all students have a talent for painting, the assignment is set up for all to
succeed as long as the painting demonstrated the following criteria: a proper landscape, evidence
of 5 techniques, creativity with colour choice, outlined in black marker, demonstrates effort, and
completed in a timely manner. This assignment was a huge success when I was marking the
paintings because for all following the same steps, each landscape was vastly different. The
techniques really made the elements of the landscape stand out, and most students enjoyed this
process of experimentation. The only way a student could do poorly on this assignment is if no
effort was involved, not enough techniques used, or did not follow the step-by-step instruction.
During the work periods, I was so busy giving students my opinion about their work, or helping
them with techniques. I really felt the students start to really value me as a teacher through this
assignment, and they were all so excited to show me the finished works. The students that told
me that they could not paint at the beginning of this assignment had highly successful work
because the steps are easy to follow. I found that this process is the best way for students to
succeed and there is nothing I would change about my sequencing or success criteria.

Year 1 Semester 2 Practicum Reflection: Summation

I found that I preferred the five week placement block this semester because there was
more consistency in building rapport with students. Through this experience, I am starting to see
that school should be an opportunity for an individual to start discovering their identity. The
school and classroom should be a safe and inclusive space for all students and I see that these
values are reflected at W.F. Herman Secondary. There are many academic supports for students
that struggle and even special places for minority students that are at risk. It is important for a
school to develop and sustain the sense of community because youth need the social tools to
thrive as a citizen in the larger community. I reflected this attitude in my placement whenever I
was conducting a lesson by making sure that all participate, and feel comfortable with the task at
hand.
The curriculum should be fair and inclusive because successful teachers design courses
that give all the opportunity to be successful. In this placement, I have learned the value of stepby-step instruction especially in an open course such as Visual Arts because it should be
automatic to accept that all students are at different levels in ability. For this reason, I would
never expect students to complete an assignment that required advanced skills or complicated
instructions such as realistic portraits; many of these students take the course because they have
to receive an art credit even if they have never drawn or painted before. As a result, it is the role
of the teacher to make clear and concise instructions that are easy to follow. The educator must
encourage and praise students for their efforts, as well as provide sufficient feedback. I have a
genuine concern for student success, and this placement has taught me to always look for
different methods that can help students to better understand the content.
It is my experience that students should come to school wanting to be successful. If this is
not demonstrated, it is my role to intervene and collaborate with the student on ways to make
their experience more productive. For instance, I had a student whose attendance that was very
spotty and he handed in no work for weeks. I took it upon myself to sit with him after a lesson
and make an agreement to take some work home and come to lunch to catch up. After a week of
persistent checking up, the student had caught up with more than half the work. As much as I can
try to help a student succeed, it is their choice to make the right decision, and most times, I trust
that they do. I have learned to never judge a student`s abilities based on the quality of the work
because there are numerous outside circumstances that affect that child`s life. Overall, working
in LEAD has given me that knowledge and made me more open to developing the student as a
whole.
Lastly, my associate had a phone free zone which lessened the level of distraction in the
room but I believe that integrating technology would be a good tool for engagement. In my own
class, I would encourage students to research topics in the classroom, though, stress the point that
technology is not out when I am teaching. I have only used Powerpoint because the Visual Arts
course is more hands-on but I am interested in experimenting with ways to include the whole
class more. I think technology would be a great tool for more privatized feedback and another
outlet for creativity such as portfolios and blogs. Opening up these avenues allows the students
with more choice in assignments and I find choice is very important for engagement.