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I’m down for teaching craft –
get me out of here!
Some of you may have
heard of, or seen a TV game show programme with a similar name where
‘celebrities’ are thrown into the Australian jungle with a chance to
redeem their dwindling reputations through a series of intense 'bush'
activities.
Being a craft teacher at Christmas time has its similarities. A frantic
jam packed few weeks of almost total immersion is all things art
and craft. It’s a time when teachers’
patience is well and truly stretched.
It’s traditional for the primary years to be involved in a range of
activities that are first tackled in school, and then observed by
others. Sometimes teachers can feel that the presentation is not
just a reflection of what the children can do, but of their abilities
too.
As a parent, and a teacher I know how challenging it is. And I
know I have an advantage – I like crafts. I willingly get
involved, suggest, help out, recommend and do. Some of my
colleagues aren’t so fortunate. Can you put your hand up to any of
these concerns?
I don’t have a crafty mentor who is able to encourage me in my
craft activities
I’m not really motivated to get busy with the craft box
I find Christmas, Easter and other traditional making times a real
chore and a worry?
If you answered yes then there are solutions out there, but like
anything you have to know where to look.
First of all you need to identify just you would want of a perfect
little helper in the
classroom at this time of year. Go ahead and check the list.
- I
want to feel there’s someone who’s confident in the craft project so
that
all my questions are answered
- If
I’m being told what to do I need to understand it
- I
don’t want to be given too much information at once
- I’d
like instructions that make sense, and use common language
- If
it’s brand new to me it would help to have the steps broken down so
that
I can go through them again when I need to
- If
my crafty mentor is off sick then I’m really stuck – help me out
- Show
me how to save time and my reputation
Even reading the list can make you agitated. So what’s the
solution? Remember, you’re looking for something that gives you
confidence and something that will be worth the effort because you’ve a
lot of boxes to tick….
- The
projects need to be of the right standard for my group of learners so
there needs to be choice
- As a teacher I need to understand it so
that I can share this confidence with your learners
- <>My
assistants and facilitators must be able to share it too, either by
reading instructions of understanding my interpretation of them
- <>The
children/learners must see it as a quality
project, worth doing and inspiring<>The
parents are looking for something that is not just cutesy, but that
demonstrates their child’s abilities, rather than mine, or those of
other team members
- <>My
school Principal/Head also needs it to be of value (in terms of pupil
enthusiasm/parent satisfaction/teacher involvement)
That’s a lot of people to please through one project!
So, don’t rush into buying any old project that will just gather
dust. It really is worth investing a little time in researching a
style and layout of project that you can follow, at-a-glance.
Put a project through its paces and see how it stands up to what you
need in the classroom. And don’t feel shy of asking questions of
the writers. Do they sound like teachers themselves? Are
the instructions complete? Can you, perhaps ‘a novice’ do the
project – and more importantly, can you confidently share it with
others?
It doesn’t have to be stressful in the classroom at craft time – as
long as you choose the right craft projects to be alongside you, every
step of the way.
=====================================================
Geraldine Jozefiak is passionate about
crafts and their place in
education.
Be part of raising standards in teaching and learning
by using the best possible craft instruction.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Looking for
craft
projects, books, teaching manuals or courses? Need ideas on what
to teach and how to teach it?
"The Craft Teacher" can save you time and stress in teaching and
learning crafts.
Click Here => http://www.the-craft-teacher.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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