Menu

teachmam

LFF_Blog_April2022_TeachMAM03

Teach MAM – Supporting Success for the Whole Child

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF_Blog_April2022_TeachMAM03

TEACH MAM

Art Integration

Art Integration

—Supporting Success for the Whole Child—

Re-cap on the Louisiana Arts Summit Conference

The Teach MAM Ambassadors recently presented on Arts Integration at the Louisiana Arts Summit produced by the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge and the Louisiana Division of the Arts. The presentation focused on teaching the Arts, Music, Visual Arts, and Movement through integration with core subjects such as English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies.   So precisely, what is arts integration? The Kennedy Center for the Arts defines art integration as :

Arts integration is an approach to teaching in which students construct and demonstrate understanding through an art form. Students engage in a creative process that connects an art form and another subject area and meets evolving objectives in both (https://www.kennedy-center.org/).

Arts integration is vital to gaining a higher level of student engagement during the teaching and learning process. Not every student will be able to learn in the traditional manner of sitting at a desk and following a lecture. Arts integration allows students to learn in different ways and processes than conventional teaching. Incorporating the arts while still fulfilling the standards and mandatory requirements has proven beneficial for all students. In Arts-Integrated Curriculum, the arts become the approach to teaching and the vehicle for learning. Students meet dual learning objectives when they engage in the creative process to explore connections between an art form and another subject area to understand both better (https://www.ncesd.org/).

Music Integration

The Music Ambassador, Annelise Cassar Tedesco, presented Music Integration in multiple forms that can be applied in the core curriculum.  

Music is Core Content

This  affirms that music is and should be considered core content by virtue of its components. Consider the following:

  1. Math: Counting, Fractions, and Proportions
  2. Science: Physics of Sound and Acoustics
  3. English: Literacy, Text Analysis, and Reading
  4. Social Studies: Historical Context, Cultural Tradition, and Significance

During the presentation, ideas were shared. It was suggested for integrating music in English Language Arts by encouraging teachers to delve deeper and utilize masterworks of speech and song. She suggested that teachers can do this by focusing on works from diverse genres, generations, ethnicities, and backgrounds.   Some examples of this could be:

“Hold Fast to Dreams”

-text by Harlem Renaissance leader Langston Hughes

-music by Florence Price, the first African-American woman to be recognized as a symphonic composer and have a composition played by a major orchestra

“The Hill We Climb” by 2021 Inaugural Poet Amanda Gorman

“Me and the Sky” from Come From Away, the Canadian musical by David Hein and Irene Sankoff

-based on events surrounding the attacks of 9-11 and Operation Yellow Ribbon

“The Vagabond”

-text by Scottish writer Robert Louis Stevenson

-music by British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams

Content Connection

The second example focused on social studies classes. It was proposed that when class content focuses on a specific historical era or works from a previous time period, teachers could consider incorporating musical examples from the time period being studied.

Example: World War II Unit

“Till Then” performed by The Mills Brothers

“Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” performed by The Andrews Sisters

Cultural Connection: Unpack the text to reveal themes of the historical period

Class Climate Tip: Use musical selections to align the environment and prepare students to engage with the topics of the day

Music is Expression

Music is a way to communicate, advocate, and inspire change on many levels. Listening to music can impact or amplify mood in oneself or others. In many environments, such as a classroom, a weekly staff meeting, or even the beginning of a zoom gathering, music selections can frame the style of productivity wishing to be achieved and prepare listeners to be participants in an intentional contributing way.

Here are some examples of how music can inspire mood and energy while motivating and managing inner being:

When preparing to complete a specific task, consider musical examples that align student mood and energy to the task at hand. This strategy can also be a powerful tool in classroom management.

Example: Research Essay Writing Activity

“Clair de Lune” by Claude Debussy

“Moonlight” Sonata by Beethoven

Cultural Connection: Choose an instrumental piece concurrent with the topic, when the event occurred, or when the researched person lived.

Class Climate Tip: Use musical selections to align the type of focus and energy needed for students to complete the task with the highest level of success

By integrating music into the core curriculum, teachers and leaders provide students with a pathway to learning that can become deeper, more engaging, and invoke inner change through the power of music.  

Visual Art Integration

While every discipline is essential, Carolyn Scalfano, our Visual Arts Ambassador, has a unique way of incorporating visual arts into core academics. During the recent Arts Council Conference, Scalfano focused on three critical attributes highlighted in an arts-integrated curriculum: Well Being of the Student, Reinforcement of Core Content, and Understanding Historical Events.

Well Being of Children: Classroom Culture

Overcoming Adversity

Frida Kahlo was a Mexican artist who suffered from an abundance of physical and mental health challenges throughout her life. Born an athlete, she had polio at a young age and then broke her back in a bus accident. Showing her life to students presents art as a means of self-expression and an example of perseverance. Kahlo’s experience uses visual art as a coping skill for challenging times which is a way students can emulate her coping process.

LFF_Blog_April2022_teachmam01

Discussing Poverty

You Are Not Defined by Your Current Situation

Clementine Hunter was born into slavery as a field hand on the Melrose Plantation in Natchitoches, LA. Scalfano recently studied Hunter and learned that students were only provided with old dry leftover paints, dirty brushes, and rags to create their paintings. This was an attempt to inspire them to make the most of what they have rather than focus on what they don’t have.

