2.       Neal Ambrose-Smith describes himself as an artist and arts worker.  He describes several of his arts-related jobs. Which scenario do you find the most interesting? Explain how Ambrose-Smith either formally or informally taught something about his beliefs through art.

3.       Though these two articles are very different in approach, describe an idea or related concept that is found in both. 

4.       What are some of the advantages to being a teaching artist versus a traditional art teacher? What are some of the disadvantages? Explain fully.

3.) One idea found in both articles is the value of reflection and shifting the learning over to the learner. Both articles seem to acknowledge the importance of art as a facilitator of information (using art to learn about other subjects) and taking time to think about those impacts on one’s self and their surroundings. Booth lists this as making connections to other curriculums and reflecting on the meaning of the student’s art and Neil relates to this by teaching students to be resourceful and independent thinking.

4.) One advantage of being a teaching artist versus a traditional art teacher is raw experience in the field. An important chunk of knowledge that teaching artists can impart includes what current careers in art look like, and this can prepare students who are serious about art. One disadvantage of this, however, may be their lack of ability to transmit this information to students efficiently. Grade level, district policies, the school’s socio-economic status, size of the art program and many other factors go into considering how to best inspire a classroom to engage. A teaching artist may grapple with this aspect of teaching more than a traditional art teacher. 

1.  I find after reading Eric Booth’s Guidelines for Teaching Artist and from my experience working at my preschool the 3 most important guidelines are, “engagement before information”, “plan thoroughly”, and “don’t forget fun”. I believe that students should be in the right mindset to start learning. Students need to be engaged and ready to learn to get the information to stick with them. For example, the students I worked with would turn their listening ears on, hold a bubble in their mouth and put their thinking hats on before starting the lesson. It allowed the kids to know they are about to learn and listen. Another important guide to follow is planning ahead. If you have a lesson ready you should always try to over-plan slightly and make sure to think about any problems that may arise. This allows for you to always be ready for any situation that may come up during a lesson. It’s better to plan too much than not enough. Lastly, students should always have fun. Art is about experimentation, making mistakes, curiosity and enjoying your time creating. I make sure that my students are letting lose and having fun when making art and remembering to not always be super serious.  

2.  After reading about some of Neal Ambrose-Smith’s arts-related jobs I found the Maize Maze the most interesting. I thought Neal did an amazing job teaching his audience about the native plants, animals and insects that live in his village of Corrales. He was able to teach them about the local tribe stories and the history behind them. It’s incredible how he created a work that was educational and fun at the same time. It brought together the interaction between an environmental art installation and a performance piece. Which can be challenging to create but he was able to formally teach his visitors about his heritage and beliefs.  

3.  Although these two articles are very different in their approach, I found that they both had the similar concept of having fun. In Neal Ambrose-Smith’s article it was clear that he wanted this work to be interacted with and to allow visitors to have fun. Also, in Booth’s article he talked about the importance of having fun and how play is extremely significate when making work. 

4.  An advantage a teaching artist has over a traditional art teacher is the amount of hands-on experience they have gained from creating their own work. Teaching artist are able to work with students by showing them their own techniques and challenge students to try new things. I feel teaching artist are able to connect with students in a different way than a traditional art teacher. They can give advice from the hands-on experiences they have faced in the field and better prepare them for the real art world out of school. One disadvantage is that teaching artist sometimes have a hard time expressing their knowledge to students in a classroom manor. Artist are extremely intelligent but at times they can lack the traditional classroom and education training needed to be a successful art teacher.       

1). After reading “Guidelines for Teaching Artists” by Eric Booth I felt that there were three main aspects of his personal ideas that greatly relate to my experience of observing and teaching a lesson in the kindergarten classroom. The first one that was a no brainer was “Know the Students”. Through the observation hours prior to giving my lesson I was truly able to develop a deeper understanding of that the children were able to do and how their attention is directed. I learned so much about those 4-5 year olds in a classroom setting that I felt so much more adept to teach them a lesson come my fourth visit. Next, but no less important, the “Don’t Forget Fun” idea took a big part in the on goings of the kindergarten classroom. Play is an interregnal aspect of learning, especially for such youngster. The more enjoyment there is in activities the more the students became engaged. I may be bias on the last idea I picked, however I felt that “Step by Step” was another important part of my experience. Through me creating examples I was able to work through different challenges that could possible arise as well as have a deeper understanding of what exactly I wanted the students to get out of the activity. It was also a very useful tool to have step by step examples to show the class to give them an idea of what guidelines to follow. 

