EDUC 486 Co-Curricular

Reflection #2
BRAINY
Ross Montgomery

Co-curricular events are a great way to understand the culture and climate

of any school. These are opportunities to build relationships with students as well as

colleagues, parents, and administration. November 13th we led a group of student

though the Gregory Allicar Art Museum for the BRAINY program. BRAINY stands for

Bringing Arts Integration to Youth, and main goal is to introduce the arts though

exploration and experience to children and an early age. The program has

assistance from the Department of Art and Art History, the School of Music, Theatre

and Dance. Each week fourth graders from a local elementary school take fieldtrip to

the Colorado State University Art Museum. Students spend the whole morning

exploring though activities with the different art programs. Each groups spends

about an hour with each respective discipline. The main goal of the program is to

introduce students to the arts, demonstrate the role the arts play in the community

and culture, demonstrate to students that the arts can be enjoyable and fun, and also

introduce students to a university campus. I feel that all of these goals are very

important because in an area with little funding and budget cuts, we need student

interest to be elevated at an early age. One of my main goals as an educator is to

continue in my journey as a life-long learner. These extra-curricular events are a

great opportunity to reach youth and extend my learning. My philosophy in art

education is learning by doing, exploring, and experiencing. One main theme I

noticed and experienced during my work with BRAINY was appropriate

organization of grade and age level content. It is important to understand your

audience and plan accordingly. One thing we did for preparation was identifying

small group size. We had seven group leaders, which allowed for student groups of

three and four students. Working in groups if this size was advantageous with

individual attention and management. I was able to give my full attention to my

group, while modeling appropriate behavior in the art museum. Another theme I

noticed was the unique hands on experience the kids receive in all disciplines. We

addressed all learning types and integrated literacy, numeracy, verbal, visual,

artistic, and kinesthetic activities. It is important to be able to respond to this

dynamic and complex learning atmosphere. All students are individuals and there is

no equation to working with kids. Being able to respond to this environment is

paramount. Furthering my educational professional career is a principal goal. I have

committed to be a life-long learner and participating in programs like BRAINY is a

great way grow and give back to the community. I feel the arts can be lost in

education and it is important to address this at an early age. It is paramount to

engage students in being actively involved in their own learning.