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"Dolphin Collaboration Mural"
Created by Special Needs Students with Liz Ebanks
Liz Ebanks Copyright
Mixed Media on Vinyl
Close Up Partial View |
Teaching Strategies for Dolphin Lovers
Written by: Liz Ebanks
National Art Teacher Award Recipient
Thank you, for joining me on my last post on DOLPHIN ADVENTURE- Mural Showcased in Floida Capitol:
The children discovered a new sense of self and purpose when they connected to their beloved orphaned dolphin in this uplifting lesson. This treasured baby bottlenose dolphin was instrumental in the young artists overcoming shame and negativity while triumphing over multiple disabilities. The dolphin's perseverance inspired the children to overcome their struggles with reading, writing, and abandonment through teamwork on a community mural. Our unique dolphin reading adventures warmed everyone's heart. The journey to explore and adapt with a new friend was met with excitement. The children's mindset shifted completely to overcome any learning barriers just like their dolphin role model. Class morale and participation soared while absences plumetted. Measurably the all star students advanced through several reading levels hungry to learn about adaptation on their dolphin adventure. It was a priveledge assisting these talented students surpass their goals and contribute to dolphin SMART viewing. I have outlined a few discussion questions for dolphin that were essential to my teaching strategies in this multi-disciplinary lesson. The children excelled with my multi-sensory approach complimented by Team Teaching.
By coordinating with the Hosting Teacher and Paraprofessional on modifications to instruction to compliment IEPs the children were provided consistent feedback. Achievement skyrocketted simply by differentiating instruction to different learning style groups of learners. The children thank you for joining their art movement as environmental stewards to incorporate upcycling into art to protect and preserve our priceless Florida endangered wildlife and ecosystems for future generations.
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LEFT: "Dolphin Collaboration Mural"
Limited Edition Giclee
Liz Ebanks Copyright 2009
Created with Special Needs Students
RIGHT: Teacher Demo Arist Trading Card Holder |
TIP: As a Collaborative Educator how do you accomodate your Varying Exceptionalities Students (Special Needs Students)? What kind of modifications do you offer?
My students tackled multiple disabilities by reading about their beloved doplphin hero in preparation to painting the "Dolphin Collaborative Mural." The mural design was recreated exclusively as a Limited Edition Artist Trading Card featured in the photo above on the left. This very special dolphin's strength is her ability to adapt and triumph over disability after sustaining life threatening injury. Students connected with their World Class Dolphin role model's perseverance to overcome multiple barriers. The high school students during my VSA Florida Teaching Artist Residency resolved to practice dolphin friendly fishing. This led the Special Needs students to use my hand made dolphin fluke stencils during the first class to prepare for the following mural class. The stencils assisted the students in focusing on creating an interesting composition for the viewer using positive and negative space and direction of light. Buddy pairs collaborated together on sharing a horizon line in their diptyches. These buddy pairs assisted students in developing an enduring understanding of teamwork in the real world of dolphin rescue as marine life artists.
1. What do you know about bottlenose dolphins now?
The class’ current knowledge of the species will be evaluated. The instructor will guide students into a discussion after they complete the
Dolphin Anatomy-Worksheet in preparation for placing the dolphin body parts onto the canvas.
2. Why would an artist choose to paint a mural about dolphins?
Murals bring art to the masses just by their size. Placed in public a mural can increase awareness of the arts as well as conveying a message in a language all can understand. As an environmental artist I feel it is critical to the survival of all Florida Endangered and Protected Species, that I help connect viewers with their daily struggles. I try to catch people's attention by painting these magnificent cetaceans life size and exaggerate their natural color or give them human like facial features by using an art technique called distortion. This distortion is one of the tools I use to quickly grab my viewer’s attention and link them with each animal subject in my Nature’s Character Series. I want viewers to identify with each character emotionally therefore, I may stretch the natural facial expressions of each creature during this distortion process.
3. What kind of messages have other muralist tried to communicate and what was the relationship between each mural's creation and current events of that time period?
List cave mural artist, Micheal Angelo, community mural projects, and Trompe l'oei, Wyland
4. How did the Florida Highway Men create so many collectable landscapes given their limited resources during the Depression?
