Arts Integration and STEAM Resources for K-12 Educators

Unlock the power of creativity -- arts integration and STEAM resources for K-12 educators

Official Trailer (Art Works for Teachers)

Excerpt:

Introducing the Art Works for Teacher Podcast Trailer! Get a quick sneak peek at what you can expect from this new show, launching September 22, 2022. New episodes will be available each Thursday on your favorite podcast platform, on YouTube, and right here on our site.


From DSC:
Along these lines, also see WEST MICHIGAN CENTER FOR ARTS + TECHNOLOGY. Such a learning environment builds skills and creativity while supercharging participation and engagement!

 

 

Why my school is putting music education front and centre — from educationhq.com by Justin Garrick

Excerpt (emphasis DSC):

Music education must not be only for those already with the background or the early talent or the pre-existing motivation to access it.

Music education must be for all, because music itself is for all.

Just like language and literature, which are at the compulsory core of the curriculum, music is the expression of culture and is pervasive to our daily experience. It surrounds us on the airwaves of radio, television and streaming in all the glory and diversity of its genres.

It influences our thoughts and moods and choices. We exercise, drive, shop, eat and celebrate with music. It’s intrinsic to our wellbeing, our social interaction, our spiritual and sensual experience, and to our religious, national and cultural rites.

From DSC:
I’m very grateful for the choir-related classes and experiences that I’ve had throughout my lifetime. I’m grateful for learning the basics of playing the piano and the drums. Although I didn’t stick with either instrument, I’m glad that I can read some (basic) music. But beyond that, music hosts so many memories for me. I’m instantly taken back to various times, places, people, and emotions — depending on the song(s) that I’m listening to.

 

The Marriage of Figaro on Four Guitars [40 Fingers]

The Marriage of Figaro on Four Guitars — from theawesomer.com by 40 Fingers

 

Some learning-related tips from Eva Keiffenheim’s Learn Letter


Excerpts from Eva’s 6/15/22 letter re: learning a language — with Mathias Barra, who “has studied about 20 languages and is fluent in six”

2) The best way to mastery is by making language learning part of your life
There’s no single best way to study languages. Mathias approached every language differently.

The most important thing is to find some activities that you actually enjoy in the language. For example, you can:

  • watch a Netflix series with double subtitles with the free Language Reactor extension
  • reading a book in the language you’re learning, for example with easy readers?
  • go to radio.garden and listen to the language you’re learning
  • switch your phone settings to another language
  • write your diary in the language you’re learning

“The best way to study languages is not to limit it to study time, but to make it part of your life, for example, through exposure.”

Some tools and resources Mathias recommends:

  • iTalki offers 1-on-1 lessons in more than 150 languages
  • Journaly allows you to type a text that natives correct
  • Slowly connects you with a language tandem for writing letters
  • HiNative gets you answers from native speakers
  • Speechling helps you work on listening comprehension

See the full interview here.

And from Eva’s 6/22/22 Learn Letter:

According to this concept, there’s an optimal arousal level for task performance. The Yerkes-Dodson Law says there is an empirical relationship between stress and performance. Yerkes and Dodson discovered that the optimal arousal level depends on the complexity and difficulty of the task.

From DSC:
Reading a bit about the Yerkes-Dodson Law, I was reminded of a bad learning experience from years ago. I recall sitting in a conference room at Baxter Healthcare and I was trying to learn more about programming.  I had just been switched into a new group and my new supervisor was trying to teach me some basic items (basic to him, anyway). He was getting increasingly frustrated at me for not understanding some things. The more frustrated he got, the less I could even concentrate on what he was saying and trying to teach me. 

Along these lines, I also remember a relative trying to teach another relative some new things. Again, the more upset the “teacher” got, the less able the “learner” was able to concentrate. It didn’t end well. 

Oh…what’s that?! I’m hearing a loud “Amen!!!” coming from countless music teachers and students out there too. 

For these kinds of reasons, I want to learn more about the place of emotion in our learning ecosystems.

