Day 7

June 13, 2017

Today's art class included mixing 'slip' and pouring our molds for the sgraffito project. After one hour in the mold - we poured out the excess and placed the mold inside a plastic trash bad. They will take 48 hours to harden. My design is the 'ouroboros,' snake eating its own tail. It symbolizes infinity, rebirth and 're-invention'. I feel this is appropriate for me because the symbol is Mayan (and Egyptian) AND because I will be 're-inventing' my teaching program at a new school this year AND I'll be teaching Spanish and French.


Meanwhile we found and printed the image for our multi-media project. I'll do a 'flag-colored' map of Spain and France with emblems on top. We prepared watercolor paper. We have to break the chosen design into segments that we can cut. I have to get that part done tomorrow! This design is similar to what I'll do. The mapof France will include the 'fleur-de-lis' symbol even though that's not on the flag.

This morning we made a Geological time line. It was interesting to review the eons and eras of geological time in a lesson from http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/education/explorations/tours/geotime/
The extension was creating a time line from a 75-foot cash register tape in the hall. We had an Excel program that converted the years into inches. Not surprisingly, the bulk of the tape was the earliest eon. Man and all recent history came in the last inch.  In the language class - we could use a tape or toilet paper to put historical events in order. We could even do one for USA and one for the Spain or France. I think students need to understand how our history is so much more 'recent' than the European countries.

We had a lesson on Native Americans after art. I was thinking about how we used to play 'Indians' based on the stereotypes we saw in Daniel Boone, F-Troop and other 'westerns.' I never intended to have a negative image of Native Americans. I've always had great respect for them and I lament how they were 'relocated' against their will. This is a good example of how we think differently now. Not so different was how the Spaniards expelled all the Jews and Muslims who didn't convert to Christianity. Such thinking was typical of the time period. This could also relate to events in Africa, atrocities against ethnic groups in the Middle East, etc.  Food for thought...!