-Jackie

What are some ways to help students develop empathy? Use art materials to draw your ideas.

I considered artistic exercises and activities that could be done in an art room to help students recognize and practice empathy. One idea was to pair students off to share about their morning routine. Then, students are to represent their partners morning routine in a comic book style, sequential drawing. I did this activity with my friend and created an example of what this could look like. This activity would have students considering the world from another’s perspective- what someone else’s mornings would feel like. Drawing itself can e quite meditative, and would allow students to consider their partner closely and “put themselves in someone else’s shoes”. Morning routines are also universal and somewhat benign- we all have them and they aren’t likely to be emotionally difficult material.

-Jackie

I love to walk any and everywhere I can- it is a meditative and regulating time for me that is completely free and offers me time for thinking that I struggle to find elsewhere in my life.

I often listen to music while walking, but finding and appreciating new music is something that also brings me joy. I love sharing it with my friends and getting new recommendations.

In contrast, turning my brain off to play a video game also is an important self care ritual for me. It’s still stimulating- but it offers a nice break from the stressors of daily life.

I added a paintbrush because painting is another important form of self care for me. Besides long walks, “me time” consists of painting or creating in some way. I need to draw or paint something quietly at the end of a long day to recenter myself. Oftentimes I make little artworks for the people important to me in my life as a way to show my love.

Lastly, I drew a can of whipped cream to represent 1.) how much I love it and 2.) how I use shopping for little treats like whipped cream (or whatever is on sale at the time) as another form of self care. It isn’t about the “spending” as much as it is about the little joys I acquire around me- like adding whipped cream to my morning coffee because I can!

-Jackie

My first visual note is about my twin brother and I living with multiple disabilities and chronic pain. Him

And I are represented as a venn diagram of blue (him), and green (me). While his life is greatly impacted by disability in ways that mine is not, he has largely grown out of the chronic back pain he had, while mine has continued to worsen all throughout my body. Most conversations of disability I can connect back to one of us, and inclusion and special education are very important to me because of what we have experienced. As a child, my brother was considered un-teachable and sent to a school for children with learning disabilities, who also deemed him un-teachable and recommended my parents pull him out of school permanently.

I did a small series of self care drawings, including rest, interacting with others, taking time for myself through things like cooking, and relaxing with my cat. These have been especially heavy on my mind as I have been sick, knowing I have responsibilities to up keep but also that I can’t keep up with things 100% if I am unwell and not taking the rest I need to recover.

As we meditated on our first visual note, i recalled my time with a student named Jade. She had long braids with colorful bubble beads that she would use t cummunicate and express herself with

with emotional regulations turn to art. It’s very interesting to see how each student had their own style and technique for art. My visual note is my representation of the differences between each student, but them still being in a community together.

This note is about the rocking motions I witnessed some students making to stimulate and soothe themselves while listening to instruction. Many of the students do it, as my placement is all special education students, and some will do it in sync with each other, or where one person is rocking forward while the other rocks back. I used pieces of paper with leaves on it to represent the bodies, because they move smoothly like leaves that sway back and forth in the wind.

The frequency of this exchange had me thinking about unconventional ways educators may need to be accommodating. This student clearly gets overstimulated and is uncomfortable by the sensory experience. I think it would be acceptable if instead of screaming at the student (which he already gets constantly) we let him take it off, calm down, and then put it back on after a minute or so. It would be a way to respect the student’s individual needs.

I decided to do another exemplar for my students because I’ve started to enjoy that process. I get excited about teaching a lesson once I’ve already experienced it myself

I have been taken recently with Goya’s work which this is partially inspired by.

Between the physical pain I am in and the exhaustion I created this piece as a way to visualize what I’m feeling at my lowest.

The other week, I had students in particular that would have really benefitted by these. They were unable to use regular kid scissors so I had to precut everything for them. I wish we had some of these adaptive scissors to see how they would have liked to interact with them and be more involved in the cutting process.

I also wondered about the students who don’t have a lot of food at home, and how they push through the day.

This weeks visual note represents all my lesson plans and ideas piling up. There are overlaps within it all, and it is to show the layers of teaching art each week. It is tough juggling each class for every grade and keeping track of where each class is in each project. I’m learning ways of being organized from my co-op and I think that is the key to it all. If there isn’t organization of keeping track of it all then it is much harder on us as the teacher.

I have been practicing mindfulness with the third graders I work with, so I wanted to find some time to work a bit of mindfulness into my schedule again. It was very cathartic to draw because I feel like I have not been appreciating the beauty around me like I normally do, so drawing my setting was a way for me to ”check back in”