VCET Studio Thinking

Creative Thinking Forum: Integrating Studio Thinking in the Kindergarten Classroom

This year I would like to integrate studio thinking into my Kindergarten classroom, making it a place where students engage in dynamic learning. Realizing that to create an effective learning environment requires careful planning, I read, Studio Thinking 2 (2013), by Hetland, Sheridan,Veenema and Winner. This book presented three areas of focus:

1. Creating a Studio Culture
2. Focusing assignments and thinking
3. Using works of art to teach

Creating a Studio Culture

My reading provided the insight that a studio culture has specific elements to consider: the physical space, the light and sound and the social climate. I want students to recognize an "arts focus" as they enter their classroom. This goal will be achieved in multiple ways. The bulletin board at the entrance will be labeled Our Class Gallery and include a sign that says: Waiting for the Work of My Talented Class! As students move into the room they will see 3 child-size easels to be used in center rotations. Materials will be labeled and included at this center after they have been introduced. (A side note: Many times Kindergarteners come to school unfamiliar with classroom tools. Each year students are carefully and systematically instructed so they can work with confidence, as well as, demonstrate appropriate respect for the needs of other members of our classroom community.) Continuing the tour, students will see trapezoid tables placed together to make small groups of 6, a reading area complimented by a table lamp to provide directed lighting and books that are organized and labeled by subject matter. Students will have 3 computers and a printer set up, along with an interactive writing center. Large group activities will be supported by a SmartBoard and the viewing area identified by a 9'x12' area rug of America. The Calendar will be accessible from the rug and have interactive components to allow connected learning. Finally, there will be two trapezoid tables set up for individualized and small group work, with both teacher and Instructional Assistant (IA). Work times will be supported with a variety of music, selected to add background for individualized student assignments, as well as, peer/teacher interactions. The design of  the physical space, and the light and sound elements should all promote an environment that nurtures constructive conversations, through the use of  reflective language and questioning techniques to prompt students to explore and develop their thinking. Students should feel that their work is valued and that they work in a positive learning environment.

Creating Focused Assignments that Use Works of Art to Teach

Like at other grade levels, Kindergarten teachers focus their assignments to meet specific curricular requirements. Two things, I will be doing this year are, using original art and creating open-ended questions for students to grapple with in their centers. Examples of this application are:

• For our Me Unit, I could show self-portraits of Picasso, Van Gogh, and Eric Carle and ask students how they would picture themselves in terms of color and form. The end product would be our Classroom Gallery presentation.
• For our Columbus Unit, I could show portraits of Columbus and contrast them to student renditions of the famous explorer asking students to consider ways they might combine their portrait of him with his achievements. The end result would be reflective conversation with teacher/peers and a hall display.
• For our Thanksgiving Unit, we could compare and contrast paintings of the first Thanksgiving with photographs of reenactments of the celebration shown in books. I would invite students to show the first Thanksgiving through a drawing, a puppet play or 3-D construction. The end result could be a display in the library that shows our classwork along with books about Columbus. 

I am getting excited to meet my new class and try these ideas!!!  More blogs will follow!.