Developing an inquiry and a rationale for planned learning in the arts | My Assignment Tutor

Assignment 2a: Developing an inquiry and a rationale for planned learning in the arts Art is an expression of unnamed feelings and unidentified emotions and a way that artists communicate with the world. Art is the connecting thread between individuality and culture, nature, family, beliefs, and characters. Today’s children are growing up in a different world than us. The way of teaching has changed, and media art is an integral part of that. In formal early childhood education, art has been prioritized as “play-based and arts-based approaches to learning are engaging children in ways that are rich and meaningful for them”. (Dinham & Chalk, 2018, p.54). As a prospective early childhood educator, it is essential to create an enriched and encouraged learning environment that promotes analytical and creative thinking, encourage active student participation, contributes to academic learning through ‘play’ and meets the five outcomes of the Early Learning Framework (EYLF) of Australia where children can “explore ideas, characters and settings in the community through stories in images, sounds and text” (ACAMAM054) (Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority [ACARA], 2015, p.1). My art class experience and the ‘Big Idea’ The primary goal of the specialist workshops was to gain “art knowledge and aesthetic understanding” and to use “related languages, symbols, techniques, processes, and skills of” digital media. (ACARA,2013, p.3). One of the features of media art is ‘storytelling’ and animation is an excellent medium to interact with the junior mind. During the specialized art experience, I was wondering ‘how do we explore community through media arts?’ Storytelling through multimodal technology will be an engaging way to involve children in the open-ended art experience where they drive the creation process connecting them to their surroundings. As an educator, I will adopt digital artifacts to support the children to become confident individuals using available technologies, resources, and skills. This experience involves the combination of visual art, audio and drama, which helps “to express themselves, connect with others and extend their learning” (Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations [DEEWR], 2009, pp. 40-41).  Rationale: Every early childhood centers and schools are a micro-community and children are part of that along with the bigger community they come from. “By ‘being in tune’ with their surroundings, children enhance their sense of place and their belonging in that environment” (Dinham & Chalk, 2017, p.99). Digital storytelling is such a platform where children can communicate with the world visually with or combination of any of the five types of play identified by Walker (2011) to improve cognitive and social skills. The initial stage of storytelling starts with storyboarding, children initiate ‘art-based play’ by playing as a character or while making props, metaphorically using materials, or can play ‘constructively’ using 2D or 3D elements (Dinham & Chalk, 2018, pp. 49-52). “Students learn to apply key concepts, story principles, and elements of media (symbolic and technical) as they design, produce, distribute and analyze media artworks” (ACARA, 2016, p.27). In animated storytelling activities children become part of the interrelated art-making and art-responding process while they critically analyze their or their peers’ work. While implementing the big idea into in-class activities, I as an educator and the children will engage in interpreting the stories about their world and their community, considering multiple perspectives (ACAMAM057, (ACARA), p.4).  Planning for the Learners  The role of an atelierista or educator in a classroom directs an art experience toward an embedded experience, making it a part of life. He/she develops a relationship between creative art, emotions, intended knowledge through an organized learning plan, documentation, and communication with children and other educators. (Tarr, 2008, p.20). I have chosen two different age groups to initiate the concept of the big idea into their learning plan. Though the pedagogical approach will be the same, involvement level and learning experience will be different for the different age groups. I am intended to use animation as a pedagogical and storytelling tool. Apps like stop-motion, Play-school art maker, PicsArt animator, etc. are famous apps to make short-animated films. The lesson plan should be designed in a way to relate the children to their community. In their everyday life, they come in interaction with different people, community places, and nature. Parents are the primary connector with the children, so they can help the educators to know about their interests and help them to arrange the class environment. The class environments will be co-created with the children that are spacious, safe, and aesthetically simulating with colors, decoration, and lights that encourage their learning and development process. (Dinham & Chalk, 2018, pp. 345-347)  0-2yrs:  My activity for this group of children is- animal and “stories being told in a sequence of images” (Dingam & Chalk, 2018, p. 320) (2-3mins). This educator-guided session will be planned to conduct in a group setting of 2-3 toddlers (2yrs) for 1-2 days. Children will be provided with-   Printed human/animal cut-outs Animal figurineiPad/Tablets papers, scissors, pencils, colorsToys (available in the classroom)Playdough Children will choose 3-4 animals (under-water, forest, domestic) for their groups and they will be seated around small tables. They can pick up necessary items for the ‘creative-corner’. They will actively participate in creating a scenario. Educators will guide them to build up the story dialogues encouraging their effort to communicate (verbal and non-verbal) and taking pictures with the tab/iPad. After taking pictures, children will sequence the images and background audio with the help of educators. The outcome of this activity is to connect with the living