Day 179 - Choice Based Final Project for Drawing and Painting - Ms. Chang - BHS Art Dept.

This post first appeared on Ms. Chang's Blog

The Drawing and Painting students selected from one of three assignments. These great assignments are courtesy of Art Educator Laura Johnson (and are fabulous!)
and are linked up HERE.

Here are some of their works of art that show range and variety of subject and content.

Day 154 - IDEAS Conference Students Make Positive Change Through Humans of BHS

This post first appeared on Ms. Chang's Blog 



In December a group of nine students attended the IDEAS Conference.

Initiatives for Developing Equity and Achievement for Students (IDEAS), a program of EDCO, facilitated a Student Leadership Conference for  11th, and 12th-grade students from member high schools. The purpose of the conference was to engage students from a range of racial and ethnic backgrounds in conversations on issues of racism, intolerance, discrimination, and allied behavior.



GOALS OF CONFERENCE:
To provide students with the opportunity to learn from each other and build community within and across racial/ethnic groups

To recognize different forms of discrimination and racism in our schools and society

To recognize and challenge stereotypes

To explore and understand the many aspects of identity

To provide the opportunity for students to have affinity group conversations

To recognize the importance of advocacy and being an ally for others

To be able to inform districts about how students from different racial/ethnic groups perceive their school experience



The following students participated in the conference: 

Nimisha Thakkar, Jason Wu, Riya Kamani, Akhila John, Colin Nguyen, Arya Nagraj, Stavan Shah, Luis Villalta and Aida Gachago

After participating in the conference the students were challenged to head back to their school to make change!

The Students worked with the previously created Humans of BHS club to continue and build upon their mission of supporting diversity in their school.

The students in Humans of BHS worked on the following collaborative projects this year:

1. Humans of BHS Foreign Language Mission Statement
Students are going to recite the BHS Mission Statement in a wide variety of foreign languages at the beginning of the school day.

2. Interfaith Panel Diversity Stories
​Students recorded themselves expressing different encounters they have had, good/bad, regarding their religion/belief system. This will become part of Interfaith Panel for the BPS educators Professional Development.

3. Weekly Peer Interviews 
Students interview students/faculty about any encounters, questions, opinions, or experiences they have had

4.Instagram: humansofburlma - Students created an Instagram account to showcase the diversity at BHS

Day 139 - BHS Essential Questions in the Art Classroom - Ms. Chang - BHS Art

This year at BHS we created and are utilizing the following essential questions to promote the BHS core values and mission statement. 

BHS Essential Questions (2017-18)
School-wide question of the year:  What is the power of one?

Freshman Year:  What makes up my identity, and how does my identity impact my role as a community member? 
Sophomore Year:  Why is it crucial to question our assumptions and seek multiple perspectives? 
Junior Year:  Why is it important to work toward establishing equity rather than equality? 
Senior Year:   How can I use my skills, knowledge, and resources to better my community? 

For my Design class which is made up of mostly freshmen  I created two sketchbook assignments using the essential questions:
​
What is my identity? And How does my identity impact my community?

The lesson is linked up HERE

Here are some students samples from their sketchbooks:

Community

Day 131 - Keys to Literacy in Action in the Art Classroom - Ms. Chang - BHS Art

This post first appeared on Mrs. Chang's Blog

This year we had wonderful training on Keys to Literacy. I learned helpful techniques to better engage students in reading and writing in my classroom.

Here is a link to the school system's blog with loads of resources and samples:
http://keysinburlington.blogspot.com/

I was a test pilot for the Scholastic Art Magazine this year and worked to incorporate readings and discussions from these magazines. The students found the articles interesting and engaging. I would highly recommend the magazine as it offered insight into contemporary and historic artists and gave the students relevant articles and high-quality images of a wide variety of works of art.

Below is the template that I used for two column notes and a student sample based on an article about the sculpture " Fearless Girl".

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Day 124 - BHS Sends Four Teams to Tenacity Challenge 2018 - Ms. Chang

This post first appeared on Ms. Chang's Blog

Congratulations to the wonderful students who participated in the 2018 Tenacity Challenge held at Bedford High School.
​
The Tenacity Challenge competition consisted of four events centered around the theme of tenacity and leadership.

