Welcome to the 2014-2015 School Year!

Dear Students and Parents,

I'm Nick VandenBerg, 6th grade art teacher, I am very excited for this school year!!!  This year in 6^th grade, every student takes art class.  I am very honored to have the opportunity to lead students though the 6^th grade art curriculum.  I have a few things I would like to share with you about what our year in art will look like.

 1.      Goals: (A few of my goals for the year).

a.      Create a fun and positive learning environment for each student.

b.      Challenge each student to think, problem-solve, be creative, and grow.

c.       Share my love and passion for art (hopefully it becomes contagious).

d.      Enhance each student’s artistic vocabulary/understanding of the art elements and principles.

e.      Clearly communicate weekly through family access and share pictures on the 6^th grade art blog.

2.      Expectations: (A few things I appreciate from students in the art room).

a.      Come to art class prepared with a pencil each session.

b.      Come with a positive attitude and willingness to work.

c.       Come ready to give your best and use art time to its fullest!  Stay on task!

3.      Pacing:

a.      Each class comes to art once a week, at most 35 times this year.  Once you factor in snow days, days off, assemblies, band/choir concerts etc… we will have less than that original 35.

b.      Please be patient (everyone).  Many of our projects take four or more sessions to complete, so as we only meet once a week, that translates to a month or longer for most of our projects.

c.       There may be long stretches of time where student artwork will be at school.  All artwork will be sent home by the end of the year.

d.      Overall, we move slowly but produce high quality work!

4.      Classroom Behavior: (With time at such a premium, I have high expectations for student behavior).

a.      Positive attitude, positive participation, and positive comments.

b.      Use work time in a productive manner, try your best, and do not give up!

c.       Respect each other and the classroom/materials.

5.      Grades: (I use the traditional 4.0 letter grade system).

a.      I grade based on two things: The artwork and participation/effort.

b.      Each time a student is in class, they earn or lose up to five points.  At the end of the marking period, points are tallied and count as a participation/effort grade (equivalent to a project).

c.       I grade the artwork based on several factors:

                                                              i.      The main learning objectives of the project.

                                                             ii.      Craftsmanship, this is how neat and orderly the artwork is.

                                                             iii.      Use of class time, I analyze if students are “on task” and how well they use work time.

                                                             iv.      Effort/attitude (listening, following directions, helping during clean up, etc…)

6.      Homework: (There is usually no homework).

a.      There may be a writing assignment or two sent home as homework, an information sheet will accompany any such assignments.

7.      Make-up Work: (If you are a slow artist or miss an art session, there are many ways to catch up).

a.      All assignments in each marking period must be completed before grades are due, that is usually one week before the end of the marking period.

                                                              i.      Connect time.  Just get a pass from Mr. VandenBerg and come work.

1.      East = Tuesdays

2.      North = Thursdays

                                                            ii.      Before or after school.  I make myself available before or after school on Monday thru Thursday.  Parents, please officially schedule ahead of time through e-mail or phone to ensure I do not have a scheduling conflict of some kind.

1.      East = Mondays and Tuesdays

2.      North = Wednesdays and Thursdays

                                                         iii.      Lunch time.  Students please schedule ahead of time so I know you are coming.

1.      East = Mondays and Tuesdays

2.      North = Wednesdays and Thursdays

 8.      Discipline:

a.      The art room should be a safe, quiet environment where students feel free to focus, be creative, and explore/experiment with the learning objectives.

b.      We will build a social contract early in the year which we will need to abide by. 

c.       I want the best for each student, I want each student to have fun and enjoy art time, but there are circumstances that require a discipline framework.

d.      I like to use the old baseball “Three Strikes & You’re Out”

                                                            i.      Strike 1 = “four questions” and a verbal reminder.

                                                            ii.      Strike 2 = “four questions”, verbal warning, and possible demerit or lunch detention.

                                                          iii.      Strike 3 = Behavior discussion, “four questions”, lunch or after school detention, parent phone call, possible trip to the office.

e.      Three demerits in a semester will equal a detention.

f.        Three times being tardy to class in a semester will equal a detention.

9.      Project Outlook: (A quick look at our units).

·                    One point perspective drawing

·                    Color: abstract color wheel and color scheme painting

·                    Pottery: Native American Indian pinch pots

·                    Printmaking: Designing a cover for an autobiography

·                    Cubism: Art history and an abstract self-portrait

·                    Realistic observational drawing (If we have time)

Thank you for taking the time to get to know the 6^th grade art program a little better.  I look forward to having a great year with the 6^th grade students. 

 

Sincerely,

Mr. VandenBerg

6^th Grade Art Teacher