Teachers plan and deliver effective instruction and create an environment that facilitates learning for their students.

Element A: Teachers demonstrate knowledge about the ways in which learning takes place, including the levels of intellectual, physical, social, and emotional development of their students.

Evidence Outcomes: plans and implements lessons that demonstrate recognition of how patterns of learning and motivation vary individually across intellectual, physical, social, and emotional development.

All students should have the ability to access their learning through classroom environments and lessons that support their individuality. No two students process information and move through the world in the same way. I focus on relationship building with my students, learning their strengths and needs, asking guiding questions, posing warm demanders while “meeting students where they are”. All of these aspects creates a classroom culture of student trust and confidence. The beauty of an open choice, small scale art project like Micro Art is that students can exhibit techniques, demonstrate problem solving skills, and express their creative voice at their own pace and processing. By incorporating this pedagogy and the CDE’s Visual Art Standard: Invent and Discover to Create, the result is learning and evidence that is authentic.

The objective of Micro Art unit for 6th-8th grade is that students demonstrate their ability to create a small 2D or 3D work of art (6 inches or less) that utilizes their knowledge of art elements and techniques, and transfers their prior experiences from class. The students’ have open choice for theme/subject matter to express their authentic creative voice. Students utilize critical thinking skills when analyzing peer work during gallery walk and use constructive visual language to provide feedback to peers during shout out/share out session. Students utilize literacy skills and technology to record their evidence for self reflection and assessment.