My favourite thing to do when I'm not lecturing is to sit down at a table and really connect with some kids and their work. Teach them about breaking things down into basic shapes when they want to draw something more complicated or just in general help them generate ideas by asking questions. I also love drawing for them because they get very excited. I try to participate whenever I can and make my own version of the thing being taught to engage myself and to inspire kids. Another great feeling is when we're divided into groups because I can also invest more time into a less number of kids. I am more likely to remember their names and revisit topics we've discussed in previous weeks. I feel that my participation has remained relatively constant with a a class or two here and there where I am ridiculously exhausted - I usually just participate by making art, as a relaxing therapeutic experience.
In terms of preparedness, most of the time we're quite prepared. There's been some weeks like the Sound class where the mics were malfunctioning. But there has always been a back-up plan. We're really good at improvising. During the Mindmapping class today, we weren't sure how to divide the students into groups. Halfway thru we decided to group them by tables since it seemed to be working well. Our initial plan was to hand out postcards for the students to write down their first two choices of mediums. That would have taken so much more time and hassle. One girl did not like this so we switched her to the girl group. Going with the flow is key to being a successful teacher as well as dealing with circumstances and recognizing what's working and what's not.
There's only so much you can prepare... and in the end, there will always be messy situations that you'll have to improvise through.
The kids were enthralled by pixellation... so we eliminated that as an option for the final project. It was a rowdy class with much jumping and wrestling. It took a lot of voice strength to get to the kids. Sometimes you have to be stern but for some reason the kids don't seem to care. They'll always bounce back to like you again.
Mindmapping was unexpectedly successful! I was nervous because it seemed like a thing they would easily get tired of but for some reason, luck was on my side and they came up with brilliant ideas. Their group ideas were spectacular. I loved Obama vs. Godzilla vs. Pizza.... and the pizza wins. I also loved the GERM idea and the various planets. So cool. Kids are cool. End of story.
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