me arts ed

A flower for the teacher!

As we come to the close of another school year let me take this opportunity to remind you how much you matter in the life of children and their parents who understand and appreciate the value of arts education. They may not know how many hours you put into teaching each day, they may not know how you labor over trying to figure out how to reach each child, they may not know how many times you put your job before yourself or your family but they notice how much you care!

THANK YOU for what you do each day for kids and their arts education throughout the state of Maine. Having walked in your shoes for 30 years it is easy for me to remember the bittersweet feeling I had at the end of each school year!

The following is from Seth Godin’s blog which can be found at this link: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/

You matter

When you love the work you do and the people you do it with, you matter.
When you are so gracious and generous and aware that you think of other people before yourself, you matter.
When you leave the world a better place than you found it, you matter.
When you continue to raise the bar on what you do and how you do it, you matter.
When you teach and forgive and teach more before you rush to judge and demean, you matter.
When you touch the people in your life through your actions (and your words), you matter.
When kids grow up wanting to be you, you matter.
When you see the world as it is, but insist on making it more like it could be, you matter.
When you inspire a Nobel prize winner or a slum dweller, you matter.
When the room brightens when you walk in, you matter.
And when the legacy you leave behind lasts for hours, days or a lifetime, you matter.

HAPPY SUMMER!

Since I did the first blog post two days ago on the results of the NAEP report I have received 4 notices on the report. I think this reflects the importance of this information and urge you to read the details of the report in a free moment. Each article has a bit of a different twist on the findings.

The test was administered to 7,900 eighth-grade students and 260 public and private school administrators were asked how much time they devoted to art and music instruction.

Please click here for the link to the article in the Education section of the New York Times.

Data collected on HQT from the last 5 years

The arts are doing great in Maine when it comes to the numbers of arts classes taught by highly qualified arts teachers. The summer report is available and has been collected over the last 5 years by content and level. This information is available by School also upon request. This report and many others on HQT Data are accessible on the MEDMS “Public Portal”, under “No Child Left Behind”.

Please click here for the link.

National Assessment of Educational Progress Arts 2008 Assessment of Music and Visual Arts at Grade 8

The following is a news release today from the U.S. Department of Education.

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan released the following statement today regarding results of the NAEP Arts 2008 assessment of Music and Visual Arts at Grade 8:

These results are important for several reasons. First, they remind us that the arts are a core academic subject and part of a complete education for all students. The arts are also important to American students gaining the 21st century skills they will need to succeed in higher education and the global marketplace – skills that increasingly demand creativity, perseverance, and problem solving combined with performing well as part of a team.

The results remind us that learning in the arts can and should be rigorous and based on high standards, and that it can be evaluated objectively, using well-designed measures.

This Arts Report Card should challenge all of us to make K-12 arts programs more available to America’s children and youth. Such programs not only engage students’ creativity and academic commitment today, but they uniquely equip them for future success and fulfillment. We can and should do better for America’s students.

To view the results please click here.

THANK YOU FOR THE OUTSTANDING WORK YOU DO FOR MAINE STUDENTS AND THEIR ARTS EDUCATION!

Please take a minute and post a comment at the bottom of this page. Share what the highlight of your year has been….

AN ACT TO DESIGNATE JULY 12th AS WYETH DAY

Andrew Wyeth The Murray House Watercolor on paper, 23X293/4" Colby College Museum of Art The Lunder Collection

Andrew Wyeth would have been 92 on July 12th. He passed away in January of this year and the State of Maine has set aside July 12th as an annual observance to honor him. Andrew, son Jamie and father, N.C. have made strong contributions to the State’s artistic and cultural heritage.

It was at the Olson farm in Cushing, Maine that Andrew painted his most famous image, Christina’s World, in 1948, and he continued over the next 50 years to paint Maine people and places. I always loved taking 8th graders to the Olson house when I taught.

Jamie presently has an exhibit at the Wyeth Center, at the Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland, entitled Seven Deadly Sins. The exhibit will remain until August 30th. I recently saw an interview with Jamie on 207 where he talked about his strong relationship with his dad. They were wonderful critics for each others work.

In recognition of Wyeth Day there are resources and information available on the arts ed webpages at the Department. You can get there by clicking here. I realize the timing is poor because summer is just around the corner. You may not be able to use the resources this school year but know that the information will continue to be there.

