This is my introduction video into facial proportions and creating a self portrait that is also personally expressive. 50% of my grade is based on the careful use of proportion, and the other 50% is based on the expressive quality of the work and media use. The books I reference are at Firehouse Publications. 

​The secons video explains how I expect my introductory students to handle facial features and details. There are many more tutorials out there, but this hits on the basics.

Like this lesson idea? Generate your own complete, standards-aligned lesson plan in minutes with the ArtEdGuru Lesson Generator — built on 40 years of real classroom experience. Free to try.

​Try the ArtEdGuru Lesson Generator ​app.artedguru.com ​

I created this video during Covid for my home learners to help meet expectations. It has been useful after in showing students what they can do to their work to improve it... particularly when they say they're done.

​It may be helpful to make your own video of a generic work of art so your students can see your expectations. Many phones can do a time laps video so you do not bore them. Adding index cards for the steps you are taking so they understand your expectations can be useful. It might also be necessary to re-design your rubric to meet those expectations for distance learners. You can see mine in the video. I have included my universal rubrics in my workbooks but you can make one that focuses on your own classroom expectations.

For more quotes and resources, click the "ART QUOTES" tab to the left.

​Until we have a cure to Covid19, there's no "going back to normal."

There are 4 areas of concern I will address.
#1. Yourself
#2. Your Students
#3. Your Supplies
#4. Your Lessons
 
If you must be back in the classroom, you need to protect yourself.  This means wearing a mask. If you are young and in good health, any mask will be fine. Perhaps your school may even provide one.
 
If you have health risks or a member of your family does, then you need to be a bit more proactive. I am in a high risk group, and my spouse is even at higher risk. We take very few risks. We have not eaten out since March. We do not go into crowded spaces. If the bank or post office is full, I turn around and go another time. We took a vacation and stayed in an AirB&B apartment with a kitchen so we could eat in... but we rubbed down every surface with rubbing alcohol, even AC vents, etc. We chose a remote beach location so our contact with others would be minimal often having entire beaches to ourselves.
 
I know that masks made with woven material, 3 layers, including a filter, is good. I know knit material, similar to t-shirt material is poor. I know that N95 masks are best to protect the wearer but are hard to find but I did find a source at envomask.com that many teachers have bought from. Another option is Nano Mask, made in the USA and meets N95 standards, but they are pricey too. I also know that as an art teacher, I am pretty handy, and I can make a very good N95 style mask. VIDEO HERE. These are what I am making for myself because they are custom fit to my own face.

​For students: I will, when possible, give out individualized supplies. If they must share between classes, I will spray them with alcohol or Lysol between classes. I spray sink handles, paper towel dispensers, and any multi-touch surfaces between classes. If this means they must line up before entering, so be it. For those who travel to teach, the classroom teacher should handle this. (TIP: Nasco will custom make kits, just call them)
 
Students should be seated in assigned seats so that should an infection spread, you know who was where and when. If you are fortunate and your school has a mandatory mask policy, be sure to enforce it. DO NOT argue with students as raised voices emit more virus. Stay calm. With this too in mind, my classes will be quieter this year. I have a play list of music, and our conversations will be fewer.
It may be helpful to show students proper hand washing. This video is good but the key is using the paper towel to turn off water when you are all done.
 
I would also recommend not using re-usable items for bathroom passes. I use disposable paper passes. Encourage students not to loiter, and keep tabs on their attendance carefully.
 
Limit your close contact with students. Keeping a desk between you and them can help create space. Perhaps you can design a space with a small fan to blow air in the space between away and toward vents. This may not always be possible but something you can consider.
 
Supplies, when possible, these should be individualized, each student having their own set. This might mean that you need to simplify. Perhaps this year you do more drawing instead of clay or painting. They need to explore as much as you can, but safety needs to be considered. If the weather is agreeable, perhaps a class outside is possible. Outdoor spaces are reliably safer. I have many possible lessons HERE. If all your students are working remotely, this VIDEO may offer some supply ideas too.
 
Lessons: I have many suggestions HERE, and that list will grow, but my goal is to simplify, push the pre-work like writing and sketching, as that can be graded, and to be more open in my expectations. I have many resources on this blog you can use for free, and I have many books at Firehouse Publications that can be helpful in having students stay on task, create a work portfolio, pre-work worksheets, and include a few assessments. More free stuff can be found  in teacher forums on Facebook. These are great spaces to share, learn, and develop good lessons.
 
My goal is to create explorations that are open to interpretation and are not "media specific." I design lessons that touch on art concepts and allow for the student to personalize their work so it is more meaningful. THIS BLOGPOST explains how I am able to individualize and personalize art explorations. During this pandemic, I allow students to explore that experience if they wish and to the depth they are comfortable with. If a family member has died of Covid, then they may not be ready to deal with that.

I am less concerned with technique. I am less focused on "skills." I try to focus on exploration and creativity. I keep in mind that 98% of students are not going into an art career, so when Covid makes it hard to work closely with students, I am, in general, letting these "skill-based" elements go. I certainly address them individually, perhaps by pointing a student to one of my many TUTORIALS on my Youtube channel. But I am not going to sit next to them going over the specifics of a technique, or pulling the group together for a close-up detailed demo. It's just not safe.

