Positive Identity

To help students foster a positive self identity in the classroom I will create projects that allow them to explore their identities. In order to get them comfortable with sharing such personal feelings, I want to create a welcoming environment. Also, I think that the better able I am to get to know the students on a persona level they will be more open. As a teacher I hope to set the precedent for tolerance in my classroom. This means not only for identity issues but ideas that the students have for their work. If students that they will not be criticized for their ideas they will be more comfortable. I think that it is important to create a classroom where students can be their true selves. I have found the art room to be an outlet for me to be myself and I hope that I can do the same.
For the projects that the students do I want them to do self portraits of themselves that capture how they see themselves. This will hopefully help them explore what they like or don't like about themselves. From this I can also gain more information into where they may be having issues in their lives or with their identities. If you can be yourself in the art room then there is no way you can create meaningful work that you can be proud of.

Collaboration

I have never been a big fan of collaborative work because there can be many problems in the equity of the project and in who gets to keep the final result. A project that could involve everyone would be a mural project. The students would get to pitch ideas and then vote for the final design. When the final idea was chosen a sketch would be made with the help of the teacher. Each student would be able to contribute to a project and the final product would stay with the school. This project could be done in conjunction with an unit on larger scale mural project. This would help students understand what can be communicated through art and the idea of urban beautification. I would help students feel like they were part of something greater than themselves and give them pride both in the piece of work and in their school. The mural's them could also relate to a subject that they are learning about in another class. This would add a further layer of collaboration and make art seem less about skill. Students may feel more pressure to participate and do well when their work will be viewed by a large audience and their peers are counting on them. Overall, I think that this would be a good way to get all students to participate in the arts.