student work-fabric of life

This is the artwork my students created for the break up letters/postcards sent from the point of view of their favorite article of clothing and address to themselves. I laughed so much during this lesson. Their work was so fun and exciting. They also really got into writing the break up letters. i was surprised at how harsh their break up letters were considering 6th graders aren't really dating. Or are they? Maybe they learn about relationships from the media. 

Fabric of Life lesson

I used Borsodi as a resource for a lesson I taught about writing from the Point of View of an inanimate object. The students were instructed to write a break up letter from the POV of their favorite article of clothing. The writing served as pre-visualization for drawings of their favorite article of clothing.  

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more borsodi

Borsodi

Borsodi-I stumbled upon this artist named Borsodi while doing a mass google image search. His playfulness with materials, imagination, inventiveness, and fashion photography makes him a good resource for young artists. However, the initial images I saw of his work were classroom friendly, as I dug deeper I realized there were definitely some images that would be inappropriate for the classroom. Which brings me to the question, is it okay to show images that are decent for the classroom, but may tempt students to investigate other (maybe indecent) works? 

His other work incorporates fashion and consumerism in combination with sexuality. He does a lot of advertisements for fashion magazines (which is where he gets some of his materials), so I wonder if he is commenting on femininity, beauty, identity and consumerism or not. He has gotten a bad rap from feminist groups for his combination of nude model in sexual poses with designer goods.  I can totally see why. One site I looked at said that although he has gotten a bad reputation, he has opened the door for conversations about women as objects for male consumption. 

Here are links to look at all his work ( this is where i got all my images from)

http://www.belaborsodi.com/

http://www.art-dept.com/artists/borsodi/

final lesson 6th

As a believer in DIY culture and customizing clothing I felt it was important that bring that belief into my classroom of 6^th grade uniform wearing students. Going to a uniform school sometimes feels like the end of the world. Middle school is a time where students are experiencing many changes and developing their identities. When I asked some of the students if they had ever altered their clothes, many said they have never thought about it/ tried. We spent one day working subtractively, and one day working additively. The students worked in groups to make the lesson less expensive and to teach how to work collaboratively. 

meet sixth grade.

this was my last day with the 6th graders. they asked me to take this picture.

internship 2

For my last Internship II placement I worked in a 6^th grade language arts classroom at Roland Park Public Elementary and Middle school. Creating an interdisciplinary unit that also maintained my voice as an artist/teacher, was truly was like creating piece of artwork in a new medium.

It wasn’t until I used the language of fashion and textile to connect to my students that I felt truly invested in the lessons I taught. My goal was to create a fun space for my students to explore ideas they have: relationships, fashion, identity, through art and writing. Each day I brought my enthusiasm  for fashion into the classroom. The students regularly complimented me on my funky outfits. My students saw how I lived artfully. I often pointed out when I noticed something unique about their uniforms. This diminished the teacher/ student barrier between us. I saw the connections my students made between their lives and their education. The lessons I taught fostered a relationship where the students and I fed each other new ideas.

Planting seeds –my goal was to help my students understand its okay to be unique.

(funny=i had a student named Unique in this class.)