Last Friday marked the end of Summer Seminar 2012: Teaching for Creativity, a week-long, immersive workshop for teachers of all grades and subjects to explore ways to foster creative thinking skills in their students. As a relatively fresh DMA employee, this Summer Seminar was my first. I was joined by eight educators from near and far (from Texas to Nebraska to Monterrey, Mexico!). Participants spent the week with the Museum’s resident creativity expert, Dr. Magdalena Grohman, engaging in group and independent creativity exercises, exploring creativity through art in the galleries, discussing current scholarship on creativity, and developing lesson plans to be tested in their classrooms next school year.
Thank you to this year’s participants for your insight, enthusiasm, and open-minds. Check out some of the photos from our idea-filled week.
Imagine yourself among a group of educators — spirited, inspiring, trusting, supportive, and innovative — all focused on creativity and the nurturing of students. Now imagine this group immersed in the creative environment and resources of the Dallas Museum of Art for one full week. This is the Summer Seminar experience for teachers at the DMA, and we’ll be hosting the 2012 Seminar June 11-15. We invite you to join us!
Teaching for Creativity reached beyond my expectations by exploring how to consider attitudes, ideas, and associations I may have discarded or not considered before this class. – 2011 participant
Designed for teachers of all grade levels and subjects, Summer Seminar: Teaching for Creativity explores education and creativity through experiences in the DMA’s galleries and Center for Creative Connections. The course references creativity from a variety of perspectives, and participants engage in readings about creativity from various authors, including Robert Sternberg, Michele and Robert Root-Bernstein, and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. Through conversations and workshops centered on creative attitudes and thinking, the Seminar supports teaching skills and approaches that foster imagination, curiosity, an open mind, and a natural drive for creating in students. UT Dallas professor Magdalena Grohman and DMA staff lead workshops and gallery experiences. Participants reflect on and further develop their own creativity, as well as focus on how to teach for creativity.
I will use the tools in order to push myself further with my projects, rather than staying in [a] comfort zone. – 2011 participant
This definitely helped me tap into more creative thinking. The exercises and activities were very helpful. – 2011 participant
2011 Summer Seminar gallery experience
Throughout the Seminar, the DMA galleries serve as a kind of laboratory space, in which we consider the creative process and relate creative thinking techniques to specific works of art. In-depth experiences with art cultivate our abilities to observe, envision, express, explore, engage, and understand in the arts and other disciplines. Through these experiences, we may become more persistent, flexible thinkers, better problem explorers and problem solvers—overall, more creative beings.
Unlike most professional development, the focus is not on ‘making a better teacher’ but on providing good teachers with better tools to bring out the best in their students. – 2011 participant
The one-week Summer Seminar experience serves as a catalyst for an extended relationship between participating educators and the DMA as we continue the dialogue about education and creativity throughout the academic year. This blog is one venue for the continued dialogue — view posts from a series titled Teaching for Creativity to learn more and hear about the creative journeys of several educators in the classroom. The blog post this Thursday will feature 2011 Summer Seminar participant, Lorraine Gachelin.
Registration for the 2012 Summer Seminar: Teaching for Creativity is currently open. For more information, please contact Andrea Severin at aseverin@DallasMuseumofArt.org.
Nicole Stutzman
Director of Teaching Programs and Partnerships
Every June, the Dallas Museum of Art and the University of Texas at Dallas host a week-long seminar for teachers. This year’s topic was Teaching for Creativity. Through creative thinking, conversations, and experiences in the galleries, participants created useful classroom scenarios to nurture creativity in students…and ourselves.
There were many highlights in the course. One highlight was a creativity challenge. Participants worked in teams and were given a variety of materials. They selected a contemporary work of art and created a new work of art inspired by the object. Afterwards, each group explained their creative process. This linked creative classroom techniques with works of art and gave teachers new ideas to use in the classroom. What are some ways that you have use creativity in the classroom?
We also spent extended time with works of art in the galleries. Looking closely at Manjusri, participants asked questions about the work of art and, together, generated ideas about the object. Some things that the group explored with Manjusri include:
What do the gestures on the object signify?
Where would this object have been used?
How does the creativity of the artist emerge from the object?
How does the object’s material display artistic creativity?
Below are images of the seminar. I hope you enjoy seeing the creative process of the participants! See you at next year’s seminar.
Today is the last day of Summer Seminar, our annual partnership course for teachers with The University of Texas at Dallas. The topic this year was The Creative Process, and we have spent the week exploring both the theory and the practice of creativity. Here are a few photos of our experiences this week.
participating in a Creativity Challenge in the American galleries
in our classroom at the Museum
treasure hunt through the galleries for extraordinary works of art with everyday uses
working on small group activities to expand our own creativity
Congratulations to all teachers for the completion of another school year! My colleagues and I would like to invite you to join us for great learning experiences with works of art this summer. Below are a few opportunities for you to engage with Museum education staff and educators from around the DFW area, and, of course, explore works of art from all times, places, and cultures.
Explore both the theory and practice of creativity in sessions led by Dr. Magdalena Grohman from The University of Texas at Dallas and DMA staff. Sessions will include gallery experiences in the Museum’s collections and Center for Creative Connections, creative thinking workshops, and discussions about classroom applications.
Join DMA staff and visiting artist, Jill Foley, for an interactive workshop filled with imagination and creativity. Foley, a Dallas-based artist, describes her work as her consciousness turned tangible. She creates large scale imaginary-type spaces to host her puppet-like figural sculptures and her paintings and drawings.
We look forward to seeing you soon!
Until next time….
Jenny Marvel
Manager of Programs and Resources for Teachers
Each summer, the Dallas Museum of Art and The University of Texas at Dallas collaborate to offer Summer Seminar, a graduate-level course for teachers. Summer Seminar is an opportunity for teachers to immerse themselves in art and learning alongside other educators for one week.
The topic changes each year, and this year the title is The Creative Process. We will be exploring both the theory and practice of creativity in sessions led by Dr. Magdalena Grohman and myself along with other DMA educators and UT Dallas faculty. Sessions will include gallery experiences in the Museum’s collections and Center for Creative Connections, creative thinking workshops, and discussions about classroom applications.
Tuesday, June 15 – Friday, June 18, 2010
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. daily
$100 registration fee
Don’t miss this opportunity to connect with other educators, have meaningful experiences with works of art, and rejuvenate your teaching! Visit the Web site for more details and to register.
