OEA Grow

Makerspace: An Educator Resource

Makerspaces offer support and encouragement for educators who want to incorporate art into the curriculum. Colleen’s guest is Dr. Erin Beard, the Programs Director for Talent Maker City, who describes a makerspace as a community learning lab that furnishes materials and equipment in arts and technology to make learning a hands-on experience. Imagine a place with a 3D printer, a wood-working shop, a ceramics studio, and people to help you use them all. 
With twenty previous years of experience as a middle and high school teacher, Dr. Beard emphasizes the importance of STEAM-based adventures (science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics) to guide student inquiry and critical thinking. She offers several suggestions for using all forms of art to revive the inherent love of learning that may have been shut down through traditional methods. 
Educators are encouraged to find a nearby makerspace for learning opportunities, use of equipment, and advice for adding a tactile dimension to their teaching. In a makerspace they will find camaraderie and shared knowledge to turn their ideas for the classroom into reality. 
 
Resources - 
Talent Maker City
What is a Makerspace and where is one near me?  
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network

Middle School Art

Art can complement any academic subject. That’s the message from Collen’s guest, Jeanne Lauck, a Visual Arts teacher at Alice Ott Middle School in the David Douglas School District. Speaking from twenty-seven years of experience as an educator, Jeanne discusses how art can appeal to several of the different learning styles, with, for instance, students making posters or flip books to illustrate their learning. Jeanne tells of a math instructor who cuts up pictures for his students to reassemble using grids and measurements. 
Art by itself encompasses many subjects: the mathematical use of compasses, exploring symmetry, and learning about different countries and cultures through their art and music. Jeanne views art classes as an arena where students can discover their own creativity and learn along with their teachers. The experience can strengthen their performance in core classes. 
 
Resources - 
Visual Thinking Strategies - the nonprofit discussed in this episode that encourages the thoughtful, facilitated discussion of art, leading to transformational learning accessible to all. 
What Does a Global Arts Classroom Look Like? - integrating cultural competencies through art 
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network

Arts Integration School

Not an artist yourself? No budget for art supplies? Students who aren’t aspiring artists of any kind? This week’s episode explains how and why to integrate art into the classroom under any circumstance. Colleen’s guest is Abigail Steichen of the Corbett Program with Spanish (CAPS), housed in the historic Springdale School in Corbett. CAPS is not an art academy, but the school encourages the infusion of art into the regular curriculum. Students may dance their understanding of cells or perform a skit about punctuation marks. The goal is not a finished performance or artwork to be displayed, but rather a joyful means for students to communicate their understanding of a subject in their own unique ways. The emphasis is on the process rather than the product. 
 
Abigail urges educators in all school settings to incorporate art into their curriculum. She does not consider herself an artist, but she is convinced that students value learning more when it ceases to be merely passive and when they are encouraged to create. Tune into this episode for a treasure trove of suggestions that require neither expertise nor funding to keep the joy in learning. 
 
Resources
 
Corbett Arts Program with Spanish
 
Arts Education Newsletter from the Oregon Department of Education 
 
Encouraging a Growth Mindset Through Art 
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network

Why Is Art Important In Schools?

Art in the classroom helps to keep learning active - that’s the subject of this week’s conversation between Colleen and her guest, Ben Minnis, Arts Education Program Coordinator with the Lane Arts Council in Eugene. With fifteen years as an early childhood educator, a BFA in Theatre Performance, and ongoing work in ceramic sculpture, acting, and playwriting, Ben speaks from experience when he explains that art in all forms allows students to approach school work as participatory rather than passive memorization. Drawing on his experience with the inquiry-based Reggio-Emilia approach to learning, he advises educators to explore the different ways that students can communicate knowledge and understanding. Students are able to construct their own unique ways of learning by using art as well as the usual oral and written formats. 
 
Ben explains how the Lane Arts Council supports Lane County educators in these efforts to integrate art in their curriculum. Artists are paired with educators not only to teach specific art forms, but also to augment classroom learning with hands-on creative work. Educators are urged to contact the Arts Council for more information about the Creative Link, the Artist Residence, and the Design Arts Apprenticeship programs. 
 
Resources
 
Encouraging a Growth Mindset Through Art 
 
Lane Arts Council
 
The Reggio-Emilia Approach - an educational philosophy discussed in the episode 
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network

Season 14 Art for Learning Host Introduction- Colleen Arriola

How important is Art in a school curriculum? Colleen Arriola, host for OEA Grow’s fourteenth season, feels that art plays an essential role in education at all levels. A fifth-grade teacher at Guy Lee Elementary in Springfield, Colleen brings her experience as both an artist and an educator to discuss how art can enhance the traditional courses of study, provide alternative ways of learning, and celebrate the individuality and uniqueness of each student. Her guests this season are Oregon educators from a variety of disciplines and grade levels who will share the ways in which they integrate art in their classrooms and school environments. 
 
Tune in to this season as we reevaluate the role of art in the educational experience and discuss how it can be used to engage students in any subject area.  
 