creatures effecting fine motor skills, numerical and literacy. The assessment will be done by observing correct identification of animals, creation of/ chosen background scenario based on the habitats of animals, and the quality of the scripted lines. The National Quality Standard mentions the importance of introducing children to animals based on the contemporary theories and Maguzzi’s ideology (Australian Children’s Education & Care Quality Authority [ACECQA], n.d.). The projects will be shown in the class and the children can analyze critically on those short stories. This session is directly linked to EYLF outcome- 1.2: “Children develop their emerging autonomy, inter-dependence, resilience, and sense of agency”1.4: “Children learn to interact in relation to others with care, empathy, and respect”2.1: “Children develop a sense of belonging to groups and communities and an understanding of the reciprocal rights and responsibilities necessary for active community participation”2.4: “Children become socially responsible and show respect for the environment” (DEEWR, 2009). 5-8 yrs:  The Australian Media Art Curriculum aims to connect the children’s opinions, thoughts, and perspectives regarding their community with the audience, enabling them aesthetic and skilled in multimodal technologies (ACARA, 2016). The children of 5-8 yrs can create a story with the critical use of available technologies like voiceover, editing images, understanding the key message and delivering it properly to the audience, etc. (Dinham & Chalk, 2018, p. 330). Children of 5-8 yrs are more independent, confident about ‘being’, active participant of surroundings, compassionate and thoughtful. They understand socially complex relationships, are emotionally controlled, and have a good knowledge of conscience. (McLean, 2020). Co-creating the learning environment with the children, their parents and other educators will provide scope for them to be aesthetically creative. My lesson plan is- creating a scenario with a professional from their everyday life (2mins). Students will be divided into a group of 3-4 people and they will design the storyboarding, plan a list for necessary elements for the props, and the duration of this activity is 1-2 weeks. The provided materials are-  Figurine and Playdough (depending on the profession and scenario students want to create)iPad/ Tablets papers, colors, pen, pencils, scissors toys (available in classroom/bring from home) Children will choose their groupmates and arrange private discussion spaces around the classroom. Each group will decide on one occupation and scenario after discussing it in the group. I may need to help them to combine close-up or focusing shots, edit the lighting, attaching the recorded audio clip or music to the photo clip in the stop-motion app. The students can choose to create the scenario with playdough, papers, or downloaded/in-built app images. They will learn about layout, framing, cropping, point-of-view while taking pictures for the story and involve and engage in different types of text (ACAMAM054, ACAMAM055, ACAMAM056 (ACARA, 2016)). I will observe their in-class activity (storyline, sequence, use of color, clothing of the characters, script, emotion in the voice, image quality, editing quality, etc) and participation in the project with the help of other educators. Children will practice the symbolic codes, i,e; professional uniforms, expressing moods with voice tone or colors. After submission, these projects will be analyzed critically and combined feedback from the audience (students), and the educators will decide the grade. The main idea of this project is to connect the children with their surroundings, their everyday community, and the people. Such active, and practical media art projects can help them to be confident and to understand the social protocols, dependent as well as being respectful at others while interacting verbally with each other. They become aware of social responsibility, acknowledge risks, and share knowledge contributing to the five outcomes of the EYLF (DEEWR, 2009).  The use of scissors, pins or any other sharp objects will be under observation for safety purposes. The children from both the group will be responsible proper use and storage of the materials, digital media-encouraging their active participation.  Bibliography Australian Children’s Education & Care Quality Authority (n,d.). The National Quality Standard: Quality Area 3 | Keeping pets and animals in education and care services. https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-07/QA3_InfoSheetKeepingPetsAndAnimalsInEducationAndCareServices.pdf Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority [ACARA]. (2013). Australian Curriculum: The Arts Foundation to Year 10. https://docs.acara.edu.au/resources/Australian_Curriculum_The_Arts_2_July_2013.pdf Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority [ACARA]. (2015). The Arts: Sequence of content F-10 Sub-strand: Exploring ideas and improvising with ways to represent ideas(Version 8.1). https://docs.acara.edu.au/resources/The_Arts_-_Sequence_of_content.pdf Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority [ACARA]. (2016). The Arts (Version 8.3). Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations. (2009). Belonging, being & becoming: The early years learning framework for Australia.  https://docs.education.gov.au/system/files/doc/other/belonging_being_and_becoming_the_early_years_learning_framework_for_australia.pdf Dinham, J., & Chalk, B. (2018). It’s Arts Play EBook. Oxford University Press Australia & New Zealand. McLean, S. (2020). Understanding child development: Ages 5–8 years. National Workforce Centre for Child Mental Health. https://d2p3kdr0nr4o3z.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/2020/08/13145409/Understanding-child-development-5-8-factsheet.pdf Tarr, P. (2008). New Visions: Art for Early Childhood a Response to Art: Essential for Early Learning a Position Paper by the Early Childhood Art Educators Issues Group (ECAE). Art Education, 61(4), 19-24. https://doi.org/10.1080/00043125.2008.11652064