• Science and Math Quiz Bowl Challenge (Physics, Chemistry, Algebra I, Geometry)
• Latino and African-American Literature Response Challenge (Filmed Performance of a Creative Response, Accompanied by a Rationale)
• History Argument Challenge (Team will research and argue a position before a panel of judges)
• Tenacity Mural Challenge- artistic creation completed prior to the competition date and displayed at the competition.​

The students worked hard preparing for the competition and spent their Saturday at the event competing in the four areas. Burlington was well represented by this talented and bright group of students!

Eyssa Benhida
Christina Charmant
Oluwamayowa (Maya) Ariyo
Martello Cesar
Sasha Ford Festi
Aida Gachago
Tatiana Hawkins
Lelia Kiddu
Genevieve Kugonza
Dylan Lechner
Max Lechner
Amelia Murphy
Dorothy Mulo
Cindy Nshuti Niyonzima
Rayna Paul
Benjamin Ramirez
Winnie Sekyaya
Kayla Summerville
Cheyenne Watson
Kenan Wilson
Halleluia Zeyohannes

The wonderful day ended with an inspiring talk from
Former Executive Director, White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans, David J. Johns.   He is the former executive director of the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans. The Initiative works across federal agencies and with partners and communities nationwide to produce a more effective continuum of education programs for African American students.

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Special thanks to Principal Mark Sullivan, Todd Whitten, Social Studies Department Chair, Abigail Abbott, Martha Simon, School Committee member, Carlton Williams, ACLU, and Patricia Tilburg, Professor at Davidson University, for helping the students prepare for the challenge. 

Day 1 - The Night Before School Starts...Ms. Chang, BHS Art Dept.

This post originally appeared on Ms. Chang's blog

So it's the night before school starts and I have to share with my students that I get nervous too...

Yup, teachers are nervous the night before school starts. I am entering my fifteenth year teaching at BHS and I still get anxious and nervous about what is to come. 

There are a few things that I do now as a teacher that I wished I knew when I was a student....

• Get a good nights sleep- yes, just rest, let your mind rest and get the sleep you need. Try to make this a priority.
• Breathe- I had a great workshop this year on Mindfulness by Caitlin Krause. Just pausing, being present and breathing is wonderful for relaxing and good for your brain.

• Write lists- if something is on your mind, write it down-get it off your mind

• Sketch-keep your sketchbook with you and use it daily, hourly, just doodling can help relax the mind

• Enter each new school year with an open mind. There is always something new to learn and an open mind will help facilitate that learning

OK- so these are the typical steps that your parents and teachers share with you now I am going to share a more personal story- I didn't always like going to school. I felt isolated and alone. I was one of very few Asian American students living in a small suburban community and quite frankly it was quite difficult at times. 

So my advice to you if you find yourself feeling isolated or alone know that there are many other students who feel the same way. Know that you are not alone and know that we are here to support YOU! We want you to feel welcome and we want you to learn this year. If you are comfortable and happy you will learn more. So please reach out to us, please know that we are here for YOU!

My art teacher was my savior, she made ever student feel welcome and supported in her room and I hope to do the same for you. So come by room 217 anytime, make this space and the art room your second home; come by and create, relax and know that you are always welcome here!

Day 173 - Congratulations to the BHS Tenacity Challenge Team

This post first appeared on Ms. Chang's blog

Congratulations to the wonderful students who participated in the 2017 Tenacity Challenge held at Bedford High School.
​
Pictured left to right:
Luis Villalta, Martello Cesar, Angela Camacho-DeSousa, Amelia Murphy, Souleiman Benhida, State Rep. Russell Holmes, Benjamin Ramirez, Kenan Wilson, Ranya Paul, Nshuti Cindy Niyonzima, Dylan Lechner, Alexx Francois, Druper Kayondo, Gianni Newman, Khyle Pena 

Not included in the picture but also on competed in the challenge:
Julian Lechner, Britney Jean-Baptiste, Rebecca Wilson

The Tenacity Challenge competition consisted of four events centered around the theme of tenacity and leadership. 

• Science and Math Quiz Bowl Challenge (Physics, Chemistry, Algebra I, Geometry)
• Latino and African-American Literature Response Challenge (Filmed Performance of a Creative Response, Accompanied by a Rationale)
• History Argument Challenge (Team will research and argue a position before a panel of judges)
• Tenacity Mural Challenge- artistic creation completed prior to the competition date and displayed at the competition.