Resources - 
A Snapshot of K-12 Arts Education in Oregon
 
More Than Drawing and Coloring: Art (and Art Teachers) Has Power 
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network

Work/Life Balance and Professional Growth

Blaine ends this season with veteran educator Brad Rogers, who shares what he has learned from his years of teaching, first in Alaska and for the last seventeen years at Stanfield Secondary School. Summing up the wisdom of all of this season’s guests, Brad offers three key suggestions for educators at all stages of their careers:
Maintain a healthy work-life balance. As a new educator, Brad spent long hours at school in addition to his normal teaching schedule, until he realized that no one can do it all in one day. The best advice he received was to make time for family and friends.
Recognize that life as an educator is like a roller coaster with its ups and downs. We learn and grow from our mistakes. 
Realize the lasting impact that you as an educator have on your students. Establishing a relationship to help a student succeed in a single class can spread to that student’s entire educational experience. It matters. Students remember and express gratitude sometimes years later. 
Brad draws on his years of experience to share insight on each of these areas. This is definitely an episode for all educators, regardless of how long they have been in the field. 
 
Resources - 
Little Steps Toward Big Change (and Less Stress) 
 
Make Educator Well-Being a Priority Now 
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network

Midcareer Teacher and Parent

Who better to discuss the importance of separating home from work than Blaine’s guest this week, Lucas Tynkila, whose home life actually overlaps his school life - three children who have all been his students at Stanfield Secondary School and his wife who teaches at the same school. It makes for an easy carpool, says Lucas. And he has enjoyed having his children as students; he gets to spend more time with them as individuals. Having his wife, Tracy, as a first-grade Stanfield Elementary teacher adds the benefit of a spouse who shares his educational ideologies and can relate to the stress of the job. 
Even with the strong connections between his home and school life, though, Lucas stresses the importance of a healthy work-life balance. The best advice he received early in his career was simply to go home at the end of a work week, spend time with family and friends, and avoid being a perfectionist at school. He suggests that new educators take care of themselves to avoid burnout. The job gets easier and the rewards greater, he promises, as relationships are formed with students, who are able to learn only when they feel safe and comfortable asking questions. Advances in technology may have affected the education process in the sixteen years that Lucas has been teaching, but student-educator connections and trust remain essential to student success. 
 
Resources
5 Tips to Maintain a Healthy Work-Life Balance
 
Life Outside of the Classroom
 
Importance of Self-Care as a Teacher 
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network

When Educators Marry Educators

Two different views on careers in education? Blaine welcomes Michelle and Travis Reeser from the Stanfield School District for this especially delightful episode about differing approaches to lives in education. These two guests, while married, are at opposite ends of the education spectrum with Michelle early in her career of teaching kindergarten and Travis nearing retirement as a high school PE teacher.
Travis began coaching at 18 and teaching right after college, whereas Michelle didn’t become a teacher until after their children were born. But even with the contrast of grade level and years of experience, the two learn from each other and advise educators to ask questions and listen to the ideas of others in the field, regardless of where they are in their career lifespan. Being open to various points of view is key in the education field.
From their differing perspectives, Michelle and Travis agree that education is a difficult career path, requiring hard work and learning how to meet students where they are. The reward can be watching a student succeed at something the student didn’t know was possible and realizing that your work doesn’t go unnoticed. Students remember and sometimes reach out after years have passed to say thank you. 
Resources:
Travis Reeser named 2023 Intermountain Regional Teacher of the Year
 
When Teachers Marry Teachers   
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network

Midcareer Educator Perspective

Blaine discusses educator experiences from a mid-career perspective this week with his guest Sarah Burke, a middle-school science teacher at Stanfied Secondary School. In her tenth year of teaching, Sarah is still in awe of the impact educators have on students and their lives. She admits that the work can be frustrating, especially when students don’t seem to appreciate the demands of the job, but she encourages educators to take students’ sometimes negative attitudes as challenges rather than personal insults. After all, this might be the year when you help that resistant student discover an interest in learning. 
Sarah advises educators to take care of themselves, too, with a healthy work/life balance. She has learned over the last decade that the old adage is true - you can’t fill anyone’s cup if yours is empty. She credits OEA for helping our state’s educators maintain healthy work hours, and she counsels educators to be careful of extra time commitments that take them away from home, family, and friends. Sarah’s personal self-care includes a special memorabilia box where she keeps emails and letters from students and parents, a reminder of why she continues her career as an educator. 
 
Resources
6 Ways to Create Work-Life Balance
OEA Introduction to Mindfulness webinar on May 1st with Talia Akre (Multnomah ESD EA)
OEA Self-Paced Module Stress Management: Using Body Wisdom to Calm the Stressed Brain
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network

Lessons from a Veteran Educator

This episode offers the wisdom of a seasoned educator as Blaine welcomes Anna Halsey from Stanfield Secondary School as his guest. Anna brings a wealth of experience to this conversation, having begun her career as an elementary teacher and now, twenty-four years later, thoroughly enjoying her role as a math teacher for sixth, seventh, and eighth grades (she admits to loving her days with quirky middle-schoolers).
Anna discusses frankly how her life as a teacher has evolved as her own life circumstances have changed. In her decades as an educator, Anna has also seen the profession grow to include more than simply the classroom exchange of information from teacher to student. Educators value connections with students’ lives both in and outside of school, involving entire families and social/emotional learning. We realize that students need to trust us before they can learn anything from us. And they need to be convinced of the value of that knowledge.
Anna’s advice to educators at all stages of their careers - we learn to educate by actually educating. Students teach us how to teach them. Don’t worry if some days, or even years, are not as successful as others. Remember that the career path you have chosen is difficult and so very important. And the most sobering realization - always assume that you will be the topic of someone’s dinner table conversation. 
Resources - 
Support for Early Career Educators
OEA Professional Learning Opportunities to help educators grow in their professional practice 
OEA Grow is a proud member of the Labor Radio Podcast Network