'Meet Your Teachers' Bulletin Board Display

A Bulletin Board, Why Not!

Usually I use the bulletin boards at school to showcase the art work that the kids have made. This time I thought- 'Hey, why not make a bulletin board that showcases the talented teachers in the school!'

Just In Time For Open House Night

We have an Open House coming up in another week. My school has a lot of talented, accomplished and intelligent teachers. And  everyone who came to the Open House needed to know!!! So I figured- there should be some way to have a display on Open House night that would showcase the backgrounds and talents of our faculty. 

An email went out asking for background information on each of our faculty members. I was looking for each teacher's educational background and 'something special'  that could be put on display. 
There was no way knowing how this would be received,  but I ended up getting lots of replies. One teacher even put that she used to ride a unicycle for her 'Something Special'!!! Who woulda thought that!
A template  was created with a section for the teachers name, educational background and the 'something special' section. Then I typed in each individual teachers' information. Then they all went up for display in the school foyer just in time for the Open House.

What do you think of the display? How do you showcase the teachers in your school? You can leave a comment below.

If you'd like to read about making a collaborative bulletin board, check out another post here.

The Pencil Sharpener Dilemma

The Dilemma 

  For the past few years this is how I dealt with pencil sharpeners. Two cups with individual sharpeners kept on each row.

It worked OK, but not perfect. (You probably know the feeling.) The individual sharpeners were tough to use with small 6th grade hands. It takes a while for them to get to using them.

I don't always have time to check each individual cup at the end of class. I'd see the cups and assume there was a sharpener in it. But that was not always the case. Every once and a while a sharpener would disappear. Ughhh!

They worked in that the kids didn't have to walk around the room to find the room sharpener. And they are quiet. You don't hear all the grinding sounds from and electric sharpener or a wall mounted one.

So there were some goods and bads with the sharpener cups.

The Solution- I Hope

Here's what I'm hoping will be my new solution to the pencil sharpener dilemma. I hope that these clear containers I bought at the dollar store will do the trick. 

Since they have a screw on top- the kids will take a second to screw the top back on after they put the sharpener back inside. No more sharpeners falling on the floor and getting lost.

And since they are clear- I'll be able to take a quick look around the room to see if there is a sharpener in each cup after we clean up.

                      

Here's to hoping these will work!!
Here's my update- I've been using these clear cups for over a month. They work great! At the end of each class, I can easily glance at each cup to make sure there is a sharpener inside. And the kids always tighten the tops back on after they use one. I  can say this has been a success- no lost sharpeners in over a month! Woo Hoo!
How do you handle pencil sharpeners in your art room?  You can comment below.

A Flag, Fonts and a Vision

I found an image of the American flag on Pinterest that I really liked. I somehow wanted to create an art lesson based on it.

                                 

Creating a Vision

After a while I finally figured it out. I would use Malala Yousafzai, the 13 year old Pakastani girl who was shot by the Taliban because she was an education activist, as our inspiration. I showed my class some of Malala's quotes that reflect her vision for the future of Pakistan. 

Class Discussion

We then had a discussion about the meaning of her quotes and her vision.
        "I dreamt of a country where education would prevail." - Malala Yousafzai
        "I want to see the people of Pakistan educated, employed and given their rights." -Malala Yousafzai

This discussion then led into a  another discussion about the early days of the USA and what would have been the vision of the fore-founders for our country. We also discussed there have been certain points in our nation's history when visionaries have stepped forward to inspired our country with their words of inspiration during difficult, changing times.

   The kids then had to research quotes of various American visionaries to put onto their flags. The kids found quotes by Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King and others to use.  

The kids had to create three fonts (one in script) to use on their flags. The blue field and the red stripes were painted in water color.

What do you think about this flag lesson? You can comment below.