When I was in college, one of the wisest things my director said was that a good art teacher can have a fabulous program with crayons, pencils, and copy paper. It's nice to have more, but the main concepts we teach can be done with very simple supplies. My advice is to simplify, consider safety, and do what you can with what you have.
 
Many will bemoan the loss of learning, months missed of "real" classroom experiences... to them I say, a whole generation missed years of school because of World War 2. Some hid from Nazis, some became refugees, some fought, and some were imprisoned... yet we still call them "The Greatest Generation." When the war ended, they thrived. We will too when this pandemic is over and will recall... "remember when...?" Though this may feel endless now, and overwhelming, it is but a bump in the road, and one the whole world is experiencing together. Take a deep breath, simplify, and you too will make it.

PS: Based on a comment.

Displaying work... As of now, 1/3 of students in my school will report on a rotating basis. If cases go up or Covid hits our school, I assume we will all be sent home. BUT if we are in school, my hope is to have students display their own work, and label with their full name and homeroom number so if we close down, work can be sent back. I will have student hang their own work, so I do not have to handle it... OR I can put it in a pile, leave it for a week, and hang it myself the following week. The Virus does not hang out beyond 3 days on most surfaces, even less on paper and porous surfaces.

I will not handle "fresh" student work. They will hold it up. (Or upload it to Google Classroom) and I can grade it with my Universal Rubric. Having at least a 3-day lag in grading is not too much to ask, and does make things safer. 

Hybrid Teaching: Because my school may be moving to rotating small groups, my plan is to use the week I have them to introduce a project, and grade what they did at home. I hope to assign assignments that can be done 1 week in my room, and 2 weeks at home. 

I will need to "handle" my home-bound students too, so I may simulcast my daily "Do Now" with both groups for the first part of the period and take questions from those at home. I am still working this out and will post in more detail. The main thing is that along with artwork, students will have some written work as well that has to be done and will be graded. These will be literacy based and tied to art history and vocabulary. 

This is my advice. EVERY situation will be different. This may not work in a lower elementary situation. I do not meant to imply this is the BEST way to do it. I am just sharing what I am doing based on my 30 years of experience and paying close attention to health officials because I am d my spouse are at high risk. In a perfect world, I'd prefer to stay home and continue remotely, but I have a mortgage to pay.

If you ever hear someone complain about masks, remind them that all those grocery clerks and postal workers who have been essential to all of us have been wearing them for months. I am NO BETTER than any one of those thankless angels, so though I hate wearing a mask, I will do it with joy in my heart becasue I know I am making my environment safer.

Writing is an important skill. It is assessed, tracked, and can ultimately impact school funding. Though you may think literacy should be left to the English teachers, literacy should be a portion of all classes. In art I have found that writing before working helps focus student ideas and there is less waste of materials because they have a more clear vision of what they want to create. Writing in the middle of a project, in the form of a critique, can help students refocus and create even better works of art. Final critiques and reflections help with future projects and having students reflect on their work so that it continues to improve. Here are a few ways I incorporate literacy...
 
Writing is a list.

• Write 10 things you couldn't live without
• Who are in your circle of friends
• What colors are you wearing today
• list 5 major life events, positive or negative
• What art elements/principles did you use in the last project

 
Writing can be where they fill in information on a guided worksheet.

• My cultural background is _____________, an animal from that country that might represent me is a ________ because ________________________________________________...
• Some of my hobbies are ________________. The one that is most visual is ____________...
• Someone that is no longer in my life is _______________ because _______________...
• If I could talk to anyone from history for 1 hour it would be _______ because _______...

 
Writing in the critique in the middle or end of a project or by focusing on one aspect of critique.

• Describe
• Analyze
• Decide
• Judge

 
Writing may be a weekly or daily reflection you assign before class begins

• Monday Art Quote Responses (Image above)
• Technical Text Tuesday (pushing vocabulary or concepts)
• Throwback Thursday - Write 3 facts about a famous historic artwork
• Compare and contrast 2 artworks

 
The "Written Assignment Literacy Rubric" in the image above was one I developed in coordination with my English department to assess student literacy progress. It can be used to grade, but I found it helpful to use it as a un-weighted assessment to record literacy improvement in my students. This tool has really helped me see, in a concrete way if and how my students are improving in their literacy skills.
 
A score of 15 would indicate that the student is writing at grade level. To determine this, one might need to coordinate with an English department colleague. A lower score would indicate that the written work needs improvement, and a higher score indicates that a student is working above grade level. Small improvements can be seen and patterns emerge as this rubric is used. 

If you are looking for more literacy-based resources, I list many on my blog but hard copies can be purchased through Firehouse Publications. All the books include a link to Amazon, and many have video "walk throughs" so you can see the content.

I am including some images from various titles below.

If you need a resource you can make unlimited copies from, THIS LINK will take you to the Art & Literacy Workbook.