Exploring Artists from Diverse Cultural Backgrounds

Scalfano strives to expose students to a wide variety of visual artists, ranging from Japanese contemporary artists, movie producers from Hollywood, and the famous (European) “masters” to political and civil rights activists.

Cross-Curricular Collaboration

Curriculum Support of Colleagues

(Incorporating concepts that require reinforcement)

Scalfano provides literature to her coworkers at the beginning of the year. This allows teachers to communicate core lessons that need extra time and attention. It also opens doors for collaboration between Scalfano and teachers on integrated art lessons throughout the year.

Incorporate Grade-Level Standards

Scalfano uses the curriculum provided by her parish as a guide to incorporate relevant vocabulary and revisit grade-level expectations.

Traditional Response to Intervention (RTI) at Pineville Elementary School is referred to as WIN, which stands for What I Need. These small groups meet with other students at their level and work on filling gaps to help them keep up in their core classes. Scalfano teaches three WIN groups. This informs her of where the students need reinforcement in specific skills and allows for rich conversations with content teachers.

Historical Events

Retouch on Lessons in a Different Format: Visual Art  

Art history is history and directly coincides with content studied in students’ social studies/ history curriculum. Scalfano has a map in the art studio depicting artists’ locations around the world. Anytime students explore a new artist, they review the continents and find the artist on the map, meanwhile discussing who else (if anyone) originated from that area. This innately serves to reinforce the concept of geography. For example, before Thanksgiving break, after the students learned about Columbus and the colonization of the Americas, students studied many maps of the United States, and Scalfano tied in the incredible artwork of Native American visual artist and political rights activist Juane Quick-to-see Smith. Each student was asked to have some theme behind their unique map. Some of the topics the students focused on as the theme for their work were unity vs. division, equality, and embodying the idea of “Uniting the States” through values like acceptance, forgiveness, and choosing not to judge others based on looks, race, gender identity, or social status.

Scalfano’s primary focus and ultimate goal in the integrated arts studio is to strive to teach lessons about artists who are going through journeys similar to students and facilitate guided discussions where students feel safe to process their emotions as a classroom community. This includes students asking important questions and diving into conversations, exploring differences of opinions, and sometimes sharing information aloud to their classmates. The goal is that engaging in these discussions creates a safe space emotionally for students and may promote a positive psychological state of mind in their class and discourage negative behaviors such as judgment, bullying, and isolation.

Movement/Physical Education Integration 

Just as important as visual art and music are to arts integration, so is movement. Our Movement Ambassador, Keyre’ Bradford, also presented at the Art’s Council Conference, focusing on movement integration and using movement to improve and treat students with trauma. The presentation gave teachers an overview of how movement can positively affect your brain, body, and feelings. It also included why movement should be included in arts integration. Teachers were given examples of how to integrate physical movement into core lessons.  

Ways to integrate movement into core subjects

Examples include:

  1. Movement in the core subjects can come in the form of “Brain Breaks,” when every student stops what they are doing and performs a class wide exercise or dance together, with or without music.
  1. In English, students can play “Beach Ball Toss” with one of the large plastic beach balls that has the 8 or 6 colors on them and have the sight words labeled on the ball, and once a student catches the ball, they have to say the word immediately.  
  2. You can also have students act out or role-play different movements in a story or a particular character.
  1. In math, students can add, subtract, and incorporate greater than and less than into a jumping jack answer/response form. Incorporate movement in the first hour of every hour in class. Set a timer or have the clock physically labeled with a quick exercise to get students up and moving. Example… 9:00 15 jumping jacks, 10:00 15 standing crunches, 11:00 15 Star stretches, etc.
  1. In science, you can integrate physical movement by going through Newton’s 3rd law of motion. (Force, direction, and reaction)
  1. For social studies, when you teach lessons on other countries and their customs, delve deeper and explore their games and sports. For example, have students do their research on the recreational customs of the land and then conclude with students playing a quick game or sport in which they learned about.

Movement/Physical Education Helps to Heal Trauma and PTSD

Movement and physical education integration is vital, but improving a child’s trauma with movement is just as crucial. In the wake of the aftermath of Covid-19, we are all dealing with and coping with various types of trauma. So using movement as a means of therapy should prove beneficial for students and teachers alike. Several studies and countless research have been done to prove that exercise and movement are linked to improved levels of mental and emotional trauma and reducing PTSD symptoms. In addition, the chemical reaction in the brain that takes place when one engages in regular physical exercise has been linked to increased levels of happiness and euphoric feelings, which are needed when dealing with the anxiety and depression associated with trauma and PTSD.  

While the benefits of movement surpass the negative feelings of beginning a routine, teachers and students both need to understand that exercise can trigger negative emotions. When starting an exercise routine, similar anxiety symptoms can closely be mimicked when exercising, such as sweating, elevated heart rate, tightness in the chest, and shortness of breath. These coinciding factors may cause an issue when using movement as a form of positive trauma theory. Those initiating exercises for the individual suffering from trauma need to hone in on the positive aspects and give the individual suffering from trauma or PTSD a focus point other than discomfort. For example, they can use breathing techniques and focus on the process, mind-to-muscle reactions, or a specific point in the scenery.  

