ART:
LISA DIFILIPPO
INQUIRY RESULTS, 2013..............................................................................................
Millennium High School
New York, NY |
Lisa DiFilippo is a Visual Arts Teacher at Millennium H.S. in lower Manhattan; a small, public, college prep school of aprox. 600.
ldifilippo at schools.nyc.gov |
Inquiry Title:
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Portrait Photography: Finding Personal Voice Through Emulation
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Inquiry Questions:
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How can we produce original photographic portraits using various techniques that express our personal voices as artists, yet are influenced by the work of renowned photographers?
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Contextual Information..................................................................................................
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What I did:
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Special Resources utilized in this inquiry
(i.e. websites, apps, books, etc.): |
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Data Evidence Plan
Data Sources |
Central Content Ideas Measured |
Measurement Tools |
Poster: "What We Already Know"
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Students knowledge/skill level prior to beginning the project; creating and participating in the arts
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Small group discussion; whole class discussion; on-demand writing; creation of visual to be displayed in classroom
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Portrait Photographer Research
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Utilizing arts-related resources; analyzing text and images; understanding cultural contributions in the art
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Research note taking; short answer writing assignment (w/ rubric); whole class discussion
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Proposal Writing
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Creating a clear, detailed written proposal; understanding the concept of portrait photography (all vocab specific to the genre; referencing other artists)
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Written work (with rubric); small group discussion; whole class discussion; note taking; exit slips
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Artwork Created
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Use of art materials (cameras, light sources, digital editing programs); creating and analyzing artwork
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Photographs created; note taking; small group work; whole class discussion; teacher check-ins
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Post-Project Reflections and Exhibition
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Ability to analyze own work and work of others; ability to write in depth about one’s work; knowing how to appropriately display artwork for others to view
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Work created according to instructions and rubric; written reflection; whole class discussion; collaborative group work to frame and display photographs
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Summary of Results..........................................................................................................
Results of student inquiry in
terms of my learning goals: |
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Evidence that was most useful to me in this
inquiry and what it reveals to me: |
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What my results suggest about
my initial inquiry question(s): |
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Samples of Student Work...................................................................................................
Inquiry Results Presentation & Handout
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Example of Student Work
I chose this image as an example of exceptional student work because the two students who collaborated to produced it paid attention to composition, lighting and mood through their own guided research of other well-known portrait photographers.
- Lisa DiFilippo |
Quotes From Students
About What They Learned Below are excerpts taken from written reflections the students produced upon completion on the project. The quotes come from both the sitter and photographer who produced the example image seen here. I believe that they demonstrate the analytical skills the students gained from this inquiry learning-based unit.
- Lisa DiFilippo
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Reflections: Backwards Look and Forwards Look........................................................
What I have learned about Inquiry:
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I have learned that teaching artistic techniques and how to use specific material/equipment to students in conjunction with art historical concepts can inspire creativity and allow students to reach their full potential as artists if they are properly guided through the process. One can never assume as a visual arts teacher that students know how to conduct sufficient research, analyze images, work collaboratively, and express themselves through writing about art and how to create interesting, sophisticated work without well-planned prompts and guidelines. Whenever I ask myself, “What do I want my students to know?’ and then backwards plan each step of the process I want them to experience from the final product to the introduction of the project, I find that my students are more engaged in both independent work and group discussions, and, in turn, are inspired to create thoughtful, original writing and art work.
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What's next for my students and my teaching approach:
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I plan to assign this project to my next Photography class in the late fall/early spring of the 2014-2015 school year.
I have already drastically improved student output this year compared to last by paying close attention to the ways in which I used inquiry-based approaches in my lessons. I feel that my unit plans are better connected since I started working with the PACE Inquiry program two years ago. |
How I plan to share my results with the community:
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Next year, I hope to exhibit student work to the lower Manhattan business community, which was my aim from my last inquiry project, but unfortunately hurricane Sandy disrupted those plans.
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