 

Conduct Your Own Virtual Orchestra In Maestro VR — from vrscout.com by Kyle Melnick

Niantic moves beyond games with Lightship AR platform and a social network — from theverge.com by Alex Heath
The maker of Pokémon Go is releasing its AR map for other apps and a location-based social network called Campfire

Excerpt:

Niantic made a name for itself in the mobile gaming industry through the enduring success of Pokémon Go. Now the company is hoping to become something else: a platform for other developers to build location-aware AR apps on top of.

disguise launches Metaverse Solutions division enabling next-level extended reality experiences — from etnow.com

Excerpt:

UK – disguise, the visual storytelling platform and market leader for extended reality (xR) solutions has launched its Metaverse Solutions division to enable the next generation of extraordinary live, virtual production and audiovisual location-based experiences for the metaverse.

The recent rise of real-time 3D graphics rendering capabilities in gaming platforms means that today’s audiences are craving richer, more immersive experiences that are delivered via the metaverse. While the metaverse is already defined as an $8 trillion dollar opportunity by Goldman Sachs, companies are still finding it challenging to navigate the technical elements needed to start building metaverse experiences.

On this item, also see:

disguise.one

disguise launches Metaverse Solutions division — from televisual.com by

Excerpt:

“Our xR technology combines key metaverse building blocks including real-time 3D graphics, spatial technologies and advanced display interfaces – all to deliver a one-of-a-kind gateway to the metaverse,” says disguise CXO and head of Metaverse Solutions Alex Wills.

 
 

Benefits of music lessons — from thetechadvocate.org by Matthew Lynch

Excerpt:

Music is a fun and worthwhile discipline to learn. When kids start learning the skill early in their lives, they can become so good at it and even create a career out of this talent. Here are other benefits your child could enjoy once they start taking music lessons.

From DSC:
While all these are true, it also helps a person appreciate the universal language of music. Music speaks deeply. As an example here…

Years ago, when I was working in technical support and customer service (within the corporate world) and ran into some tough, unpleasant, angry doctors or hospital administrators, I would go listen to music at lunch times. I came back refreshed and ready to go again. Music could turn my moods and attitudes around. Plus music was ever-present within our household as my mom and dad met in music school and my mom taught piano for years (often in our home). My dad loved to sing and often practiced at night after work.

Anyway, here’s to music. Thank you LORD for it! May music classes and opportunities continue to play an important role within our learning ecosystems for years to come!

 
 

Best Deaf Awareness Lessons & Activities — from techlearning.com by Diana Restifo
The following free deaf history and awareness lessons and activities highlight the accomplishments of deaf people in the arts, education, sports, law, science, and music.

 

Nurturing Non-STEM Gifted Kids and Meeting Their Needs — from raisinglifelonglearners.com by Colleen Kessler

Excerpt:

But what about that kid who doesn’t want a new chemistry set or microscope for Christmas? What about the gifted kid who doesn’t really get your science puns? What about the brilliant child who isn’t into STEM at all?

They’re rare, but they’re out there. Artists, chefs, readers, writers, dancers, musicians, linguists, all of the above. Kids who like space just fine, but like nature even more. Gifted kids who can crush their math work but would rather crush pigments. Gifted kids who can learn to code, but whose heart swells when guitar strings strum. Brilliant babes who appreciate the arts, the stories, or are just filled with curiosity that isn’t subject-specific. You see, intelligence isn’t a stereotype. An IQ score isn’t like a horoscope. Scoring a few standard deviations above the norm doesn’t dictate your personality, your likes, dislikes, talents, passions, or hobbies. It means your brain processes information differently than the majority of the population. That’s really it. Intelligence and brilliance are as likely to be found on a stage as they are in a lab. For every Einstein there is a Beethoven, for every Musk there’s a Spielberg.

What Can You Recommend For Students Who Finish Their Work Early? — from teachthought.com

Excerpt:

How to respond when students finish their work early is a classic teacher challenge.

Most of it boils down to lesson design–creating learning opportunities where students are naturally funneled toward extending, improving, and sharing their work so that ‘stopping points’ are more of a matter of scheduling than learning itself.