The students worked hard preparing for the competition (see pictures below) and spent their Saturday at the event competing in the four areas. This year we sent three teams of students (our largest group!) Burlington was well represented by this talented and bright group of students! For many members of this team, it was their third year participating in the event.

Team Creative Minds of Burlington won second place in the Math and Science Quiz bowl!

 

Special Thanks to State Representative Russell Holmes, State Representative Jeffrey Sanchez and Austin Ashe Assistant Director of Student and Alumni Relations - MIT and UMass Boston Adjunct Professor on Hip Hop Pedagogy and Cultural Values, who graciously spent time with the students in preparation for their History Challenge.

Photos by Photographer Michael Albert

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Day 117 - Architecture Students Tour Three Fantastic Spaces Where Designers Create - Ms. Chang - BHS Art Dept.

This post first appeared on Ms. Chang's blog

My architecture students had the pleasure of visiting three wonderful spaces and meeting with talented architects and designers last week.

Here is a summary of our great day!

Fabrizio Corporation

We are fortunate here at BHS to have Ariana Fabrizio, daughter of Anthony Fabrizio and owner of Fabrizio Corporation (picture below). This successful business is known for the high-quality millwork that they create for commercial and residential clients. 

The students toured their wonderful shop and got to see a CNC machine in action!

Here is what Brendan had to say: 

"I did not know The CNC machine at Fabrizio Corp could make such complicated designs and make a copy of something that was made by hand 100 years ago."

 CBT Architects

My proud teacher moment came at CBT Architects when my two former students
Dan Ricardelli and Meagan Kelley welcomed us to their office. Dan is a registered architect and Meagan is an interior designer with the firm, Robin Adams ( CBT Interior Designer) the students toured CBT's great building. They learned about the day to day work of designers at that firm, saw their library and even got to see the model building workshop in action!

"I liked touring the CBT firm, as it was interesting to see what the actual workspace and building of a firm looks like, and hearing what it's like to work there from someone on a similar path to me. " Ryan, Grade 10

AUTODESK Build Space

Last year Autodesk created a build space that you can read about here: 

Designer Ben Uyeda of HomeMade-Modern has generously donated his time to BHS students once again, He met us at Autodesk and shared the information about the Autodesk space and toured the students through. He discussed his projects and how he as used the tools to enhance his designs and experiment.

Fashion Blogger and Designer Kristy Lyons

And the last treat for the day was a meet up with former student and Designer 

Kristy Lyons. Kristy is not only a fashion blogger @ style-blueprint.com. Kristy also works at Consigli Construction in construction management. 

Thank you to all of wonderful designers and artists who graciously took the time to educate our students!

Day 89 - Nature Paintings by Drawing and Painting Students - Ms. Chang - BHS Art Dept.

This post first appeared on Ms. Chang's blog

Students in the Drawing and Painting class created large acrylic paintings of nature. Click below for the assignment details:

Nature Painting

By Gati Aher, Class of 2019

by Sophia Lupo, Class of 2019

By Kassidy Kirchner, Class of 2017

By Quentin Inglis, Class of 2018

Day 46 - Students Learn from Designer Ben Uyeda - Christina Chang - BHS Art Dept.

This post first appeared on Ms. Chang's Blog

It is so wonderful when artists and designers take the time to educate and share with students! We were so fortunate to have Architect, Artist, Designer and YouTuber
​Ben Uyeda of Home Made Modern visit and spend time sharing his knowledge and talents with students.

Ben spoke with students in the Architecture class, Web Design, Photography and well as Business and Marketing students about his path and career from Architect to Designer who shares his ideas and designs via social media.

He shared many great tips for students including:

"Build skills even if you do not know what you want to do with them. Skills are universal. Don't focus on specific knowledge "

"Most people look directly ahead of them and do what they are told. Make sure when you are not doing what you're told that you are doing something useful"

Students in my architecture class had many great takeaways from Ben's talk. He validated what students have as their current knowledge base and what a huge value and asset they are to the workforce and design world.

One example of the do-it-yourself videos from Ben's YouTube Channel is below. The video has over 5-million views.

This is what the students said that they learned:

• Start small and work your way up
• Learn concepts, not prescriptions.
• The new generation holds many skill sets that the old generations don't have. 

Alexandria, Grade 11

• Listen to what you know and your young mind.

Quinlan, Grade 11

• Bigger is not all better 
• It's not all about making the most money possible 
• Making affordable furniture and houses for people in need is better than trying to make the most money.

Brendan, Grade 12