Hello, everyone! Yup – it’s the middle of November. You read that correctly. I’m caught off guard by the lack of snow outside, (ok, there’s a little bit and I’m assured more is coming), making it really hard to believe that Christmas break is only five weeks away. You read that correctly, too. Midterm marks should be in the mail this week so if you have questions about student progress or marks, touch base with me and we can chat about that.

In NAC2O – Grade 10 Native Studies this week, we’ll continue talking about colonialism and assimilation. We didn’t have that conversation last week because we focused on finishing the Clan Identity Rocks and, after talking about Grief and Loss through our StreetWolf program, began working on a grief box project.

The grief box project is pretty cool. Basically, you create a container with the name of someone/something you lost identified on it. Inside the container are objects that represent memories of this person. In my case, I chose by grandpa, Clarence. Here’s the box, (or in our case, paper bags):

Our plan is to take our grief boxes to a sacred fire on Thursday, (our regular StreetWolf day) and honour the day by including them in the fire. This will be a powerful day.

Hats off to my new ALC1O – Grade 9 Art class. These students came in and took the class by storm. We spent last week working on an introductory design project and they turned out phenomenally well. Most students used pastel to create interesting designs and patterns.

This week, we’ll take some time to go over the Elements of Art and Principles of Design. Students will also begin reflecting on their first assignment, which is how the Creative Process is introduced. Finally, we’ll begin talking about Colour Theory. For the remainder of the week, the class will be creating small studio projects that demonstrate their understanding of the elements and principles. Should be great!

As always, have a wonderful week.

Hello, everyone. Apparently it’s almost the middle of November, which is hard to believe considering that we’re still having some reasonably warm days. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but according to the Weather Network, that’s all about to change. Speaking of change, this week marks the beginning of art for a new crop of Grade 9 students. It’s been great so far! This week is also the middle of the semester, meaning this school year is effectively 25% completed already. Crazy!

Midterms are being finalized by school staff and should be in the mail in about a week. Please contact me if you have any questions about a student’s progress!

Here’s our weekly update:

NAC2O Grade 10 Native Studies students have spent a few days catching up and I’m happy to say that we’re seeing quite a bit of success in the class. We are still introducing concepts like colonialism and marginalization. We’ll use the Aboriginal Peoples in Canada to guide is through this section. I also plan on using film to highlight these concepts and how they have historically impacted First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Peoples.

Also, I would like my students to start following Ontario’s judicial inquest into the deaths of seven First Nations youth between 2000-2011 in Thunder Bay. We will talk about the issues of young First Nations people having to travel long distances for education and the impacts – both positive and negative – of this system. You can follow the inquest project on CBC Thunder Bay, which is offering detailed daily coverage. Just click the image below:

As I mentioned above, this is the beginning of a new group of ALC1O – Grade 9 Art students, so we’re back to repeating similar assignments from September, though depending on how things go, we’ll make a few changes. Students jumped right in with an intro design activity. Upon its completion, we’ll do some reflecting of what did/didn’t work, and analyze some elements of art and principles of design to build an understanding of how art pieces come together. I’m looking forward to this group!

Here’s hoping everyone has a great week!

Yesterday marked the last day for this group of students in ALC1O – Grade 9 Art. As I mentioned in a previous post, on Monday they will move to drama, while the drama students will come to art. On our last day, students wrapped up the printmaking assignment and we organized the works for some matting. I’m really proud of what was accomplished with this group. Check out some of their work, which I’m happy to share:

Best of luck to my art students as they head to drama. And to my new students, welcome!