Ø “Are you scared Darth Vador”
by Adam Rex
Ø Preserving the art in language arts
Language after all is only the
use of symbols, and art evokes
emotions through symbols.
-George Henry Lewes-
Ø Skills and art are interchangeable
Ø Art is a collaboration of the skills we
have learned, which create meaning
and evoke emotion
Ø Application vs. comprehension
(emotional and cognitive)
Ø Action vs. expression
Ø Teaching to do vs. learning to be
GENERAL OUTCOMES
Explore
Respect
Create Manage
Reflection:
Ø Skills are superficial and turn into
muscle memory
Ø Art allows you to gain a sense of
autonomy or ownership
Ø They both require time and effort
Ø They give us the ability to gain new
perspective
Ø They both have a fixed and growth
element
Decoding
• Phonemic
Awareness
• Vocabulary Ø “The Halloween Tree” by Ray
• Fluency
• Phonics
Comprehension
Bradbury
Ø “The Crazy Man” by Pamela
Porter
Ø “On Writing: A memoir of the
Craft” by Stephen King
Ø Analysis: break apart the whole
into smaller bits to better
Ø Accessing prior knowledge understand the whole.
Ø Questioning/ Predicting Ø Critical: analyze the text
Ø Analyzing structure through a specific lens.
Ø Visualizing Ø Efferent: Knowledge
Ø Summarizing Ø Aesthetic: pleasure
“. . .from their earliest years
children live on familiar terms
with disrupting emotions, fear
Ø Listen-spoken, reading-read, view and anxiety are an intrinsic
Ø Pre-reading, reading, post-reading part of their everyday lives,
Ø Reading Strategies: predict, visual they continually cope with
representation, quotes, themes, frustrations as best they can.
recall, character development And it is through fantasy that
Ø Mirror: look into self children achieve catharsis. It
Ø Window: look into the world is the best means they have
Comprehend
The MORE that you READ, the for taming Wild Things.”
- Maurice Sendak-
more things you will KNOW,
the MORE that you LEARN, the
more places you’ll GO. Episodic
-Dr. Seuss –
READING: is the act of interpreting a
message, a negotiation of meaning
Book Collection: Explanatory
Writing Narrative
Ø Student success: scaffolding
Ø Emergent reading: already in the
Ø “The Dot” by Peter H. Reynolds
process of becoming literate
Ø Zone of Proximal Development Ø “Like Water for Chocolate” by
Laura Esquivel
(Vygotsky) Descriptive
Ø Works cognitively not emotionally
 •to discover self
Personal •journals/reflections

The energy of the space has a lot to do

with students wanting to be vulnerable or •to discove the world
I believe Sir Ken Robinson has a good
not. The atmosphere is what allows a
point. When someone is fully immersed Expository •descriptions/reports
sense of release and openness. To create
in the aesthetic side of events, their brain Ø Low stakes writing assignments
one of these spaces the teacher is a key
becomes more attentive. Their brain is Ø I did not have a lot of these in
role in the scenario. First off, students •to discover and build others
stimulated in so many ways through school. I feel that it would have
should feel a sense of disconnect from •intertexuality/ drama/poetry
aesthetic content. It triggers emotions that taken the pressure of what it meant Literary
their outside world. They need to focus on
pull someone in, hanging off every to be a good writer. To find joy in
the present moment and bring attention to
moment. An emotional response is key to writing.
the events happening within the
aesthetic events. Being able to connect Ø Multiple forms of feedback
classroom. To do this, the students need
with something else triggers our natural Ø I had a student teacher in English
something to focus on. Allowing them a
urge to feel like we belong, to find a and the feedback was only on the
few moments to meditate with music or
connection in life. Emotions drive our essays
participate in a guided stretch will
connections. When we feel fear we pull Ø Variety text
reconnect them to external properties. The
ourselves away from life, whereas others Ø I only remember reading what
sounds around them and their physical
are drawn into that fear or let it take hold everyone else read every year
exterior, will become engaged. They can Ø Have diverse modes and genres
of us and restrict our choices. Our
take the time to have a kinesthetic and
emotions dictate a certain response in
auditory experience. I also believe
ourselves. Each person reacts differently,
laughter plays a large role in
but regardless finds a means to connect. I
vulnerability. If the students can feel
also believe the brain becomes more
comfortable with each other in the space,
stimulated because aesthetics is
they are more likely to share their Ø Communication Process:
opinions and critiques. Doing activities
that make them feel silly or share laughter
subjective. We interpret the world in our
own way. When we begin to enjoy
“The first draft is Ø
sender/receiver/voice/tone
Substance=ideas
something we ask questions and revel in
not only brightens the environment but Ø Skills=grammar
the emotions. Questioning the meaning of
brings them closer as they share a similar
experience of uncomfortableness and joy.
something takes us down the path of just you telling Ø
Ø
Structure=sentence
Style=diction/choice
associating the event with other
The activities need to have simple Ø Process orientated
memories, feelings, or inquiries. Again,
yourself the story.”
instruction to not daunt the kids, yet have Ø Highly metacognitive
we form a connection. The idea of
a challenging enough concepts that brings Ø Publishing-public readings
understanding something or pondering
giggles and engages the logical side of
something or even letting feelings over
their brain.
ride you captures the soul.

