ENGAGING THE STUDENTS IN THE SCIENCES THROUGH THE ARTS

Conference’s theme this year: Engaging the Students in the Sciences through the Arts.
Presented in collaboration by Montalvo Arts Center, The Santa Clara County Office of Education, and the Lurie College of Education at San Jose State University.

 

My two-hour workshop: “Sciences and Art through Close Observation: We are Artist-Naturalists!”
Engaging students in the Sciences through the Arts means having students being excited about making art, being opened to new ideas and trusting their own thinking. The activities I propose are always personalized for each student: they can appropriate their rocks or any other finding; they can appropriate the photo of the unique landscape they are working on. That is one aspect that makes the experience unique for each student. Each exercise is anchored in their reality, for example the school. I like to make them think about the fact that any place, any element provided by nature is unique, so that the journey becomes a source of surprises. That appropriation help the students understand their world better. The more we look, the more we see, the more we can open our mind and think freely and get new ideas. The holistic aspect of the common core is for me very exciting because it is the way I see my practice: everything is interconnected.
The goals are clear but each student follows a personal path at a personal pace.
I am careful that the exercises are not too technically driven.

Making the best use of the resources we have in our immediate environment and creating a journey for the students in which they become enthusiastic artist-scientists, connecting with nature by observation of its infinite diversity. A new look at the students’ environment – the mundane becomes extraordinary.