A Day of Advanced Learning for Educators
The Lola Stein Institute presented a day of advanced learning for educators on November 7, 2011. We opened with a keynote address, "The Transformative Power of the Arts to Deepen Understanding" presented by by Gail Baker and Judy Leitner.
Participants then chose to attend two master classes from a selection of five: One in the morning, the second in the afternoon.
The day concluded together with a presentation by Greg Beiles entitled, "Teaching and Learning as Works of Art."
Master Classes:
The Writings on the Wall: Graffiti and Lessons on Social Justice
"Hineini." "Here I am." "This is me."
Abraham, Jacob and Moses each say "Hineini" when God speaks to them. We want our students to use their voices, to express who they are, especially in the face of truth.
This integrated curriculum explores the making of, the history of, and the content of art. We learn to draw. We study the art of graffiti writing and ask "Where else in art history does graphic expression so directly advocate social justice?" We examine social comment and human rights themes and discover them in the urgent, "in the moment" messaging that is graffiti writing.
This master class is suitable for junior high and high school educators and integrates curriculum for drawing classes, art history, human rights themes and the study of Judaic text.
From Slavery to Freedom: Learning Black History and Passover through Literary and Visual Arts, Old and New.
We advance our teaching of the value of freedom when students appreciate diverse experiences of the struggle for liberation. This master class integrates the study of slavery in North America with Passover and the Exodus from Egypt (Sefer Shmot).
Each historical experience is studied for its own sake and then viewed in relation to one another for common themes. In language arts students meet the flight to freedom in the novel, Underground to Canada. History class grounds their study of black slavery and American Civil War. Students study the Exodus story in Hebrew in Judaics class (Tanach), and learn the Haggadah in Hebrew language class. Their sense of freedom and of ties that bind deepens through structured study of the art of macrame.
This master class is suitable for second language, history, visual arts, dance, and Judaics teachers in elementary and Junior high.
The Art of Remembrance: A Meaningful Way to Teach the Holocaust in Junior High
Remembrance should evoke values that make a difference in the world. This two part master class offers educators the chance to reflect personally and then learn to guide their students to explore why and how remembrance plays a crucial role in their lives.
Part One invites Dr. Shelley Hornstein, a leading expert in Holocaust remembrance and art historian, to discuss Jewish memory and culture with a slide lecture on public Holocaust memorials around the world.
Part Two shares a curriculum integrating the value that Judaism has no bystanders with the power of personal expression. Students meet survivors and study the Shoa as an entry to the study of Human Rights. The historical narrative informs the students' experiences and their responsibilities today.
They compare different passages in Talmud class to examine whether presentation informs perception. They read The Devil's Arithmetic in language arts and contemplate the dynamics of conviction: the novel's protagonist like many her age, is not inspired by the given Holocaust narrative and symbolically she travels into 1942 Europe to honour remembrance her own way.
Students are trained in public speaking and elocution as they write and deliver a speech on a human rights theme. In art class, they study sculpture and ultimately create an exhibition of installation art, one that crystalizes and memorializes their own human rights message.
This curriculum is adaptive for junior high and high school.
The Beautiful Triangle: Geometry, Visual Arts and Ancient Civilizations
Let's help our students see mathematics as something beautiful.
This master class explores a unit that engages students in using their knowledge of angles and triangles to create geometric art, as in the work of Wassily Kandinsky. All math teachers will value model units that show how mathematics can be both a useful life skill and a way of expressing ideas and emotions.
This workshop was presented at the Food for Thoughts Workshops, Toronto, 2008, and at Bridges Banff: Mathematics, Music, Art, Architecture, Banff, Alberta, 2009.
It is reprised by popular demand and is suitable for junior high math teachers.
Spirit of Canada: Teaching Social Studies Through The Arts
Are you ready for new ways to teach history, geography and culture? This master class presents "The Spirit of Canada", a model unit in which each student becomes a virtual tourist through Canada traveling across the country learning local songs and stories.
The model unit demonstrates how teachers can integrate song and art into social studies units that engage students in doing and presenting their own research.
