It takes time, love, and support to find peace with the restless one.
- Deidre Sarault
Philosophy
Donna N. Bratcher, M.F.A.
Art Teacher
Art enriches lives, interprets our environment, and helps us to understand life and people. It is my role as an artist and art educator to expand the consciousness of my students and audience by clarifying the intricacies and parallels that exist between art and life.
It is my goal as an art educator to instill creative and independent thinking by enhancing the student's ability to interpret, evaluate, analyze, and "see". My teaching methodologies embrace the theory of "multiple intelligences" put forward by Howard Gardner, and are designed to address the individual needs of my students. My main goals, as an educator, are modeled after Robert H. Ennis. The objectives I address and the thought processes I attempt to facilitate in all of my students are as follows:
"-to seeks a clear statement or question.
-to seek reason.
-to try to be well informed.
-to use credible sources and mention them.
-to take into account the total situation.
-to try to remain relevant and to the main point.
-to keep in mind the original or basic concepts.
-to be open-minded: looking at things from others' points of view.
-to seek as much precision as the subject permits.
-to be sensitive to others...
...without which thinking often comes to naught."
Robert H. Ennis
Rationale
Art is an essential and integral component in the quality of life. Education in the Visual Arts is an essential part of the total school program.
It is recognized that young children will pass through certain natural developmental stages (Lowenfeld). Stimulating and relevant "hands-on" activities will provide optimum teacher-guided opportunities for a child to naturally flourish through his / her creative expression. As the child grows intellectually and emotionally, art serves as a window to other worlds as well as his / her inner world. Through personal and successful art experiences, the student's self-esteem increases allowing him / her to be a confident contributing member of society.
It is recognized that education and self-development is based on many intelligences that reside in the human mind (Gardner). Art Education focuses on the spatial and offers fruitful opportunities for the interpersonal and interpersonal aspects of intelligence. Art Education expands the concept of education beyond the traditional emphasis in verbal and mathematic modalities and allows all students to learn and contribute according to their dominant and highly individual learning styles.
It is also recognized that art is an important discipline that embodies a wealth of universal ideas, values, feelings and technologies that have become a part of our civilization and heritage (Getty / D.B.A.E.). Through structured and sequential learning activities that involve the creation and study of art works, the student will acquire the necessary visual literacy skills to understand, interpret and judge works of art. Study in art develops adults capable of making sound aesthetic decisions in their lives and expand the dimension of their understanding to include what only art offers the human experience.
MISSION STATEMENT
Art is an essential and integral component of a rich full life. It is the mission of the Art program to provide all students with a continuous and sequential study of the visual arts. Study in art will enable them to experience the joys of aesthetic expression, value craftsmanship and the qualitative dimensions of life, recognize the social and historical roots of artistic expression and sharpen the artistic and thinking skills that will provide the means for them to express and respond to a wider range of human experience.
PROGRAM PERFORMANCE GOALS
The Art program is categorized into four major areas of study. The categories are:
1. ARTISTIC KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
2. AESTHETIC VALUING
3. VISUAL ARTS HERITAGE
4. AESTHETIC PERCEPTION
ARTISTIC KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
1. Each student will demonstrate the ability to manipulate art materials at the level of proficiency required to successfully accomplish a predetermined objective.
2. Each student will have experiences in, exposure to and/or knowledge of the following media and concepts of artistic expression:
MEDIA:
Calligraphy, Mixed Media, Conceptual Art,
Painting, Ceramics, Collage,
Sculpture, Crafts, Technology,
Drawing, Graphic Design
Media Arts,
CONCEPTS:
Style of presentation or manner
Naturalism/Realism
Abstraction, Non-Objective
Elements of Design, Principles of Design
Additive/Subtractive/Modeled
AESTHETIC VALUING
1. Each student will be able to expand their personal relationship to art by discovering examples in a structured environment.
2. Each student will be able to define, identify, or establish a logical or casual link to the following:
•Empathy with artists
•Production of art
•Art as a career
•Art as an avocation
•Consumer of art
VISUAL ARTS HERITAGE
Each student will be able to respond and gain information about exemplary artwork through two structured approaches:
1. THE ART HISTORY APPROACH
Students will discover EXTERNAL information about a work of art through a structured plan as outlined below:
•DESCRIPTION -
When, Why and by Whom.
•ANALYSIS -
Comparative in nature to determine style.
•INTERPRETATION -
How artists are influenced by time and place. Also, to discover symbols, metaphors, and allegories that may be present.
•JUDGMENT -
Facts related to importance of the work in history.
2. THE ART CRITICISM APPROACH
Students will discover INTERNAL information about a work of art through a structured plan as outlined below:
•DESCRIPTION -
What is in a work of art in terms of subject matter and the Elements of Art?
•ANALYSIS -
How the Principles of Art have been used to organize the elements in a work of art.
•INTERPRETATION -
Determine what possible moods, feelings or ideas have been communicated through a work of art.
•JUDGMENT -
Facts related to the artistic merit of a work of art.
AESTHETIC PERCEPTION
Each student will be able to identify, describe and communicate ideas and/or feelings about art or through the production of art using established art vocabulary and visual concepts. These are outlined below:
THE ELEMENTS OF ART - The visual "words" of the language of art.
•LINE
•SHAPE
•FORM
•SPACE
•TEXTURE
•COLOR
•VALUE
THE PRINCIPLES OF ART - How the visual elements are combined or arranged to produce a unified and effective statement.
•BALANCE
•EMPHASIS
•HARMONY
•VARIETY
•UNITY
•GRADATION
•MOVEMENT
•RHYTHM
•PROPORTION
Dear parent or guardian,
I welcome you to contact me with ANY concerns you might have about your child’s progress in my class. You may contact me via my email address:
dbratcher@williston.k12.sc.us
or
803-266-3110
Donna N. Bratcher, M.F.A.
