SUBSCRIBE | SUBMIT
June 2009
Vol 6 No 6
BACK ISSUES

Current Issue » Cover Page Cover Story Harry & Rosemary Wong Columns Articles Features
Back Issues
Teachers.Net Gazette Vol.6 No.6 June 2009

Cover Story by Graysen Walles
Teaching – The Power of Influence
The impact of teaching is clear, and the influence of the profession is immeasurable. All it takes is one moment, one situation, one discussion to turn the life of a young learner.


Harry & Rosemary Wong: Effective Teaching
Nine Year Summary of Articles, 2000 to 2009
On April 26, 2009, President Obama hosted the four 2009 finalists for America’s top national teaching honor, the National Teacher of the Year award. Alex Kajitani, who teaches mathematics at Mission Middle School in the Escondido Union (Elementary) School District in San Diego County was one of the four finalists.


Columns
»The Three R’s for Summer— Rest, Relax and Recharge! Sue Gruber
»Buddy Programs for Elementary Schools Leah Davies
»Moving to September Todd R. Nelson
»Ronald Reagan and the Art of Influence Marvin Marshall
»The Busy Educator's Monthly Five Marjan Glavac
»Substitute issues: Bathroom Passes & Anger Management Barbara Pressman
»Preparing Students for Travel: Films and Immunizations Josette Bonafino
»A Message to Share with Parents about Summer Learning Dorothy Rich
»Classroom Clean-Up and Clay in a Can Rick Morris

Articles
»Schools and Filters: Ice Age, the Meltdown Matt Levinson
»Effort: It Can be Taught! Deborah Granger
»Homework: Damned if you do, and if you don’t Alan Haskvitz
»Parents Are Recruits, Teachers Are Responsible, Kids Are Victims, and Schools Are Culpable For At-Risk Problems Bill Page
»12 Ways to Stop Conflict in its Tracks! Susan Fitzell
»Using Photographs To Inspire Writing VIII Hank Kellner
»The Writing on the Wall Tim Newlin
»More Brain Teasers Steve Sherman
»Teacher of Facts - and of Life Rachelle Ann A. Abad
»Grant Writing Tips Kimberly McCloud
»Bald is Beautiful! Teachers, Students Lose Locks to Fight Childhood Cancer David Peter Marchesseault

Features
»Apple Seeds: Inspiring Quotes Barb Stutesman
»Today Is... Daily Commemoration Ron Victoria
»The Lighter Side of Teaching
»Video Bytes; Literacy Empowers (Illiteracy Awareness), The Underground Railroad, Wikis in Plain English - CommonCraft tutorial, Twitter in Plain English – a CommonCraft tutorial, Naturally 7 music group on Tavis Smiley Show, Tour the International Space Station!
»Teacher Blogs Showcase
»Printable - Ice Cream in a Baggie Recipe
»Featured Lessons, Wisdom from the Chat Achives, and Timely Printables Especially for June!
»What Is A Document Camera? What Does It Do?
»Newsdesk: Events & Opportunities for Teachers


Advertisement

The Teachers.Net Gazette is a collaborative project
published by the Teachers.Net community
Editor in Chief: Kathleen Alape Carpenter
Layout Editor: Mary Miehl


Cover Story by Graysen Walles

Effective Teaching by Harry & Rosemary Wong

Contributors this month: Graysen Walles, Sue Gruber, Leah Davies, Todd R. Nelson, Marvin Marshall, Marjan Glavac, Barbara Pressman, Josette Bonafino, Dorothy Rich, Rick Morris, Matt Levinson, Deborah Granger, Alan Haskvitz, Bill Page, Susan Fitzell, Hank Kellner, Tim Newlin, Steve Sherman, Rachelle Ann A. Abad, Kimberly McCloud, David Peter Marchesseault, Barb Stutesman, Ron Victoria, and BattleShip Ron.

Submissions: click for Submission Guidelines

Advertising: contact Bob Reap


Subscribe for free home delivery


Tim Newlin

TimTim.com
Archive | Biography | Resources | Discussion

The Writing on the Wall

Thousands of small children all over the world are punished every day for drawing on the walls of their homes. Young graffiti artists cover public walls and vehicles with spray-paint that is art to some, and vandalism to others. Ancient cave dwellers drew images of real or imagined animals on rock walls. To draw or communicate with pictures seems to be a deep-rooted human gene or need that gets triggered by the sight of an empty wall.
by Tim Newlin
*FREE* draw & color feature…
Regular contributor to the Gazette
June 1, 2009

Thousands of small children all over the world are punished every day for drawing on the walls of their homes. Young graffiti artists cover public walls and vehicles with spray-paint that is art to some, and vandalism to others. Ancient cave dwellers drew images of real or imagined animals on rock walls. To draw or communicate with pictures seems to be a deep-rooted human gene or need that gets triggered by the sight of an empty wall.

