BV - I know a girl who thinks of ghosts

She'll make ya breakfast
She'll make ya toast
She don't use butter
She don't use cheese
She don't use jelly
Or any of these
She uses vaseline
Vaseline
Vaseline
Vaseline - The Flaming Lips

An odd choice of song, but considering the section of the text I will be referring to is about a teacher spreading herself too thin I thought it humorous.

Choose one of the scenarios described in the reading and answer questions embedded in the text of that scenario.

Is this situation typical in most schools?
How can art teachers accommodate different learning styles and other needs among their students?
Is it important for teachers to develop a range of instructional skills?
How can art teachers get the most from the visual nature of their subject?

I think the situation where there are a great variety of learning needs is extremely common, just not acknowledged all the time. I feel the increase of the popularity of 'helicopter parenting' and high expectations, parents are pushing individualistic, specialized lessons. Also, I believe teachers are realizing that there are many teaching methods that need to be improved and reflected upon.

Understanding that there are different learning styles in an art classroom is the first step. I believe there are a lot of art teachers that don't understand the many facets of art. I remember often being taught a lot of 'do it my way or your wrong' which is definitely not how, I believe, art should be taught. Being prepared for a variety of learning styles would help as well. Being prepared for kinesthetic, visual, audio etc. learners as well as processes children can learn through will make the lesson not only seem easier, but probably more fun. Though children can enjoy challenges, if something is too challenging it is likely they will either get frustrated or loose interest. Making a lesson plan that accommodates for learning styles and challenges, such as creating different methods to learning the same subject by making different activities or 'stations' (like mentioned in the text), will allow for different learning styles to be fulfilled. Perhaps even making more than one lesson for the class to participate as co-learners and co-teachers would be beneficial. What I would personally try is a series of lessons that build up to the final activity. Each smaller activity would be easier to cater to any different learning styles, as well as promote students to help each other get to the final destination.

Developing a range of instructional skill would definitely help both the teacher and the students. That way the teacher can be prepared for challenges both he/she will come across as well as the students. If the teacher has a limited range, it could be frustrating for both the teacher and the student, and the point of any lessons could be lost because of lack of understanding.

Teaching students that there is a way of 'seeing' things is what I feel art is about. Art is a very visual subject and I think a lot of it is basically teaching students how to 'see' things in a certain way. Everything can be art in a certain context. A discussion on how an everyday object could be put into an artistic context could help develop this concept. Teaching how visuals can be incorporated into other things through other senses can also start the development of the concept of 'seeing. Having a the ability to 'see', or an artistic eye, is how a student will grow to see a beauty in everything, and in exposing the students to this idea would help them see a visual aspect to all subjects, not just art.