Overall, arts integration is a very beneficial tool that, if appropriately utilized, can provide teachers and students with endless positive outcomes in education. The Seneca Academy of the Arts states that:

Here is what we’ve learned through experience about why arts integration is so important:
  1. Working in the arts helps learners to develop creative problem-solving skills.
  2. Teaching through the arts can visually present difficult concepts, making them easier to understand.
  3. Art instruction helps children develop motor skills, language skills, social skills, decision-making, risk-taking, and inventiveness.
  4. Visual arts teach learners about color, layout, perspective, and balance: all necessary techniques in presentations (visual, digital) of academic work.
  5. Integrating art with other disciplines reaches students who might not otherwise be engaged in classwork.
  6. Arts experiences boost critical thinking, teaching students to take the time to be more careful and thorough in how they observe the world.
  7. The arts provide challenges for learners at all levels.
  8. Art education connects students with their own culture and the wider world.
  9. A report by Americans for the Arts states that young people who regularly participate in the arts (three hours a day on three days each week through one full year) are four times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement, to participate in a math and science fair, or to win an award for writing an essay or poem than children who do not participate.
  10. A study of Missouri public schools in 2010 found that greater arts education led to fewer disciplinary infractions and higher attendance, graduation rates, and test scores. https://www.senecaacademy.org/

With all the positive influences the Arts can have on students, teachers, and the curriculum, we as educators need to seize the opportunity to include and integrate the Arts into everyday teaching practices and curriculum mandates. As Teach MAM ambassadors, it is our responsibility to advocate for teaching and supporting the “whole child,” and the arts provide us with that opportunity.

 According to The Kennedy Center:

“Arts Integration, as an approach to teaching and learning, supports many tenets for the development of the whole child by providing emotional safety, promoting full engagement in learning that is personally meaningful and challenging. The arts offer wholeness to learning that integrates though, feeling, and action, weaving together “the threads that connect mind, body, and spirit.” https://www.kennedy-center.org/

Works Cited

What is Arts Integration? Explore the Kennedy Center’s comprehensive definition https://www.kennedy-center.org/education/resources-for-educators/classroom-resources/articles-and-how-tos/articles/collections/arts-integration-resources/what-is-arts-integration/

What is Arts Integration?

https://www.ncesd.org/news/what-is-arts-integration/

Arts Integration in School: 10 Reasons Why It’s Important

https://www.senecaacademy.org/10-reasons-why-integrating-art-is-important-in-school/

 

LFF_Blog_Feb2022_TeachMAM01

Teach MAM – First Lady’s “Steps To A Healthier Lifestyle” 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF_Blog_Feb2022_TeachMAM01

TEACH MAM

First Lady’s “Steps To A Healthier Lifestyle”

In Conjunction With:
Louisiana Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports
By: Keyre’ Reed Bradford

 

On January 24 – April 25, 2022, the Louisiana Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports will host its annual Own Your Own Health (OYOH) Physical Activity and Nutrition Challenges! This challenge is an opportunity for Louisianans to take ownership of their health and physical activity levels by completing various nutrition and physical activity challenges.  

This event aims to help combat and eliminate people suffering from underlying health conditions. According to Dr. Johnny Jones, Medical Director of Emergency Medicine at Baton Rouge General, chronic medical conditions, what many may call “underlying conditions” – include diabetes, heart disease, obesity, cancer, and kidney disease. (https://www.brgeneral.org/news-blog/2020/march/whats-an-underlying-condition-/). Louisiana has the highest obesity rate in the country, high rates of diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and high blood pressure.

In a recent study conducted by AARP, in regards to which underlying medical conditions played the most significant role in COVID-19 complications and death, doctors reported :

  1. Obesity
  2. Diabetes (with complications such as organ damage)
  3. High blood pressure (with complications such as heart damage or kidney disease)

All three are inflammatory diseases that are prevalent among American adults, and experts say they are closely linked. (https://www.aarp.org/health/conditions-treatments/info-2021/covid-underlying-conditions.html).

According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, almost anyone, at any age, can do some physical activity. You can still exercise even if you have a health condition like heart disease, arthritis, chronic pain, high blood pressure, or diabetes. Physical activity may help. (https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/exercising-chronic-conditions). Even if you are overweight, don’t let that stop you from doing physical activities, including all four types of exercises (endurance, strength, balance, and flexibility). If you have difficulty bending or moving easily or feel self-conscious, try different activities, like walking, water exercises, dancing, or weightlifting, to see what works best. Anything that gets you moving—even for only a few minutes a day in the beginning—is a healthy start. (https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/exercising-chronic-conditions. )

Our hearts keep us moving and living. That’s why it is imperative to keep it healthy. Choices you might make every day, such as eating healthy, maintaining a healthy weight, and aiming to be more physically active, can contribute to heart health. Being physically active is one of the most important things you can do to keep your heart healthy and prevent underlying medical conditions from taking over your life and health. Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity per week. (https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/exercising-chronic-conditions. )  

Several conditions can be controlled, managed, or eliminated with a proper exercise and nutrition regimen. OYOH promotes and creates healthy habits to increase the likelihood of individuals remaining active after the challenges have been completed. When working with friends, family, and colleagues in fitness and nutrition challenges such as OYOH, those participating are more inspired to keep going, motivated to be successful, and become more accountable for their actions.   

We urge you to become physically active and adopt healthy lifestyle choices to help fight those underlying health conditions that can lead to larger, more severe health diseases and illnesses. 