-Terry Pratchet
I

To inspire their writing, focusing on their
interests and passions will help motivate
them. Assignments directed towards their
hobbies and vales allows them to be
motivated but to also explore themselves.
Giving them low stakes writing
assignments gives the opportunity to just
write. To be a writer students need the
opportunity to write. Taking the pressure
off of content allows them to have a free
flow of thought. They need the chance to
explore their thoughts and opinions
without being evaluated. Otherwise,
students will feel like there is a right
answer. Whenever something is for marks
there is always the idea of what the
teacher wants. Whereas, we want the
students to give their perspective. I never
knew about the writer’s handbook and
being able to use it during the diploma,
interesting. Another motivation is giving
them real world writing experiences.
Showing the students that what they are
learning in class can be applied to the real
world is a valuable skill. It gives them
purpose. The idea is to make it real not
contrived. How many times has a kid said
this is just fluff and has no reason. Also
giving them a diversity of topics gives
them exposure and variety. Providing a
text as an example and then asking them
to give their own version within the same
format gives them structure with a dab of
individuality.
Ø Prompts- visual, situational, 1st
liners, aural, alternate ending, re-
write, sensory
Ø Stream of consciousness- free-
Readers’ theatre is a very important part
write, doodling, mapping
of the classroom. It allows for students to Ø Brought out by modernists
become more familiar with the fluency of Ø Conversations
their voice. It’s also a great way for
students to become more comfortable
with one another. The lead up to the
activity was brilliant. I loved the number
game. Something that seems so simple at “Reading and writing
face value, but then can be very
challenging, brings joy and laughter to the
on the sea of talk.”
room. Changing the atmosphere to one of
comfort is very valuable when asking -Robin Bright
students to take risk vocally and
physically. I also think public speaking is
“Passion is energy.
Ø Give time for listening and speaking
a very valuable skill to have. Students give skills for meaningful talk and
need to feel comfortable as they will have
to do presentations at multiple occasions
Find the power from responsive listening
in their lives. Especially in university, focusing on what Ø Discriminative: phonemic
they force you to do them all the time. awareness/ sound out spelling and
First off, you don’t want to bore your excited you.” syllables
class and you are getting marked on it. On
top of it if you choose to go into business Ø Cacophony: harsh sounds
or marketing your presence is a key factor -Oprah Winfrey
in how you sell your product. I have to Ø Aesthetic has an emotional and
remember a large key to making people artistic connection
feel comfortable is a sense of success.
They are more likely to try something
new if they feel like they can be
“It doesn’t
successful at it. That is why I think the matter if the
scaffolding is so important. Cross
curricular applications was discussed
glass is half full
tenfold as well. Using reader’s theatre as a or half empty,
way to discover a historical figure or
review material for a test is an amazing drink it.”
interactive way to engage your students.
Using something that is life long learning https://www.cbc.ca/archi
as opposed to pump and dump will ves/tea chers/
encourage your kids to use their artistic
brains more often.
TABLE TOP AUDIO
Ø Gateway to literature were willing to be very vulnerable with
Ø
Ø
First thing we see is faces
Interpretive community
me and shared some very traumatic
experiences with me. It makes me think “Courage starts
that there is always a subconscious aspect
Ø Illustration
Ø Formal analysis to writing. That the first layer is not
always what we see, that sometime we
with showing up
Ø Critical synthesis
have to look closer.

Ø Pen principal: Visual images PICTURE #5: The bridge stuck with me
and letting
and spoken word mix well. because it’s being absorbed into

I wanted to take some time to express my

pictures. To me, my pictures are the
critical part of my journal. They are how I
receive the information and how it is
output into my psyche. I will normally see
words through images first. My
understanding comes from what I picture
in my head. Thanks to google I feel I can
always find connections. Bless google.
PICTURE #1: I’m obsessed with circles. I
think they are a symbol of flow and
interconnectedness. They are
interchangeable and can be formed into
most other shapes. They are neutral and
gain meaning from what I place on them.
When I think art I think circles:
community, flexibility, and subjectivity.
PICTURE #2: The monkeys are the topic
of the day. Spoken (speak no evil), Listen
(hear no evil), written (see no evil). I
chose the no evil part as we ingest what
we choose. Evil is a very subjective
notion. With English we will receive what
gains interest for us, or what makes us
question life. We will question what is
right and wrong.
nothingness or the unknown. That each
journey takes us to a place out of our
control. But also at the same time we have
ourselves be seen”
moments where we can build the direction
of our bridge. That we choose what we
want even when things feel out of control.
-Brene Brown
PICTURE#6: Passion has always been a
mountain with trees to me. They roll
around yet reach for the sky. To inspire
writing passions are key. In order to truly
grow, we need to reach for things that
could seem out of reach.
Poetry is the evidence
PICTURE # 7/8: These are the houses I of life. If your life is
saw in my head. When I hear music I
immediately think of movies. I thought of
obviously Moulin Rouge and the second burning well, poetry is
song made me think of Memoirs of a
Geisha plus others.
just the ash.
-Leonard Cohen

PICTURE #3: The splattered ink is the

writing process. We can’t be afraid of
having a messy experience and
experimenting with what we write.

PICTURE #4: Clearly I have this theme

with evil versus good. I think from
reading my 10’s and 30’s writing, they