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Sheree Hemani - Week 1 - Tutorial Activity Natural Assemblage

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Sheree Hemani - Week 1 - Tutorial Activity Natural Assemblage

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What?

This week for our tutorial activity we need to explore our surroundings outside, and collect items as we walked through the area. The items needed to represent the land, environment and what that space represented for us. I was at my work space and collected items that I found in the area behind my staff room. This area is very untidy and the vegetation is not well looked after as this is a dirt area where the staff cars park. I collected mainly dead leaves, bark and some greenery from shrubs to represent the space. I placed the items on a large A3 piece of paper to create the artwork.

So What?

While I was exploring the environment for the items it made me feel depressed that I couldn't find anything with colour to represent in my art work to make it aesthetically pleasing. So I picked some green leaves from the shrubs to bring some life to the artwork. The collection of the items definitely reflected how I feel about this space. While creating the artwork I did feel a sense of enlightenment and mindfulness. It made me change my views of the area and that it doesn't need colour to make it look beautiful, I just needed to look closer at the natural beauty of the existing items.

What Now?

This experience taught me that different spaces and activities can make you feel a certain way. But through reflection and understanding your feelings and emotions can allow you to grow. This is what my future students could also experience with an exploration or art task and I need to be able to provide them with the required skills and strategies to overcome these thoughts. As a future art teacher I need to give my students the confidence to explore and build confidence to be creative and not be perfectionist.

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Sheree Hemani - Week 2 - Art and the importance of sustainability

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Sheree Hemani - Week 2 - Art and the importance of sustainability

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What?

The activity I had to complete today, was to collect and use my household rubbish to create an artwork that represents sustainability. I found some items that had been recently placed in my small inside rubbish bin and was clean to use. The rubbish was minimal as I had just thrown out the rubbish bag into my outside council bin. The rubbish I was able to collect was a shapes biscuit box, a croissant foil wrapper, a piece of ribbon, a rubber band, two puff pastry sheets and a spotlight catalogue. This activity would allow students to engage in the world around them, and see how much rubbish or recyclable items surround them.

So What?

I attempted to start the activity before the tutorial, but really struggled to start without some clear instructions from my lecturer. Once I had some context and clear direction from the tutorial, I was able to start planning my artwork. At first I wanted to research the main idea of sustainability my artwork should reflect. I brainstormed some ideas and in the end decided to make a fish swimming in the water. I will link my artwork to water pollution and the plastic waste that is littering our waterways. At first I was quiet nervous and had no clue where to start, but the croissant wrapper made me think of fish scales. I decided to make my artwork 2D but with the use of rubbish added some 3D elements and pop of colour. I was actually surprise with how much I ended up enjoying making my artwork. This activity taught me that you can make anything out of household rubbish and that I am creative, I just need to not be so critical of myself.

Now What?

This activity has shown me that when I have my own classroom I don't need to spend money on expensive art items. I can get the students to use household rubbish items to make art. This activity also showed me the importance of ensuring the students understand the task and have a clear understanding of the context and idea they are to link or create. I look forward to one day integrating visual arts into my humanities lesson to further engage my students while immersing them in an authentic art task.

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Sheree Hemani - Week 3 - Stop Motion Animation “Sustainability”

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Sheree Hemani - Week 3 - Stop Motion Animation “Sustainability”

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What?

For week three's activity it involved using the art work I created in the previous weeks class. I created a fish out of my household rubbish and attempted to make a video about the importance of living a sustainable life and recycling our rubbish. I wanted to bring the emotion through the video of the fish happily eating the coral until rubbish is washed in the ocean and causing the fish to suffocate and sink to the bottom of the ocean. I found this week I was very conscious of my own household waste and also thought before throwing it in the bin, if I could use it for my stop motion video.

So What?

As I reflect on this activity, I did actually enjoy creating my mini landscape out of my house hold rubbish, but did however struggle creating the stop motion animation. I didn't have the correct equipment such as a tripod, which made it hard to take the photos and move the items on my artwork. I also found a lot of features unavailable on the free version of the application. Once I completed the video editing on the application, I downloaded the video to my Clipchamp application on my laptop to add the final finishing touches such as music, fades and changing the length.

Now What?

If I was to complete this activity again, I would perhaps purchase a tripod which would enable me to take more photos and make my animation more engaging. For my future classroom it is a great way to integrate the “Sustainability” cross-curriculum priority into the learning and having the students brainstorm and work in groups to make a video for a project. I would however ensure that my students had the correct equipment and that I explicitly taught them how to use the program to avoid frustration which I sometimes had. The group projects could then be displayed in the school library or on the school social media platform to educate the community on the students chosen environmental issue.

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What?

This week for our tutorial activity we had to respond to music through art. We had to listen to the Carnival of animals (The Aquarium) and keep our pen on the paper and respond to the music by making marks on the paper to express the emotion/sense the music is evoking in us. The second activity we completed was to respond to instructions on what to draw on the paper. These instructions were to Draw 4 straight lines from one side to the other • Draw 5 circles, any size, anywhere. • Draw 2 lines that start on an edge, curve and end somewhere in the middle. • Colour a minimum of 3 circles and 6 areas.

With both activities we had to share our results to the classroom tutorial.