Art Teacher
Art enriches lives, interprets our environment, and helps us to understand life and people. It is my role as an artist and art educator to expand the consciousness of my students and audience by clarifying the intricacies and parallels that exist between art and life.
It is my goal as an art educator to instill creative and independent thinking by enhancing the student's ability to interpret, evaluate, analyze, and "see". My teaching methodologies embrace the theory of "multiple intelligences" put forward by Howard Gardner, and are designed to address the individual needs of my students. My main goals, as an educator, are modeled after Robert H. Ennis. The objectives I address and the thought processes I attempt to facilitate in all of my students are as follows:
"-to seeks a clear statement or question.
-to seek reason.
-to try to be well informed.
-to use credible sources and mention them.
-to take into account the total situation.
-to try to remain relevant and to the main point.
-to keep in mind the original or basic concepts.
-to be open-minded: looking at things from others' points of view.
-to seek as much precision as the subject permits.
-to be sensitive to others...
...without which thinking often comes to naught."
Robert H. Ennis
Rationale
Art is an essential and integral component in the quality of life. Education in the Visual Arts is an essential part of the total school program.
It is recognized that young children will pass through certain natural developmental stages (Lowenfeld). Stimulating and relevant "hands-on" activities will provide optimum teacher-guided opportunities for a child to naturally flourish through his / her creative expression. As the child grows intellectually and emotionally, art serves as a window to other worlds as well as his / her inner world. Through personal and successful art experiences, the student's self-esteem increases allowing him / her to be a confident contributing member of society.
It is recognized that education and self-development is based on many intelligences that reside in the human mind (Gardner). Art Education focuses on the spatial and offers fruitful opportunities for the interpersonal and interpersonal aspects of intelligence. Art Education expands the concept of education beyond the traditional emphasis in verbal and mathematic modalities and allows all students to learn and contribute according to their dominant and highly individual learning styles.
It is also recognized that art is an important discipline that embodies a wealth of universal ideas, values, feelings and technologies that have become a part of our civilization and heritage (Getty / D.B.A.E.). Through structured and sequential learning activities that involve the creation and study of art works, the student will acquire the necessary visual literacy skills to understand, interpret and judge works of art. Study in art develops adults capable of making sound aesthetic decisions in their lives and expand the dimension of their understanding to include what only art offers the human experience.
MISSION STATEMENT
Art is an essential and integral component of a rich full life. It is the mission of the Art program to provide all students with a continuous and sequential study of the visual arts. Study in art will enable them to experience the joys of aesthetic expression, value craftsmanship and the qualitative dimensions of life, recognize the social and historical roots of artistic expression and sharpen the artistic and thinking skills that will provide the means for them to express and respond to a wider range of human experience.
PROGRAM PERFORMANCE GOALS
The Art program is categorized into four major areas of study. The categories are:
1. ARTISTIC KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
2. AESTHETIC VALUING
3. VISUAL ARTS HERITAGE
4. AESTHETIC PERCEPTION
ARTISTIC KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
1. Each student will demonstrate the ability to manipulate art materials at the level of proficiency required to successfully accomplish a predetermined objective.
2. Each student will have experiences in, exposure to and/or knowledge of the following media and concepts of artistic expression:
MEDIA:
Calligraphy, Mixed Media, Conceptual Art,
Painting, Ceramics, Collage,
Sculpture, Crafts, Technology,
Drawing, Graphic Design
Media Arts,
CONCEPTS:
Style of presentation or manner
Naturalism/Realism
Abstraction, Non-Objective
Elements of Design, Principles of Design
Additive/Subtractive/Modeled
AESTHETIC VALUING
1. Each student will be able to expand their personal relationship to art by discovering examples in a structured environment.
2. Each student will be able to define, identify, or establish a logical or casual link to the following:
•Empathy with artists
•Production of art
•Art as a career
•Art as an avocation
•Consumer of art
VISUAL ARTS HERITAGE
Each student will be able to respond and gain information about exemplary artwork through two structured approaches:
1. THE ART HISTORY APPROACH
Students will discover EXTERNAL information about a work of art through a structured plan as outlined below:
•DESCRIPTION -
When, Why and by Whom.
•ANALYSIS -
Comparative in nature to determine style.
•INTERPRETATION -
How artists are influenced by time and place. Also, to discover symbols, metaphors, and allegories that may be present.
•JUDGMENT -
Facts related to importance of the work in history.
2. THE ART CRITICISM APPROACH
Students will discover INTERNAL information about a work of art through a structured plan as outlined below:
•DESCRIPTION -
What is in a work of art in terms of subject matter and the Elements of Art?
•ANALYSIS -
How the Principles of Art have been used to organize the elements in a work of art.
•INTERPRETATION -
Determine what possible moods, feelings or ideas have been communicated through a work of art.
•JUDGMENT -
Facts related to the artistic merit of a work of art.
AESTHETIC PERCEPTION
Each student will be able to identify, describe and communicate ideas and/or feelings about art or through the production of art using established art vocabulary and visual concepts. These are outlined below:
THE ELEMENTS OF ART - The visual "words" of the language of art.
•LINE
•SHAPE
•FORM
•SPACE
•TEXTURE
•COLOR
•VALUE
THE PRINCIPLES OF ART - How the visual elements are combined or arranged to produce a unified and effective statement.
•BALANCE
•EMPHASIS
•HARMONY
•VARIETY
•UNITY
•GRADATION
•MOVEMENT
•RHYTHM
•PROPORTION
Dear parent or guardian,
I welcome you to contact me with ANY concerns you might have about your child’s progress in my class. You may contact me via my email address:
dbratcher@williston.k12.sc.us
or
803-266-3110