This master class is also reprised on demand and is suitable for Junior high and elementary social studies and geography teachers.
Participants then chose to attend two master classes from a selection of five: One in the morning, the second in the afternoon.
The day concluded together with a presentation by Greg Beiles entitled, "Teaching and Learning as Works of Art."
Master Classes:
The Writings on the Wall: Graffiti and Lessons on Social Justice
"Hineini." "Here I am." "This is me."
Abraham, Jacob and Moses each say "Hineini" when God speaks to them. We want our students to use their voices, to express who they are, especially in the face of truth.
This integrated curriculum explores the making of, the history of, and the content of art. We learn to draw. We study the art of graffiti writing and ask "Where else in art history does graphic expression so directly advocate social justice?" We examine social comment and human rights themes and discover them in the urgent, "in the moment" messaging that is graffiti writing.
This master class is suitable for junior high and high school educators and integrates curriculum for drawing classes, art history, human rights themes and the study of Judaic text.
From Slavery to Freedom: Learning Black History and Passover through Literary and Visual Arts, Old and New.
We advance our teaching of the value of freedom when students appreciate diverse experiences of the struggle for liberation. This master class integrates the study of slavery in North America with Passover and the Exodus from Egypt (Sefer Shmot).
Each historical experience is studied for its own sake and then viewed in relation to one another for common themes. In language arts students meet the flight to freedom in the novel, Underground to Canada. History class grounds their study of black slavery and American Civil War. Students study the Exodus story in Hebrew in Judaics class (Tanach), and learn the Haggadah in Hebrew language class. Their sense of freedom and of ties that bind deepens through structured study of the art of macrame.
This master class is suitable for second language, history, visual arts, dance, and Judaics teachers in elementary and Junior high.
The Art of Remembrance: A Meaningful Way to Teach the Holocaust in Junior High
Remembrance should evoke values that make a difference in the world. This two part master class offers educators the chance to reflect personally and then learn to guide their students to explore why and how remembrance plays a crucial role in their lives.
Part One invites Dr. Shelley Hornstein, a leading expert in Holocaust remembrance and art historian, to discuss Jewish memory and culture with a slide lecture on public Holocaust memorials around the world.
Part Two shares a curriculum integrating the value that Judaism has no bystanders with the power of personal expression. Students meet survivors and study the Shoa as an entry to the study of Human Rights. The historical narrative informs the students' experiences and their responsibilities today.
They compare different passages in Talmud class to examine whether presentation informs perception. They read The Devil's Arithmetic in language arts and contemplate the dynamics of conviction: the novel's protagonist like many her age, is not inspired by the given Holocaust narrative and symbolically she travels into 1942 Europe to honour remembrance her own way.
Students are trained in public speaking and elocution as they write and deliver a speech on a human rights theme. In art class, they study sculpture and ultimately create an exhibition of installation art, one that crystalizes and memorializes their own human rights message.
This curriculum is adaptive for junior high and high school.
The Beautiful Triangle: Geometry, Visual Arts and Ancient Civilizations
Let's help our students see mathematics as something beautiful.
This master class explores a unit that engages students in using their knowledge of angles and triangles to create geometric art, as in the work of Wassily Kandinsky. All math teachers will value model units that show how mathematics can be both a useful life skill and a way of expressing ideas and emotions.
This workshop was presented at the Food for Thoughts Workshops, Toronto, 2008, and at Bridges Banff: Mathematics, Music, Art, Architecture, Banff, Alberta, 2009.
It is reprised by popular demand and is suitable for junior high math teachers.
Spirit of Canada: Teaching Social Studies Through The Arts
Are you ready for new ways to teach history, geography and culture? This master class presents "The Spirit of Canada", a model unit in which each student becomes a virtual tourist through Canada traveling across the country learning local songs and stories.
The model unit demonstrates how teachers can integrate song and art into social studies units that engage students in doing and presenting their own research.
This master class is also reprised on demand and is suitable for Junior high and elementary social studies and geography teachers.