Motivating your child with ADHD: 7 tips for your homeschool — from raisinglifelonglearners.com by Colleen Kessler

Excerpt:

This series is all about homeschooling a child with ADHD. Today, we are discussing 7 of our best tips for motivating a child with ADHD.

Preparing Kids With Real-World Skills via Ed-Tech — from emergingedtech.com by Kelly Walsh

Excerpt:

Educational technologies enable children to learn things on a whole new level, broadening their minds and their capabilities. The practical applications alone make ed-tech a highly valuable tool in the classroom setting, but these technologies also can enhance kids’ skills as well as their emotional and cultural awareness and intelligence, which can better prepare them for real-world situations and scenarios.

Edumilestones Has Launched Career Lab™ For Progressive Schools — from edtechreview.in

Excerpt:

Edumilestones, a pioneer in career guidance platform has now launched a next-generation Career Lab™ for schools. Based on 11 years of experience in career counselling industry, this technology is set to help students to identify and execute their career goals with clarity and confidence.

 

Storytelling for impact — from nationalgeographic.org; a collaboration between National Geographic and Adobe
Visualize and communicate powerful stories that inspire change

Excerpt:

Stories can change the world.
Learn from world-class National Geographic photographers, videographers, and visual designers in a series of Storytelling for Impact online courses. Created in partnership with Adobe, this series will teach you how to use compelling photography, video, graphics, and audio to tell stories in the most impactful ways to inspire change.

 

Offered for both educators and youth ages 16–25, these short, free, self-paced online courses are designed to guide learners to visualize and communicate powerful stories that inspire action.

Ready to harness the power of storytelling?

 

 

10 things you didn’t know you could do with Google Arts and Culture — from ditchthattextbook.com

Excerpt:

Google Arts and Culture is a massive collection of videos and images of cultural artifacts from over 2,000 museums around the world. But virtually visiting art exhibits is just one of the many things you can do with Google Arts and Culture. From virtually displaying life-sized art inside your house to playing in a blob opera, Google Arts and Culture runs an impressive gamut of ways to explore culture from your own home or classroom.

 

The Samsung Freestyle Projector

Samsung just made the TV disappear — from protocol.com by Janko Roettgers
Samsung’s Freestyle projector is a smart TV. And not a TV at all. And a smart speaker. And … a lamp?

Excerpt:

Samsung’s TV R&D team seemingly never runs out of ideas: After giving the world a TV the size of a wall, a TV that looked like a giant phone and a TV that doubles as art, at this year’s CES, the company debuted a TV that’s capable of turning anything and everything into a screen.

The new Samsung Freestyle is a portable projector capable of projecting video from 30 inches to 100 inches. It offers access to the very same UI and apps as any of the company’s other 2022 smart TVs, but that’s pretty much where the similarities to a traditional TV end.

 

This is a Screen — And It Could be the Biggest Product Launch at CES 2022 — from interestingengineering.com by Grant Currin
Samsung is letting users re-imagine what their spaces can be.

Excerpt:

The new hyperflexible, hyperportable, hypercustomizable, hyperpersonalizable projector is all about what it can be for the individual user. Unconstrained by cables or presets, the Freestyle is marketed as an anything-you-want-it-to-be machine. Samsung says it will ship in the next few months.

 

Samsung Electronics Launches The Freestyle, a Portable Screen for Entertainment Wherever You Are — from news.samsung.com

  • First-of-its-kind technology delivers optimal viewing and entertainment in a compact form factor
  • Features auto-level, auto-focus and auto-keystone capabilities for perfect picture every time

The Samsung Freestyle Projector

 

 

hoopla digital streaming service -- borrow books, music, movies, and more. Very cool service.

hoopla digital is a digital streaming service for library users to access eBooks, eAudiobooks, music, movies, and TV shows using portable devices like smartphones and tablets.

From DSC:
I downloaded this app yesterday and borrowed a classical Christmas album on the spot. Our local library gives us 10 items per month:

  • Books are available for 21 days
  • Videos are available for 72 hours
  • Music titles are available for 7 days

NOTE: hoopla is available on desktops, phones, tablets, Alexa devices, Rokus, Apple TVs, Fire TVs, and Android TVs.

 
© 2024 | Daniel Christian