Registration is now open for the annual Own Your Own Health Challenges. Please visit www.oyohla.com for more information and to register. In addition, weight loss and nutrition challenges are offered for a comprehensive health approach to wellness. People across the country are signing up now! So go ahead and get your team together and choose a name. Just set up the challenges so everyone in your group can track their steps and miles! We have team and individual competitions for fitness enthusiasts and casual strollers.

So join the First Lady’s office and others across the State of Louisiana to encourage our citizens to live a healthier, active lifestyle.

Works Cited:

Three Most Dangerous Underlying Conditions for COVID-19: Michelle Crouch, 02/03/2021,h .

What is an Underlying Condition?: Dr. Johnny Jones, 03/16/2020,https://www.brgeneral.org/news-blog/2020/march/whats-an-underlying-condition-/. 

Exercising with Chronic Conditions: NIH National Institute on Aging (NIA), 04/03/2020, https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/exercising-chronic-conditions.

Own Your Own Health: www.oyohla.com: Louisiana Department of Health, 08/01/2021, http://idh.la.gov.

 

LFF_Blog_Jan2022_TeachMAM01

Teach MAM – First Lady’s “Steps To A Healthier Lifestyle” 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF_Blog_Jan2022_TeachMAM01

TEACH MAM

First Lady’s “Steps To A Healthier Lifestyle”

Rudy Macklin
Executive Director
Louisiana Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports

On January 24 – April 25, 2022, the Louisiana Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports will host its annual Own Your Health (OYOH) Physical Activity and Nutrition Challenges! First Lady Edwards and her Teach MAM team will join the Challenges with the “First Lady’s Steps To A Healthier Lifestyle”, so be on the lookout for posts on social media and join the fun! Get your team together and give it a name of your choosing. Just set up the Challenge so everyone in your group can track their steps and miles! We have team and individual competitions for fitness enthusiasts and casual strollers.

Registration is now open for the annual Open Challenges. Please visit www.oyohla.com for more information and to register. In addition, weight loss and nutrition challenges are offered for a comprehensive health approach to wellness. People across the country are signing up now! Please find an overview of the program and the training manual in the links below.

Join the First Lady’s office and others across the State of Louisiana to encourage our citizens to live a healthier, active lifestyle. Louisiana has the highest obesity rate in the country, high rates of diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, and high blood pressure. It is time we get back to practicing prevention, reducing health disparities, and getting pre-existing health conditions under control.

What is “Own Your Own Health”?

Own Your Own Health (OYOH) is a physical activity and nutrition tracking program designed to help Louisianans combat obesity and its related chronic illnesses by taking small but effective steps to eat right and exercise often. OYOH encourages populations in Louisiana to develop healthy activity and eating habits. Last year, several other states joined in on the fun and excitement this program offers! Participants can earn points by achieving milestones in accumulated activity, losing weight through a healthy, appropriate diet, and increasing their fruit and vegetable consumption.

Join in on the fun and get healthy with us!

 

LFF_Blog_December2021_TeachMAM01

Teach MAM – Arts Strong

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF_Blog_December2021_TeachMAM01

TEACH MAM

Arts Strong

Join Annelise Cassar Tedesco as she encourages students to
build community and overcome barriers through her conversation
and performance series titled Arts Strong

Community is one of the essential components of Louisiana. Louisianans are famous for good food, good times, and most importantly, good people. In today’s world, where emotional distance has developed amid social distance, we must prioritize building connections and community. Students need connections that extend horizontally to their peer group. Still, they are better when they become part of a vertically growing community, connecting with generations both younger and older than they are. When this occurs, and students connect with and learn from role models outside the classroom, they gain a broader world insight and learn valuable lessons from professionals working in the field. Students understand the interconnectedness of disciplines, grow in confidence as they form relationships, begin building a professional network, and most importantly, they gain strength from meeting new people and learning how every adult is the result of, or maybe better stated, is in the midst of a journey through challenges and joys.

Louisiana is a great place, but its people are dealing with and working to recover from many storms; meteorological, emotional, financial, and physical are just a few of the storms of life that batter the shores of our state. Many people are hard at work to rebuild lives and overcome challenges. Today, some of the obstacles to overcome are disconnection and isolation. Lack of relationships can be a barrier that creates inequity. Feeling isolated in life’s challenges that parallel an academic or artistic journey can cripple even the most capable and talented students. To prioritize overcoming these challenges, I have created Arts Strong, a series of conversations with guest artists who are passionate about joining with me to invest in the next generation and help them overcome life’s storms.

Arts Strong is a series of episodes where students have the opportunity to meet and interact with guest artists of diverse occupations, racial backgrounds, and artistic abilities who share their art as well as their stories. Episodes are filmed with a live studio audience and made available free of charge online, contributing to equal access to educational art resources across our state and beyond. Students experience an active learning environment that transcends traditional classroom tactics as guests share performances, pro-tips, joys, struggles and ultimately reveal their strength through their connection to the arts. These artists have weathered some of the same storms the students face in their own lives, and healing, success, and opportunity have been the outcomes. Their talent, teaching, and testimony are profound. Students learn about being performers, but more importantly, students learn about being people who can overcome.

