by Garrett Luczak, Student Teacher
If you happen to student teach at a school that runs their
art program off a cart, don’t worry, YOU GOT THIS! Although teaching off a cart may seem unconventional and you may long for your own classroom in the school, teaching off the
art cart can be a great experience. You just need to be prepared. With some of my helpful tips you will be on your way to being the ruler of the cart in no time.
1. Plan projects that use similar material. Obviously these carts are not as big as a normal class room, they are far from it! You cannot cram all of your supplies onto the cart all at once, so plan on using the same materials for multiple grade levels. If you have a 2nd grade project that calls for tempera cakes, try creating a project where the 3rd grade classes are also using tempera cakes. This will cut down on the set up time in each class.
2. Stock up. Every morning check the level of your supplies to make sure you will have enough to hold you over for the day. You’re often going from one class to the next without
any time in between. So you probably won’t have time to run to the work room to grab more orange construction paper when you realize you have two sheets left on your cart as you roll through the door of your next class.
I would recommend over stocking your supplies each morning to prevent any chance of running dry during the middle of the day.
3. Get to know your schedule and the layout of the school. Sometime you can have a crazy schedule where you are jumping back and forth from grade to grade and floor to floor. Keep a weekly schedule and a map of the school on your cart to prevent confusion.
4. Clean up after yourself. Don’t get on the classroom teachers’ bad side because all the students have
\white acrylic paint on their desks. Include the students in clean up, keep an eye on the clock, and try to leave the room cleaner than when you entered. When you are on a cart you get to know the staff of the school really quickly which can be a positive aspect to being on the cart, but do not leave them with a bad impression by leaving a mess.
5. Befriend the custodian and life will be good. Custodians are like the wizards of the school and can make things magically appear for you. Try to be respectful and friendly to them and your life on the cart will be that much easier. The custodian at my school made a second cart appear so we could have a cart for each floor
in the school. They do great things!
So, hopefully you’ll see that life on the cart is not all that bad, you just have to get into your groove and feel things out. You are still bringing art to the students, so they will still be excited to see you, and you are still the coolest person in the school of course too. Just try to follow some of my tips and your all good.
If you happen to student teach at a school that runs their
art program off a cart, don’t worry, YOU GOT THIS! Although teaching off a cart may seem unconventional and you may long for your own classroom in the school, teaching off the
art cart can be a great experience. You just need to be prepared. With some of my helpful tips you will be on your way to being the ruler of the cart in no time.
1. Plan projects that use similar material. Obviously these carts are not as big as a normal class room, they are far from it! You cannot cram all of your supplies onto the cart all at once, so plan on using the same materials for multiple grade levels. If you have a 2nd grade project that calls for tempera cakes, try creating a project where the 3rd grade classes are also using tempera cakes. This will cut down on the set up time in each class.
2. Stock up. Every morning check the level of your supplies to make sure you will have enough to hold you over for the day. You’re often going from one class to the next without
any time in between. So you probably won’t have time to run to the work room to grab more orange construction paper when you realize you have two sheets left on your cart as you roll through the door of your next class.
I would recommend over stocking your supplies each morning to prevent any chance of running dry during the middle of the day.
3. Get to know your schedule and the layout of the school. Sometime you can have a crazy schedule where you are jumping back and forth from grade to grade and floor to floor. Keep a weekly schedule and a map of the school on your cart to prevent confusion.
4. Clean up after yourself. Don’t get on the classroom teachers’ bad side because all the students have
\white acrylic paint on their desks. Include the students in clean up, keep an eye on the clock, and try to leave the room cleaner than when you entered. When you are on a cart you get to know the staff of the school really quickly which can be a positive aspect to being on the cart, but do not leave them with a bad impression by leaving a mess.
5. Befriend the custodian and life will be good. Custodians are like the wizards of the school and can make things magically appear for you. Try to be respectful and friendly to them and your life on the cart will be that much easier. The custodian at my school made a second cart appear so we could have a cart for each floor
in the school. They do great things!
So, hopefully you’ll see that life on the cart is not all that bad, you just have to get into your groove and feel things out. You are still bringing art to the students, so they will still be excited to see you, and you are still the coolest person in the school of course too. Just try to follow some of my tips and your all good.