Toddlers who finger-paint across white walls maybe just enjoy the feeling of creating a visual mark on their newly discovered world. They can't write anything yet (or speak very much) and drawing something on a wall is a way of saying something. But by the time a child is 3-4 years old it is something different.

Most of the great paintings in the world were done by artists painting on a canvas in the standing position - much the same as a wall. So maybe it would be a good idea to provide some "wall canvas" or an upright easel for the creative toddler, and not be so quick to push for desktop drawings.

According to Becky Bailey Ph.D and author of the book There's Gotta Be A Better Way, it is actually easier for a child to draw with his hand out in front of him because it's a much more comfortable position that allows better hand-eye control. Children are small people with small arms and legs, but they make up for this with a natural ability to choose to do what is most comfortable. Give them pens and paper to draw on and they normally will choose to draw while lying on the floor on their belly, probably because it feels natural.

After the age of 5 or 6 this changes (or is changed) and most children learn to write and draw sitting at a desk or table. But think about this: most of the great paintings in the world were done by artists painting on a canvas in the standing position - much the same as a wall. So maybe it would be a good idea to provide some "wall canvas" or an upright easel for the creative toddler, and not be so quick to push for desktop drawings.

Cave drawings or cave paintings are drawings found from pre-historic times on the walls and ceilings of caves. One theory is that they were a way of transmitting information; another is that they had spiritual or ceremonial meaning and were part of religious or hunting mythology. In primitive tribes life was hard and work was constant - nobody had time to sit and draw on a cave wall for nothing. You'd have to find the time, get a light source, and mix the colors from natural ingredients. It wasn't done just for fun - it almost certainly had something to do with hunting magic.

Were ancient cave painters "pre-historic taggers"? Are graffiti artists today "Urban Cave Painters" or are they just immature teens from overly strict families with a repressed need to draw on walls? Some claim that graffiti is good art which, if properly appreciated and used correctly, can have some benefit. Graffiti art has always been known for its vibrant colors, distorted characters and vital emotional feel.

Art is usually defined as having some value - a way of communicating thoughts, feelings, or ideas. Graffiti is usually only relevant to the creator who does it and seldom has any meaning to others - except other taggers, of course. Graffiti artists (sometimes called taggers) are almost all young males, and for them the drawing is a territorial marker or “branding” in a modern urban landscape. Some have compared graffiti to animals urinating on rocks and trees to mark their territory.

In the last few years, strong efforts have been made to make graffiti a socially accepted art form. Some known graffiti artists have been commissioned to do wall murals and the better graffiti artists have started to earn good money with their work. Hundreds of Internet sites show and explain graffiti in "how to" tutorials; several even generate graffiti text in a variety of fonts based on what you type into their text templates. But most city officials and private owners who spend millions each year cleaning their buildings, trains, and walls that are plastered with graffiti and tags will continue to think of graffiti as vandalism and destruction of property.

Crayon scribbles on white household walls, spray paint tags on the sides of commuter trains, or hunting scenes on rock from the dawn of civilization - whatever the reason or form, it seems that all through human history we have thought of an empty wall as an invitation to make our mark, create an image, and express ourselves.

©2009:timtim.com

Free online coloring, free online drawing tool, & free drawings at TimTim.com

timtim has launched an all new ONLINE DRAWING & COLORING page where anyone can draw, paint, color, and cartoon in Flash, and choose from hundreds of timtim drawings to color online, activities to do, and cartoons to write your own text on - all free with no log-in!



» More Gazette articles...




About TIMTIM.com...

TIMTIM.COM is a free-use site of thousands of color and B&W cartoon-style drawings organized by more than 50 different subjects ranging from holidays, jobs, nature, animals, transportation, computers, religion, environment, health, travel, geography and more. The site is recommended by the American and Canadian Teachers Federation and use of the drawings is free for non-commercial purposes.

Visit Tim's Features by Tim Newlin at http://www.timtim.com


Tim Newlin Articles on Teachers.Net...
Related Resources & Discussions on Teachers.Net...

#