Pumpkins!!

I remember Trick-or -Treating as a child and seeing the most amazing pumpkins. I have always wanted to try and create a very artistic pumpkin ... but I always end up with the generic triangle eyes, square nose, and jagged smiled pumpkin. The reason that I end up with the generic pumpkin is that I get too excited to carve the pumpkin that don't take my time. My goal this year is to try and carve something different. I am inspired by the images of the following pumpkins...  

http://www.oneprojectcloser.com/pumpkin-carving-good-time/#_a5y_p=1008940

I would love to try and take my time to carve a pumpkin. This is a fun way to do visual arts!

http://removeandreplace.com/2013/10/11/38-halloween-pumpkin-carving-ideas/

Hopefully I can find the time during practicum to do some pumpkin carving!!

ART and the BRAIN

From the reading in class I found it interesting that Art can help with brain development. I did a little more research about this and found that Art can also help children that need healing. The Arts can help those children who have experienced brain trauma by helping in stimulating parts of the brain aiding to healing and development. I found a great article by Scholastic that goes into detail about how Art helps in healing, developing, and emotional well-being--- retrieved from:

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/learning-through-arts

I also found an article that explains some great skills that children gain from having Arts in the curriculum, such as : creativity, confidence, problem solving, perseverance, focus, non-verbal communication, receiving constructive feedback, collaboration, dedication, and accountability. This comes from the article by the Washington Post called 'Top 10 skills children learn from the arts'
by Valerie Strauss. Retrieved from:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/01/22/top-10-skills-children-learn-from-the-arts/
It is a great article that stresses the importance of having Art in the classroom

www.acclaimimages.com