I only had a few highlighters and sharpie pens to complete the activity. This activity was meant to show us how we can incorporate this into the classroom to teach the elements of art through experience rather than learning from a PowerPoint slide.

So What?

I was actually surprised at how much I enjoyed completing these activities especially the directed drawing activity. I found it quite therapeutic and supported my mental health as I had a very busy and hectic day. I struggle with art as I feel that I am not very good at drawing but this activity taught me that everyone's art is different and nothing is perfect. I feel the music activity is something I would do myself to destress after a busy day.

Now What?

This activity has shown me how easy it is to integrate art into the classroom and how by completing these activities students are able to learn the elements of visual art. I would love to learn more mini activities I can do with my class to teach them about art and also practising mindfulness. I work as a Teacher Aide in a High School and I actually did these two activities with my two students I work with and they really enjoyed the activities especially the music and drawing activity.

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Sheree Hemani - Week 5 - Dance and Native Animal

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Sheree Hemani - Week 5 - Dance and Native Animal

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What?

This weeks Padlet activity was to create and perform a movement piece that represents our chosen Native Australian Animal. The dance needed to demonstrate the movement characteristics of our chosen animal and how is behaves in its natural environment. I decided to choose the emu, as I love how these animals move in the wild and I have a slight fear due to being chased by one when I was 6 years old. Emu's are the second-tallest bird in the world and are the tallest birds in Australia. Emus are known for their long necks and long legs with wings that are very small which makes them unable to fly. Emu's are also known for their speed as they can run up to 50km/per hr. Australia is the only place in the world where you will find an emu living in the wild. Some people say that when a emu walks they look like they are dancing, with their long legs and bobbing head.

So What?

At first when I discovered what this tasks involved I was actually nervous to perform and display my video for the class to see. On the weekend I had a mini getaway to Sydney with my husband and attended the Vivid Festival, I was immersed in all types of art, from Visual, Music, Media, Dance and Drama through the range of art displays around the harbour. These art showcases inspired me to want to dance my emu dance in this space. I decided to show the emu in different environments, and show its different movements through the tall long movements of my legs (Action), through to bobbing up and down (Space) and demonstrating the movement in how a emu runs (dynamics)(time). For the relationships my dear husband was my videographer and my fellow support.

Now What?

As a future classroom teacher, I feel a little more at ease of demonstrating my dance movements and incorporating the elements of dance. I found this activity quite engaging but also felt a little lost and overwhelmed at first by the task. But once I was in Sydney and had all the art and saw a video projection of an emu dancing on the Opera House that it inspired me to do my dance. So I feel that in order to get my future students to feel confident and understand the task I need to first provide them with a series of resources to guide them. I would also incorporate this task as a group task as I feel the social support of working with peers is beneficial for the engagement of this dance activity.

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Novel : Convict Boy by Tom Appleby and Jackie French. Picture Book: Fox by Margaret Wild and Ron Brooks. 

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Sheree Hemani - Week 6 - Drama and Picture Books. 

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Sheree Hemani - Week 6 - Drama and Picture Books. 

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What?

This week our activity was completed in the online tutorial where we experienced Process Drama using the picture book 'Fox' as our stimulus. We were asked to first Brainstorm what we thought the book would be about, who were the characters and make predictions. We then listened to the reading of the book and were asked to complete a Conscience Alley and we took turns saying what we would tell the characters (Dog, Magpie and Fox) as they walked down the alley. We were then asked to reflect on how that character would feel if those questions or statements were asked or told to them. We were then asked to predict the ending of the story if Magpie finds his way back to dog, and how we can use Process Drama to present the various possible endings to the story. In the tutorial we also discussed how we can incorporate Process Drama in a HaSS unit and Literacy unit for the novel 'Convict Boy'. And were asked to research and propose some ideas on how we can implement process drama into the curriculum subject.

So What?

In the tutorial I found the activity of brainstorming very similar to a book walk and allowed me to use my inferencing skills about what I know about a fox and the Australian countryside. When we were asked to complete the conscience alley and ask questions to the different characters, I was at first a little confused on what to say, but once I was given a few examples by the other preservice teachers understood what was required. I found the activity engaging and I want the ending of the book to be that Dog and Magpie through determination and resilience they finally after several hot and lonely days, find their way back together and they run off into the sunset (who doesn't love a happy ending). To present this ending I would complete 4-6 freeze frames to show the story or I could have someone be a News reporter and I would pretend to be either Magpie or Dog and tell my side of the final story. For the novel 'Convict Boy' I feel it would be a great way to incorporate the activity of teacher-in-role to engage the students in the novel.

Now What?

This activity has shown me that teaching drama isn't about having a script or having students present something. The teaching or integrating drama into the classroom is more about the process and learning through doing and not just sitting down reading or writing something. I look forward to incorporating these process drama activities into my own classroom. I understand that some students may be shy or not wanting to participate due to anxiety or fear of presenting in front of a class. Students also may have that fear of getting it wrong. I would offer my students in my future classroom to wear masks or use puppets if they wish to be in character and feel more comfortable engaging in the activity this way. I would also be vulnerable and make mistakes to explicitly show students that my classroom is a safe environment and its okay to make 'mistakes' but also to remember there is no mistakes.