This type of learning breaks down barriers and increases engagement in fundamental ways. Recently, one of my highly talented friends, who is black, came and worked with my students. When students were asking questions, one of my white male students asked with genuine concern if this guest felt like his career had taken longer because he was black. The grown man on stage was moved to tears by this young man’s concern and willingness to acknowledge the topic. He answered, “Yeah, I do, but I still go on anyway … Art’s purpose is to lift us above all of those things that would separate us; art wants to lift us above it and bring us together.” The student’s question foreshadows positive change, and the lives of young and old are changing for the better.

My goal is to help students across our state and nation by providing more significant equity of access to arts education resources. For schools that already have an extensive established network of art education resources, this series offers an additional outlet for enrichment and a way to build community connections beyond traditional boundaries. For schools that do not yet have resources in art education, this series can be a beginning to connect people to art and build connections with each other through art. In doing this, we work together to take down walls of isolation and help the next generation of future artists come together.

The arts can bring us together, encourage us, help us find a place of unity, and help us overcome the storms and challenges of life. If we come together through the arts, we can indeed be Arts Strong.

I invite you to join me in this journey to build community and help inspire the next generation.

Join the conversation with Annelise Cassar Tedesco and her Arts Strong series at https://www.twosistersoneart.com/arts-strong

Annelise Cassar Tedesco
Louisiana State Teacher of the Year, 2022
Teach MAM Music Ambassador, Louisiana First Foundation

Music Director, CHS Voices and
The Performing Arts Academy
St. Bernard Parish Public School District

Chalmette High School
1100 East Judge Perez Drive
Chalmette, Louisiana 70043

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annelisecassartedesco/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnneliseCassarTedesco

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AnneliseCassar

 

 

LFF_Blog_Nov2021_teachmam

Teach MAM – Ambassadors Plan for the Upcoming Year

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF_Blog_Nov2021_teachmam

TEACH MAM

Planning for the Year Ahead

Louisiana First Foundation’s Teach MAM Ambassadors joined First Lady Donna Edwards to discuss Teach MAM plans for the upcoming year. Be on the lookout for some fun videos from our Ambassadors, and be sure to follow First Lady Edwards on TikTok to participate in the upcoming Christmas Caroling Challenge led by our Music Ambassador, Annelise Casaar Tedesco with surprise guest appearances by our Art Ambassador, Carolyn Scalfano and our Movement Ambassador Key’re Bradford.

 

LFF-Blog-Oct-2021_TeachMAM

Teach MAM – Making Music in Time of COVID

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF-Blog-Oct-2021_TeachMAM

TEACH MAM

Adaptation
Making Music in Time of COVID

by Annelise Cassar Tedesco

Louisiana State Teacher of the Year, 2022
Louisiana First Foundation, Teach MAM Music Ambassador

Music Director and Teacher, CHS Voices
Chalmette High School – St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana 

Making music amid the COVID pandemic has been an interesting journey. For some, studying music and partaking in live music performances have all but faded into a distant dream of activities once enjoyed as part of a very distant past. For others, a new stint of adventure in the virtual world our music-making has afforded new opportunities, but opportunities are framed with isolation instead of togetherness.

A place where music-making has been very challenging is in our schools. Students have had to endure new, very restricted environments where they could no longer study or rehearse in their traditional spaces. They have moved outside where blending and hearing their peers as an ensemble is almost non-existent. In some cases, they have endured the complete loss of music education and performance opportunities that they once knew and loved. The environment has been warped with fear and constraint. Performance programs, performing people, and most importantly, performing children have suffered through this pandemic.

As many now look at the possibility of vaccination, recovery from storms, and spaces to return to education and socialization in a traditional way, we must specifically acknowledge the importance of music in our schools and work to find creative solutions to reinvigorate practice and performance safely. Music incorporates math, science, literature, and history. Music increases brain activity, inspires creativity, and helps students process emotions. Furthermore, it often serves as a social connector for students and adults alike. Our music and theatre program at the school where I teach truly helps form a home and family for our students. For some, it is a second family and home away from home. For others, it is the foundation of love and compassion in their lives.

Music is essential in our communities. From opera to jazz, Louisiana has been a centerpiece for cultural development and artistic leadership in America. Just as we played a pivotal role at the beginning of our nation’s musical journey, we must embrace our role again to be a leader in the relaunch of music and the arts.  We have this glorious history as cultural leaders, and we now have the opportunity to stand united as a state and make artistic history again.

As we consider what life will grow to look like post-pandemic, we must support and prioritize keeping music alive in our schools and communities.

Annelise Cassar Tedesco
Louisiana State Teacher of the Year, 2022
Louisiana First Foundation, Teach MAM Music Ambassador

Music Director and Teacher, CHS Voices
Chalmette High School – St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annelisecassartedesco/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnneliseCassarTedesco

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AnneliseCassar

 

LFF_Blog_August2021_TeachMAM01

Teach MAM – A Partnership Built for Physical Success

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF_Blog_August2021_TeachMAM01

TEACH MAM

A Partnership Built for Success

First Lady’s Teach MAM Initiative &
Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness

by Keyre’ Bradford

With great pleasure, the First Lady’s Teach MAM Initiative has partnered with D. Rudy Macklin, Executive Director with the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness. As you know, the Teach MAM Initiative focuses on the importance of teaching movement, art, and music to students, encouraging them to learn in many ways. While focusing on the movement aspect of the three disciplines is the main focus of this partnership, this collaboration will increase the knowledge and understanding of the importance of quality physical education in schools lead by certified health and physical educators with allocated educational reserved daily minutes.