The class will explore working in small groups with each person having a special contribution to the overall seascape. The Instructor will discuss how some Highway Men specialized in painting skies vs. trees, etc. in each collaborative piece. Recognize that like the
Highway Men we will be painting on a canvas stretched by the instructor on plywood donated generously by Home Depot and the previous Art Teacher. This introduction to painting skies and water will assist the young artists in creating the setting for the dolphin.
5. What types of tools do artist use to create large murals?
Students will identify and create the
composition by using these tools to create their mural.
T-square, stencils, level, flat vs. round brushes, drop cloth, straight edge, and painters tape, scraper, palette knives
6. Why is this composition interesting to the viewer?
The instructor will present a brief abstract to introduce composition. Next the class will identify the negative space vs. positive space, direction of light, placement of a subject in a
circular vs. triangular composition. This is to prepare the class on how to create an effective collaborative piece independently of the instructor.
7. What did you remember from your reading about Winter the dolphin that is unique?
The Teaching Artist and Hosting Teacher will guide the students into a discussion focusing on reading comprehension after they have completed reading all
three reading level books. The Hosting Teacher will make additional
accomodations to assist individuals with completing the
progressive readings.
1. CMA’s Coloring Book entitled: Winter The Dolphin Who Lost Her Tail
2. Scholastic’s Book: Winter’s Tail: How One Little Dolphin Learned to Swim Again
3. Winter’s Tale
4. Winter: The Dolphin that Could DVD (Optional. 63 minutes)
Winter the dolphin never gave up even though she lost her tail. She adapted by learning to swim in her own unique way despite her
disability. Now she inspires countless children and war veterans that are learning to cope with prosthesis by swimming with her own newly
designed prosthetic tails as she grows up. As dolphin caretakers students will illustrate their own custom prosthetic dolphin tail in their mural.
Students will reflect on the importance of how the professionals working together contributed to Winter’s successful rescue and release as they are guided through the process of creating a
collaborative mural after being divided into work pods/ teams.
9. What are the four common injuries to wild bottlenose dolphins that lead to these intelligent creatures requiring rescue and rehabilitation?
The class understanding of their role of environmental stewardship will be discussed after they review
The Dolphin- Friendly Fishing and Viewing Tips Brochure. The instructor will discuss how dolphin become
entangled in fishing line and
hooks, eat
plastic mistakenly, become dependent on human feeding as
beggar dolphins or beach due to illness. This information about how being
responsible fishermen helps us understand how everything's connected in the
ecosystem and how important it is to live in balance with the
mangroves and
estuaries that these dolphins call home. Scars from interactions with
propellars can be reduced through practicing responsible dolphin viewing.
10. How far away should you view dolphins from your boat so they do not feel harrassed by humans?
11. How long as a responsible dolphin viewer should you watch a dolphin in its natural habitat before moving away?
12. What kind of body language do dolphins use when they are distressed by humans viewing them?
As dolphin SMART kids we never want our presence to separate a calf (baby dolphin) from its mother or the pod in the wild.
Students will find the answers for questions 10-12 detailed at the below link from
NOAA Fisheries Service:
www. dolphinsmartkids.org
Closure
13. Why is Winter a good role model?
Winter is accepted and loved for being herself by Panama as a foster dolphin mom and countless people for overcoming her injuries and
inspiring all of us to
never give up. Always try
your best. Winter is becoming an incredible artist and loves to paint with her new human friends at Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Recently, Winter has helped her trainer teach Panama how to paint in acrylic.
14. What can you do to empower others through your artwork as a team?
The importance of recognizing everyone’s contribution to the mural as a successful composition will be outlined in how the
variation in drawing and painting techniques make the entire mural more interesting to the public will be addressed and discussed. The Instructor will highlight on how individuals employed
textural effects in 3-D, straw blowing, paint swirling, hatching, cross-hatching and watercolor to
communicate an eclectic style spotlighting on diversity of skills.
The Teacher will announce the VSA arts of Florida Hand N’ Hand Student Art Reception and distribute invitations for guests. The
Dolphin Collaborative Class Mural will be showcased at:
The SunTrust Bank
As a National Art Teacher Award Recipient, my
ART WORKSHOPS in Tampa are perfect for schools, camps, birthday parties, and museums. Commissions for my wildlife paintings and pet portraits are welcome.
Email: liz@rescueteam.com
If you enjoyed this post you might also, like this link to embark on my PIRATE TREASURE MAP LESSON:
http://lizebanksartgallery.blogspot.com/2010/09/community-ambassadors-gasparilla-pirate.html
