ART EDUCATION
Teaching Philosophy
I am passionate about the arts and even more passionate about helping others find their calling as well. My students will be taught how to discover their individuality through their personal interests in art and design processes, principles, and history set forth by the NAEA and Virginia State Standards.
I will provide an interactive learning environment for my students with a progressive approach. They will practice visual thinking skills in assessing and analyzing various art forms with their peers. They will discover their interests through project-based learning by experimenting with different materials and concepts. The students will also learn about their personal interests by studying and making connections between art from history through contemporary times, and their current art processes. Through studying the various connections between artists, art historians, and art critics, they will be introduced to the community in which the arts have formed and the impact it has on society.
The passion I have for teaching about art lies within my personal experience of the arts in grade school. Focus on the arts never seemed to be fully represented to me. Consequently, I was deprived of early discoveries of the arts as an academic and professional subject. It is my mission to fully educate my students on current uses of art and how art can be used in their lives. The arts are essential in helping people express themselves and think critically. My students will learn about themselves by teaching them to express their thoughts, feelings, and reflections through the creation of art. My students will become more aware of their talents and preferences through the creation of different types of art. For example, if a student prefers a project that requires more precise measurements, the student is most likely going to prefer circumstances that provide them structure in life. Whereas a student who prefers more of a free-flowing project may prefer the opposite. I believe it is my duty to introduce my students to every art discipline so each one of them are given the opportunity to discover a hidden passion.
Bio
Brooke Benham is a practicing artist with a passion for art education. She received a BA in Art Education and a BFA in Drawing and Design at Old Dominion University in the Spring of 2021. Brooke is a motivated and resourceful teaching professional trained in various artistic mediums. Her teaching experience ranges from pre-K to highschool, via online, in-person, and hybrid models of learning. Planning, organizing, and directing activities are strengths of hers in which she has practiced through various opportunities of providing conceptual leadership and initiative. She has a talent for instilling artistic expression and appreciation through interest-based learning. Her lesson plans engage content and skill building, while emphasizing big ideas and working with a conceptual framework.
UNITS AND LESSONS
“SERIES PLANNING” UNIT PLAN FOR JUNIOR PORTFOLIO CLASS
This unit is designed to further develop the students’ knowledge and skill set of professional and academic necessities to pursue achievement in the discipline of visual arts. Students will establish a professional online presence through building a website and will begin an in-depth sustainable series of work that will involve the crucial creative skills of concept building, planning, and implementation.
"ABSTRACTION": AMBIGUITY IN PROCESS-BASED ART UNIT
This unit is designed for 8th grade learners and introduces students to abstract art making. The unit will show them the power that individual minds can have on history and contemporary culture when they choose to abandon the status quo. Producing a visual by means of intuition and chance, allows the students to fully explore what their minds are capable of producing.
“FROM EARTH TO ART”: SUSTAINABLE ARTMAKING UNIT, GRADES 6-8
This unit was developed for and taught at the Visual Arts School at Hermitage Museum and Gardens, Norfolk. Students were taught creative ways to incorporate found objects from nature into their sustainable art projects. Paper making, fiber arts, and ceramics were taught in this lesson
STEAM LESSON: COLLABORATIVE ARTS IN ENGINEERING
Art Education Majors collaborated with Engineering Majors at Old Dominion University to create and teach a 4th grade lesson at a local Elementary school. The students will learn about different disciplines in Engineering and use a creative design process combined with math and science to develop something new.
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"DIGITAL POP ART" ONLINE LESSON FOR JUNIOR IB ARTS CLASS
Students will learn the influence that pop art had on culture and how current culture influences pop art. The lesson will explain how the history of pop art emerged and why the art movement used popular culture as a subject in the work. The students will learn the relevance of computer graphics in the current commercial culture of today and be able to use their personal creativity to advocate their ideas regarding current culture.
DISCIPLINARY LITERACY LESSON WITH VINCENT VAN GOGH: ART FOUNDATIONS
The Pre-Reading and Vocabulary activities introduce, teach, and reinforce vocabulary for 9th grade Art Foundations.
BIG IDEAS UNIT ON "MENTAL PERSPECTIVE" GRADES 3-5
This unit will include the introduction of the artist Leonid Afremov and the reading of the book “Seed Magic” by Jane Buchanan. It will integrate science through the discussion of the effects rain has on plants and will integrate reading comprehension through distinguishing points of view. The unit will also include teacher samples of the watercolor paint activity and a slide presentation.