It only makes sense that these two entities would collaborate when the focus of the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness is:

  • Develop, foster, and coordinate services and programs of physical fitness and sports for the people of Louisiana
  • Sponsor physical fitness and sports workshops, clinics, conferences, and other similar activities; give recognition to outstanding developments and achievements in, and contributions to, physical fitness and sports
  • Stimulate physical fitness research
  • Collect and disseminate physical fitness and sports information and initiate advertising campaigns promoting physical fitness and sports
  • Encourage local governments and communities to develop local physical fitness programs and amateur athletic competitions
  • Develop programs to promote personal health and physical fitness in cooperation with medical, dental, and other similar professional societies
  • Enlist the support of individuals, civic groups, amateur and professional sports associations, and other organizations to promote and improve physical fitness and sports programs

This partnership will foster support and encouragement in the area of physical education and exercise throughout the State. Given the potential for increased risk of obesity, diabetes, and other chronic diseases in children due to prolonged physical inactivity (https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-09429-3), this partnership is crucial in combating the adverse effects of the pandemic. With the surge of medical illnesses increasing from the recent global pandemic due to the lack of physical education, movement, physical activity, and exercise, it is dire to find ways to preserve physical education in our schools. The lasting effects of lost physical education and physical activity within the schools may permanently affect our children that we are not willing to sacrifice. We are promoting all the positive aspects that physical education will produce if given a chance to succeed.  

ShapeAmerica states that school physical education programs offer the best opportunity to provide physical activity to all children and teach them the skills and knowledge needed to establish and sustain an active lifestyle. Physical education teachers assess student knowledge, motor, and social skills and provide instruction in a safe, supportive environment. SHAPE America recommends that schools provide 150 minutes of instructional physical education for elementary school children and 225 minutes for middle and high school students per week for the entire school year. Based on the learning sequence, physical education should not be compared to or confused with other physical activity experiences such as recess, intramurals, or recreational endeavors. (https://www.shapeamerica.org/)

A quality physical education program provides learning opportunities, appropriate instruction, meaningful and challenging content for all children and should include these essential components (https://www.shapeamerica.org/).

The Positive Effects of Quality Physical Education in Schools according to PHITworld.org:

  • Improved physical fitness
  • Skill and motor skills development
  • Provides regular, healthful physical activity
  • Teaches self-discipline
  • Facilitates the development of student responsibility for health and fitness
  • Influence moral development, leadership, cooperate with others
  • Stress reduction – an outlet for releasing tension and anxiety
  • Strengthened peer relationships
  • Physical education can improve self-confidence and self-esteem
  • Respect – P.E. helps you respect your body, classmates, and teammates
  • Experience in setting goals
  • Improved academics – The significant bonus benefit!

With all the benefits of physical education, it is vital to promote the need for quality physical education programs throughout the school districts in Louisiana. We cannot afford to let our students down when it comes to their physical health. To avoid permanent changes in behavior extending beyond the duration of the COVID-19 closures, we must take measures (https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/) to ensure our students are receiving the best possible chances of success. This success happens by providing students with the best quality physical education programs with certified health and physical educators with district-mandated P.E. minutes.

 You can follow the Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

 

References:

Dunton, G.F., Do, B. & Wang, S.D. Early effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on physical activity and sedentary behavior in children living in the U.S. BMC Public Health 20, 1351 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-09429-3

Is it Physical Education or Physical Activity? https://www.shapeamerica.org/

The Tremendous Benefits of Physical Education in Schools:
https://www.phitworld.org/Benefits_of_P_E__in_School.htm

https://wwwcfprd.doa.louisiana.gov/ 

 

LFF_Blog_July2021_TeachMAM

Teach MAM – Preservation Hall Webinars

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF_Blog_July2021_TeachMAM

TEACH MAM

Preservation Hall Webinars

Be sure to check out the discussion on how to include ALL students in the joy of making music in the classroom. This panel discusses the possibilities and follows up with a live Q&A and collaborative brainstorm. This webinar is the fourth webinar in the New Orleans Music & Art in Special Education webinar series.  

Be sure to listen for two musical treats from panelist Will Smith and an ensemble of Preservation Hall musicians in the webinar recording!

Access to the webinar recording can be found here: https://salon726.com/home/recap-preservation-hall-lessons-may-webinar-music-and-mindfulness-with-new-orleans-rhythm-and-blues.

You can access all of Preservation Hall Foundation’s online music lessons here: https://lessons.preshallfoundation.org .

Resource Links:

The Expression of Emotion in Music: https://www.percussionplay.com/blog/the-expression-of-emotion-in-music/

Music and Emotional Awareness: https://heartmindonline.org/resources/research-links-music-and-emotional-awareness

15 Music Therapy Activities and Tools: https://positivepsychology.com/music-therapy-activities-tools/

Teaching Self-Care for Grades 3-5: https://www.morningsidecenter.org/teachable-moment/lessons/teaching-self-care-grades-3-5-music

7 Music Games for Practicing Self-Regulation: https://www.pbs.org/parents/thrive/7-music-games-for-practicing-self-regulation

Using Music for Self-Care: https://www.tendacademy.ca/using-music-self-care/

Mindfulness Game for Teens and Kids: Liking the Music: https://blissfulkids.com/mindfulness-game-teens-kids-liking-the-music/

