Graffiti is an incredible art form that brings instant engagement for our students when we bring it into our classroom. Los Angeles teacher Sara Gaechter is on the show to talk about the projects she uses to introduce graffiti to her students. Listen as she and Tim discuss how to deal with the illegal aspects of graffiti when you are talking to kids (6:15), how she connects with street artists via social media (10:30), and examples of the works her kids create in her classroom (13:45).
This week marks the triumphant return of Andrew McCormick. After spending some time catching up, Andrew and Tim take on the topic of plagiarism. The discussion evolves to include where students find inspiration (7:15), how to help kids develop original ideas (9:45), and how you can approach copying if it helps kids be more confident as artists (14:45).
After talking with Abby Schukei last month about teaching content when you struggle, Tim is inspired to learn more about watercolor. He turns to Andrea Slusarski, plein air painter extraordinaire, to find some tips and tricks to improve his teaching with the medium. Tim goes on a rant about his dislike for watercolors (5:00), Andrea shares some of her best strategies for teaching watercolor (10:15), and how to build confidence in your students when they are developing new skills (17:15).
Some people can handle a huge mess in their art room. Tim is not one of those people, but Abby Schukei is. They get together for this episode to discuss the amazing feeling when kids are excited to clean and you can actually see it happening (5:45), how they feel about "paintbrush graveyards" (10:45), and how much cleaning responsibility we need to give our kids (15:30).
The amazing D'Wayne Edwards joins Tim today to talk about education, motivation, and providing kids unique opportunities that engage them in learning. D'Wayne is the former lead designer at Nike, and has now founded the Pensole Academy in Portland for footwear design. In today's episode, he shares his own story (2:30), talks about the how and why of starting Pensole (5:15), and introduces his new Sneakerhead of State footwear design competition (13:00).