Also this week, we had Spirit Week. Every day was something different. The only one I managed to get a picture of, however, was crazy hair day.
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| Weak for crazy hair, I know. One of my students did it for me though. |
Besides these two week-long events, was my normal art schedule. This week included SketchUp with 8th grade, paper mache with 7th grade, and ceramics with 6th grade. While I know that I'm an art teacher and art is messy, I am not by nature. After so many days of me and my room being covered in various messy materials and not having the time to get it clean and orderly, I began to feel a little overwhelmed. To add to this feeling, I also continued to hit the wall mural hard. Check out this guy. He's what I've been working on.
But wait! Here's the kicker- I've been painting them all the way down the front hallway outside of the library! So far, I am up to two emblems and eight trojan heads. Now all they need is the font to be chosen, drawn, and painted in blue. Right now, I'm estimating that will take me approximately another five years. In all seriousness though, I was so excited to showcase the final product to you here when completed. Unfortunately, that just wasn't in the cards. At least now though, you are able to see what the big project entailed and the direction it is going. I do think it will be awesome when finished.
While I'm sure most people would take this opportunity to talk about how quickly their time in grad school flew by, that they can barely tell where the time has gone, and what a wonderful experience it has been, I simply cannot. As a rule, I am a very honest person. Therefore, I will tell you that this whole experience did not fly by and some of the time, I hated it. Trying to work full time, take care of my students, still be a good friend, daughter, sister, and wife, and take time to do the crazy amount of work- that was extremely difficult! Unlike many of my fellow classmates, I do not have children, and I can only imagine this being ten times more challenging if I did! So to say that this time has flown by and I loved every minute- well, I just can not make such a claim.
However, before looking like this, I had to do a little pre-painting. As pictured below, pre-painting is basically the first layer. It's thin and messy, but done fairly quickly.
What takes so long is the edging. For instance, this HCS emblem has not yet been edged. See the bumpy lines? That all has to be fixed. It is a very tedious job and is made even more frustrating by the bumpy texture of the wall. Stressful stuff, these murals are!
But wait! Here's the kicker- I've been painting them all the way down the front hallway outside of the library! So far, I am up to two emblems and eight trojan heads. Now all they need is the font to be chosen, drawn, and painted in blue. Right now, I'm estimating that will take me approximately another five years. In all seriousness though, I was so excited to showcase the final product to you here when completed. Unfortunately, that just wasn't in the cards. At least now though, you are able to see what the big project entailed and the direction it is going. I do think it will be awesome when finished.
In the library, things were pretty much the same this week. Shelving and painting was all I devoted my time to doing. I have to confess, that as mundane as shelving actually is, it felt good to do something I could control. Being such a perfectionist, sometimes I struggle with teaching art (and teaching in general) due to the large amount of control I must let go of. This is not a natural state for me, and after a week of somewhat controlled chaos, I was glad to have a task that was orderly, neat, and also one that accomplishes something. It gave me a chance to stop and breath and daydream for awhile- a little mental vacation. This reflection now brings me to my final thoughts- the real conclusion- of both my practicum experience as well as my time spent in graduate school.
While I'm sure most people would take this opportunity to talk about how quickly their time in grad school flew by, that they can barely tell where the time has gone, and what a wonderful experience it has been, I simply cannot. As a rule, I am a very honest person. Therefore, I will tell you that this whole experience did not fly by and some of the time, I hated it. Trying to work full time, take care of my students, still be a good friend, daughter, sister, and wife, and take time to do the crazy amount of work- that was extremely difficult! Unlike many of my fellow classmates, I do not have children, and I can only imagine this being ten times more challenging if I did! So to say that this time has flown by and I loved every minute- well, I just can not make such a claim.
However, what I can claim is that I learned a lot. From cataloging to digital citizenship to collaboration, the amount of information gained from this program is sure to prepare me for my future as an LMS. I can also say that while in the program, I did a complete 180 in terms of what I would actually do with my degree upon completing it. When first entering the program, I did not enjoy my classes. I did not understand how they would impact my career, and I felt that some of them merely offered redundant, busy work. As I continued in the program, though, I began to see my future take shape. I finally began connecting the dots and understanding exactly what all of the lessons meant. The practicum experience is what drove this idea home for me. Actually being hands-on in the LMC and putting myself in that role made me realize how badly I wanted this. Lastly, I can say that it has made me think on a much larger scale in terms of educating today's youth. Art is, and will continue to stay, a passion of mine. I still consider it a disservice to students to not offer an Arts program. And quite honestly, I still would enjoy teaching art in the future, if that's what it held. However, after completing this program and participating in these courses, I feel a much larger sense of responsibility to the children I work with. I no longer wish to impact just their creative side, but all of the information they gain while at school. I want to guide them in their quests for knowledge for both projects and life. I want to help mold them into responsible, self-motivated individuals. I want to impact how they view lifelong learning. Being a library media specialist puts me in this position.
Despite the amount of time and work invested, I believe it's true- that whatever is worth attaining and accomplishing does, and should not, come easy. Without the struggle, I would not feel the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction that I do now. Although it did not present itself in the way I expected, in the end, I am incredibly grateful for the experience I have had in learning to be an LMS. Here's to the future, which is looking pretty bright.
That? Oh yea, that's one little thing I hadn't announced. This next school year, I will no longer be an art teacher, but a library media specialist in my own community. And there's the happy ending. Thanks for reading!
Despite the amount of time and work invested, I believe it's true- that whatever is worth attaining and accomplishing does, and should not, come easy. Without the struggle, I would not feel the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction that I do now. Although it did not present itself in the way I expected, in the end, I am incredibly grateful for the experience I have had in learning to be an LMS. Here's to the future, which is looking pretty bright.
That? Oh yea, that's one little thing I hadn't announced. This next school year, I will no longer be an art teacher, but a library media specialist in my own community. And there's the happy ending. Thanks for reading!