 

LFF_Blog_June2021_TeachMAM

Teach MAM – How Some of Louisiana’s Best Teachers Are Planning to Empower Students for the Upcoming Year

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF_Blog_June2021_TeachMAM

TEACH MAM

How Some of Louisiana’s Best Teachers Are Planning to Empower Students for the Upcoming Year

By Spencer Kiper
2019 Louisiana State Teacher of the Year
Instructional Technologist, Caddo Parish Public Schools

 

A year ago, this month, every educator in our state was spending their summer break mentally preparing for an unknown and unpredictable school year ahead. Having come off of the heels of a school year ended abruptly by COVID, many were left wondering how different the upcoming school year would be – what would it look like, what precautions would be necessary, and how would we as educators provide the same level of instructional and emotional support to our students in a classroom setting that was so different than what so many of us had experienced? Despite incredibly challenging and shifting conditions of the past school year, Louisiana educators triumphed. Our educators found new, innovative ways to reach students. Many adopted skills and practices to provide the support we know as educators that students need in order to be academically, emotionally, and socially successful.

This summer, teachers are now looking retrospectively at the year that just concluded. While most are likely ready to close the book on this chapter of their careers, it is important to pause this summer and think about the work that our teachers were able to accomplish with their students, despite the incredibly difficult circumstances we were faced with when the year began. When asked about this, some of Louisiana’s best teachers, the 2022 State Teacher of the Year state-level honorees, had the following to say about the innovative practices that they implemented that helped them and their students overcome the challenges from this past school year.

Lorie Miller,
Allen Parish

“This year, I did weekly well-being check-ins with my students. This helped me to cultivate deep, meaningful relationships with my students. I firmly believe that when students feel seen, heard, and valued they can go above and beyond what is asked of them in the classroom.”

Cicely Jacob,
Avoyelles Parish

“This year in an effort to ensure success for face to face, hybrid, and virtual students, my district used Google Classroom as our teaching platform. The students were not very familiar with Google tools such as Drive, Documents, Gmail, Sheets, and Slides. I stumbled upon Applied Digital Skills, a video-based curriculum, and used it to build skills in using all the tools necessary for assignments. As an added plus, the curriculum was embedded in lessons celebrating things like Black History and Women’s History.”

Steven Brown,
Bossier Parish

“I leveraged peer to peer learning/collaboration with every opportunity that arose. Students sharing and hearing, thinking out loud by their peers was critical in the environment dominated by isolation from the pandemic.”

Courtney King,
Cameron Parish

“This past year, I taught my students ways to navigate through the emotions they encounter when they attempt to master new and difficult skills. To ensure my methods were rooted in mutual growth and understanding, I learned new skills and pushed myself right alongside them. When days were particularly rough and we all wanted to throw in the towel, I invited them to help me decide what we should do next. Showing my students there is value in struggle and normalizing its place by making them privy to its consistent appearance in my own triumphs and setbacks in the classroom, transformed the learners in my room. They began to feel empowered instead of intimidated. The more my students pushed forward the more they experienced what was on the other side, validating their capabilities and ensuring another willing opponent in a process that no longer felt like a losing game.”

Kayla Joseph,
Evangeline Parish

“I implemented culturally responsive teaching strategies by facilitating safe and open dialogue to encourage students to feel comfortable to discuss social, emotional and academic topics in my classroom. The goal for this strategy was to create a communal environment where students could embrace and respect diversity and experiences. Over the past year, our nation has been affected by a significant amount of trauma. Real life issues such as health care disparities, racial injustice, increase in gun violence and the hunger and food crisis influenced my decision to implement open discussion because national issues weighed heavily on my students social and emotional well being.”

Indya Pruitt,
Franklin Parish

“I used various types of media to drive instruction. I incorporated agriculture into my curriculum for students to have an in-depth, hands on experience. I also sparked curiosity and accessed prior knowledge by introducing more anchor texts.”

Michele Pelissier,
Jefferson Parish

“Having both nonverbal and verbal students with Autism as well as LEAP and LEAP Connect students, I used a strategy of blended curriculum to help scaffold and differentiate material so that all students would benefit. This, combined with targeted and intentional interventions, helped students relate to the material and make connections that helped all students show significant growth.”

Courtney Martin,
Lincoln Parish

“This year, I worked hard to overcome ACT test misconceptions and anxiety so that students were fully prepared to test to their highest ability. We spent time going over skills that students did not get to learn due to COVID, and spent time reinforcing skills learned in prior grades. A student is a better test taker when he/she knows what to expect. No surprises!”

Angela Goodly,
Orleans Parish

“I implemented weekly Class Council Meetings to build a positive classroom climate, where we could discuss their dreams, fears, academic challenges, and world events.  During our meetings, we had candid discussions about the challenges of virtual learning, how to set SMART goals,  social and racial injustice, the pandemic, and their power to change the world around them.”

Angela Leach,
Ouachita Parish

“Upon entering this new world of teaching virtually, I amended strategies constantly to try to find the best method to teach, accommodate special needs, and ensure success. This vacillated between creating videos in advance for instruction so that it could be reviewed as many times as needed, doing live (virtual) demonstrations, taking pictures of step by step progress, and giving them several different project options with videos included for self-pacing. In-person instruction simply demanded changes in pacing and daily schedules to accommodate for cleaning measures of all materials between each class.”