2). I found Neal Ambrose-Smith’s “Big Medicine Kite” to be the most interesting of all that he explained. What made this one interesting to me was his concept of “off the walls” art. The kite he collaborated on was meant to be flown in the sky, very much so an unusual location to display a work. It left me wonder if it makes it any less a work of art or maybe more so? All of Neal Ambrose-Smith’s arts-related jobs came off as very informally taught. He feels to me as very much an individual that teaches via example, rather than explanation. 

3). Whether it is the formal teaching ideas of Eric Booth or the informal experience based teachings of Neal Ambrose-Smith I feel that both have a commonality of engagement. Engaging the student or engaging viewers out in the public, both have a way of reaching individuals on a deeper level. 

4).  Being a teaching artist can most definitely keep you fresh on your toes and relatable to those you are trying to teach. Having an understanding of the commitment and efforts needed to be a practicing artist allows for more of a connect. However, being a teaching artist presents the challenge of finding balance in your two words and not allowing one to overshadow the other. 

2.       I thought that Nontoxic Art Making was the most interesting. It was great that he could go to New Orleans and turn a bad situation in to an opportunity to teach. He passionate about the nontoxic materials and utilized his opportunity. 

3.       Although the two articles are very different, I found that they were similar in the sense that they enforced the idea of engagement. They both talked about different ways to keep students engaged. The Smith article focused on the community. 

4.       Another example of being a teaching artist is that you have experience in art making and you are continually learning through your work. I feel like because a teaching artist is more connected to the art scene that they would be able to find more relevant topics to discuss and use as prompts. One thing that comes to mind would be art influenced by the current political climate. I could see a teaching artist, inspired by contemporary artists, creating a lesson for students that conveys a political message. An issue that I would find with being a teaching artist would be not getting so in to your own work that you can’t devote time to teach. 

2.  After hurricane Katrina and the printmaking machines were no longer available, I thought it was really great that Neal Ambrose-Smith created a workshop for non-toxic methods and inks. Through this formal training, he and other artists are able to help the environment with less usage of water and chemicals, save money, and health.

3. Both artists are very interested in engagement and fun.  Two of Booth’s points in the guidelines deal with these subjects as he believes engagement might be even more important than the knowledge itself, and that also learning new skills should be enjoyable.  Ambrose-Smith works heavily in collaboration with other artists and makes a majority of his work accessible to other people like his workshop, DIA floor design, and maize maze.  In the article, he emphasizes the joy he feels when others interact with his work like the flash mob.

4. If you’re a teaching artist, you still have a lot of current experience and knowledge of the field and can bring current information to your students. However, there will be less time to focus on either your students or your work if you are a teaching artist. A traditional art teacher will have more time for planning and focusing on lesson plans and building relationships with their students, but since they’re mostly in one place, it’s harder to have time for themselves to expand in their own art.  

2) I think the most interesting scenario that Neal Ambrose-Smith incorporated into his art teaching career as a self-employed artist is definitely the use of non-toxic art media such as teaching non-toxic printmaking workshops in universities around the country. I deeply appreciate how he not only practices what he preaches about sustainability, but that he also helps others become accustomed to new and more efficient means of art-making that do less harm to our planet.

3) Both articles seem to focus a lot on guiding the next blooming generation of artists and art educators toward a more progressive direction as authentic and autonomous individuals sharing empowering knowledge and content with the world around them as they too, create and develop themselves as artists.

4) The advantage to being a teaching artist as opposed to a traditional art teacher is the increased sense of authorship over the content that you teach, where you teach, and how you teach it. Traditional art teachers must follow state and national guidelines in the confines of a classroom daily. They have to work with specific age groups and deal with behavior issues especially of students that are simply in the class to get the credit. On the other hand, traditional art teachers don’t have to worry about not having a gig at any specific point, or creating purely original content, which could get exhausting. They get their own classroom and don’t have to do much traveling, as I’d imagine a teaching artist would.

2. The most interesting arts-related job that Neal Ambrose-Smith took on was the “Maize Maze”, I think. Even though corn mazes aren’t that rare, I really appreciated his and Juane’s more scientific and educational take on the classic autumn activity. Being a teaching artist, in part, means leading by example. By incorporating what he finds important, protecting the environments and artists, reverence for his culture and people, and his multifaceted approaches to art-making, he shows us how much more impactful a work of art can be when there’s thought, research and passion behind it.

3. Do research prior to your art/teaching: both articles discuss the importances of knowing the ins-and-outs of an environment and/or a group of students. The knowledge you gain from your research should inform your treatment of the subject, or the class you are able to pass knowledge on to. This is the first step before you can engage with an artwork or a class.

4. As a teaching artist, you have the opportunity to teach without the restrictions of state standards and you get to reach more students; however you’re not able to get to know/spend very much time with the students you’re teaching and you have to comply to the pre-established rules of a classroom instead of facilitating your own.