At the link above you will learn about the activities planned for July 12th at the Farnsworth, please tell your students about them. Colby has a few Wyeth’s in their collection and have kindly given permission to use one of the pieces. Colby Museum is a great museum, I suggest you check out to plan a visit with your students.

And, if you have any lessons and/or units that you would like to share with others please contact me or leave a comment below.

“Miss Rumphius” by Barbara Cooney

Many of you have read or heard about “Miss Rumphius”, the children’s book by Barbara Cooney. It was one of my own children’s favorite books and I also shared the book with my students. In my last email to the arts ed list serve I mentioned that I was finally able to grow lupines. Shortly afterwards I received an email from Victoria Wilson, Assistant to the Director, Public Education Outreach and Membership Manager at the Bowdoin College of Art.

Victoria was glad I mentioned my lupines and let me know about one of Bowdoin College Museum of Art’s exhibits going on during June.

On view now are the paintings for “Miss Rumphius” by Barbara Cooney June 5 – June 28, 2009 in the John A. and Helen P. Becker Gallery.

The Museum holds the original paintings for the illustrations in four of Barbara Cooney’s books. This exhibition includes the original paintings for the beloved Miss Rumphius, part of Barbara Cooney’s “Maine Trilogy.” Miss Rumphius travels the globe before setting in her home by the sea and making her local world more beautiful. During the later part of the summer, another exhibition of Cooney’s works will include paintings from other books.

Please click here to visit the Bowdoin College Museum of Art web site and book a tour. If you use any of Barbara Cooney’s books in your classroom, please share by posting a comment.

A variety of projects keeps Huey busy

I love to get Huey’s emails… I know I can count on him to share the good work he is doing and they close with “Peace”. As I go about my crazy, busy day to day life I really need to feel peaceful. Just reading it helps a bit!

Please click here for Huey’s website and to learn more about what has been keeping him busy. Besides hearing about screenings, residencies, and new films in the works, you’ll see some new pictures of Spring in Maine. You can learn about his film on Marian McPartland, the jazz piano playing legend and host of NPR’s Marian McPartland’s Piano Jazz which is in post production.

You can also read the Portland Monthly magazine article on SALT HAY, a feature narrative film Huey is developing with other producers. The article includes an interview with Judd Nelson who will play one of the lead roles in SALT HAY. Judd is a Maine native and star of St. Elmo’s Fire, The Breakfast Club, other films, and many TV appearances.

Huey also has DVDs and CDs for sale on the site. Perhaps if you’ve worked with Huey on a project or had him to your school for a residency you could share your comments to help others learn more.

Upcoming events related to film: 32nd Maine Student Film and Video Festival, Public Screening of Winners and Finalist, July 18, 12:30PM, Waterville Opera House, Waterville FMI please click here. July and August, New England FIlm Academy, Summer Film Camps for Youth. FMI please click here. June 27 -Huey’s film “Graceland Gatewalk” made in 1981, part of a New Media Artists in Maine screening. Center for Maine Contemporary Art, Rockport, 2PM. FMI please click here.

July 29-31st: Maine Maritime Academy, Castine, Maine

Great Just Got Better! Cost Slashed, Super Keynote, Terrific Presentations! With the cooperation of the NCLBA Title 5 Program Director Dennis Kunces the cost for attending the MLTI Summer Institute is just $65 per person! Please click here for more information and registration, now open!

Last year's keynote speaker Randy Judkins

The keynote is a passionate, enthusiastic teacher and speaker. Take five minutes and view Chris Lehmann, founding principal of the Science Leadership Academy, a progressive science and technology high school in Philadelphia. Please click here to see Chris in action.

Half-day sessions with a major focus on grades 7-12 educators. You can check the website for the sessions to learn more. There will be 12 contact hours awarded.

Economy impacting future of the center

The Maine Folklife Center contains the Northeast Archives, the oldest folklore and oral history repository in the Northeast. It has been in existence for 50 years and open to the public for research. The University of Maine funding for two staff positions will end in 2009.

This reduction creates an emergency for the center, jeopardizing its eligibility for grants and eliminating access to teh Northeast Archives of Folklore and Oral History. It also impacts the ability to publish Northeast Folklore and discontinue public programming.

If you’d like to learn more about the center please click here. If you’d like to learn how you can help please contact Julia Lane (Castlebay) @ castlebay@castlebay.net.