Brian Gough, St.
Charles Parish

“While teaching during this year of the pandemic, I included as many virtual outside connections as possible into my PBL projects. We networked with past students who now work in the technology and design professions who acted as mentors, brought in university professors and students to lead workshops, and connected with other K-12 students around the globe through Link Online Learners to discuss how life during a pandemic was in other countries and to act as sounding boards when we needed feedback on products we were making in class. Now that the word has been opened up to my students, this concept will become an important part of my project development in the future.”

Victoria Roussel,
St. James Parish

“I switched over from always beginning with whole class instruction to more of a small group and individual setting. This allowed me to space out my students more but also gave them more of an opportunity to be creative and work with others, even from a distance. “

Now, our Louisiana educators look ahead to the upcoming school year. We know that gaps that occurred due to the pandemic will still be issues our educators will have to face in the upcoming school year. The innovative practices and mindsets will continue as our teachers continue to address these gaps head-on. Our teachers have never deserved a summer break more than this one. With rest on the schedule, many of our educators also plan to use this summer to continue to innovate how they plan to impact the lives of their students in the upcoming school year. Here’s what a few of our teachers plan to do to empower their students this fall.

Rhea Blanchard,
Assumption Parish

“As I embark on a new grade level in a different school, I plan to empower my high school students by continuing to allow them to reflect and give feedback on activities and assessments as well as classroom procedures.  If we listen to them, we see they have great ideas from a fresh perspective!”

Kaitlyn Richard,
Beauregard Parish

“As the upcoming school year arrives, I plan to take everything that I have learned from the last school year and use it as my driving force for next year! Due to the large amount of time missed this year, I have focused on providing my students with rich and engaging digital learning opportunities as well as a strong literacy foundation. By focusing on these areas, my students have felt more success and empowerment than ever before; therefore, I plan to continue to create and deliver strong academic instruction, so that all of my students can feel this achievement for many years to come.”

Carrie Loridans,
Caddo Parish

“Next year, I plan to empower students to take control of their linguistic growth through a better understanding of how skill attainment/performance directly connects to their grade. I intend to help my students focus on their proficiency level, on how well they can communicate in French, setting goals for their personal growth instead of focusing on letter grades. After AVANT assessment training this past summer, I gained a deeper understanding of linguistic proficiency levels, and I’m eager to use that knowledge to help my students grow.”

Leah Darden,
DeSoto Parish

“In the upcoming year, I will empower my students by focusing on building relationships. In a world that’s growing increasingly digital, it’s my concern that students will live in a screen-only setting and neglect building relationships with one another. We will continue to utilize the tools at our disposal but there will be a special attention paid to the social-emotional growth of my students.”

Michelle Lewis,
Iberville Parish

“In the upcoming school year, I plan to empower my students by progressively encouraging, equipping, and enhancing their leadership capacity. First, I will begin the school year by getting to know my students individually and working towards building a classroom community that celebrates who they are and how they self-express.  Then, I will infuse resources and activities that invite students to hold discourse and dialogue with one another around their work and ways to improve it. Next, students will progressively be given choice and voice in their decision making and be encouraged to utilize their unique skill sets, vision, and talents to show mastery of objectives. Also, students will begin to see themselves as community partners and problem solvers.  Through data, case studies, articles, and mini-documentaries, students will read, become aware, analyze and connect what they are learning in science to ways in which they can actively use their knowledge to create more equitable solutions to local and global issues. Finally, students will take part in shared leadership opportunities, where they take on the role of “teachers” and take ownership in encouraging their peers and providing timely academic feedback. I recognize that each student traverses on their learning journey at different times and in different ways.”

Jeff Kenimer,
Rapides Parish

“This year, I started an after-school tutoring/test corrections program. Next year, I plan to continue the after-school program and implement more hands on activities/labs.”

Annelise Cassar Tedesco,
St. Bernard Parish

“The pandemic has reminded us that each of us has so much material in our own lives from which to create art. I look forward to cultivating a culture of artistic expression and creation from within each student’s own journey. This encouragement combined with a continued study of rigorous academic, artistic material will foster the growth of students and the empowerment of their voices.”
Spencer Kiper

Spencer Kiper

2019 Louisiana State Teacher of the Year
Instructional Technologist, Caddo Parish Public Schools

 

LFF_Blog_May2021_TeachMAM

Teach MAM – Ambassadors

 

 

 

 

 

 

Teach MAM

 

Teach MAM: An Exciting Partnership to Strengthen Arts Education Across Louisiana

LFF_Blog_May2021_TeachMAM

TEACH MAM

Ambassadors

Louisiana First Foundation is excited to announce that two of our Teach MAM ambassadors will continue their work within our program for another year. Carolyn Scalfano, Arts Ambassador, and Key’re Bradford, Movement Ambassador, will renew their commitment to us for another school year. With 2020 being a year far from normal, LFF is excited to have an additional year with these outstanding educators. We are saddened to lose our Music Ambassador, Mickey Smith, who was also the Grammy Educator of the Year in 2020. Mickey is relocating to pursue a fantastic opportunity in music education.

Look for exciting things to come in this next school year. LFF will announce its new Music Ambassador in the next few months. Thank you to Mickey for his service to the Teach MAM program, and we are excited to move forward with Carolyn and Key’re!

 

Load More