Module 12
	Teaching Module in the Arts - Sea Expressions	Activities OHTs Resources
Resource 1 National Curriculum Profile The arts - A statement on the arts for Australian schools Resource 2 National Curriculum Profile Resource 3 Further Reading and References Resource 4 Practical Use of this Module with Children Resource 5 Sequence for Performance Resource 6 Integrating Arts into Coastal and Marine Education Themes		Resources

Resource 1

National Curriculum Profile

The arts - A statement on the arts for Australian schools

Visual Arts (page 23/24)

People make art to interpret and respond to experience in visible form. From earliest times, humans have made marks and shaped objects. Using any material at hand, human beings have fashioned useful and decorative objects and made images to represent experience. Works of visual art provide enrichment and enjoyment through the interpretation of their meanings and an appreciation of their forms.

Art fulfils many roles in our lives and while some art works have a specific function or purpose, others are made simply for their aesthetic qualities. Art can be two- or three-dimensional, it can be beautiful, it can be shocking, it can express ideas and feelings or it can challenge us to rethink our definition of art.

Although all visual arts experiences involve designing, crafting and making, different traditions have lead to differing emphases. Visual arts experiences may be seen to involve the three fields of "art", "craft" and "design". Each of these describes processes, suggest types of products, and defines people who are artists, craft artists and designers."

Art, craft and design play complementary and interconnected roles in school. In planning programs, however, schools may choose to focus on experiences according to studio media such as ceramics, design, drawing graphics, painting, printmaking, sculpture and textiles. Some schools may separate art, craft and design to focus on specific methods of working in these aspects of the visual arts. Whatever the forms, visual arts students plan and make functional and non-functional products, develop technical skills and conceptual ideas and work in both traditional and innovative ways.

Music (page 21)

Music is essentially an aural art form which exists in time. Our contact with it is mainly through hearing, but musical performance can involve bodily movement and the senses of touch and sight. Music can exist in its own right, without reference to anything else, and thus may be considered as abstract in comparison with the sometimes literal nature of pictures.

For a musical experience to be more than simply and exposure to sound and silence, the listener must distinguish the musical characteristics of the composition while relating and connecting the expressions of the moment to what was heard earlier. This ability to think in sound provides a basis for some deeper and more meaningful understanding of a musical work and can also heighten the listener's appreciation of music.

Music is an art form that evolves continually. It reflects the experiences of the composer, performer and listener, as well as the social and cultural ethos in which it was created. Music has the capacity to evoke strong Reponses and although individuals respond in diverse ways to the same work, there are cultural and social similarities in the way people value music. Whether we experience music through performing, composing or listening, music excites and moves us in many different ways and for many reasons.

Music can serve both aesthetic and functional purposes. It engages our imagination and enables us to express our thoughts and feelings in individual ways. Music is not merely an adornment to life; it is a basic manifestation of being human, a profound contribution to personal, social and cultural identity, and a means of expression and communication in every culture. Music can also be used simply for relaxation and entertainment. It can be part of other arts forms (art, dance, theatre, film), give a sense of achievement through mastery of skills, and provide a satisfying group identity through membership of a performing vocal or instrumental ensemble.

Music in education should reflect the ways music is used in society, with students learning by involvement in creating, experimenting, recreating, discussing, researching, listening, analysing and appraising music. Music is both intellectually and emotionally engaging, helping develop the individual's full capacity and intellect and providing a balance to other symbol systems in the curriculum.

School is a microcosm of society, and if music is to offer something to all students, it is necessary to recognise music as it is in society, with all its genres, styles and purposes.

Resource 2

National Curriculum Profile

The arts - A statement on the arts for Australian schools

Dance

Dance is expressive human movement which forms an integral part of human life and culture. Dance exists in a large variety of forms and for different purposes, ranging from social pastime to theatrical performance and religious rite. Definitions of dance vary according to context and perspective. Common to many definitions, however, are statements that emphasize dance’s social values, its blending of body and mind, its expressive qualities, its use as a form of non-verbal communication, its aesthetic nature in forming movement into an expressive code and, most distinctively, its use of the human body.

It is the use of the body in a myriad of ways and forms that distinguishes dance from other art forms. And the qualities that distinguish dance from movement are the ways in which movement is employed to communicate intent, feeling, emotions, and ideas. Dance has operated as a symbol system making sense of the thoughts, feelings and activities of people throughout history.

Drama

Drama is the enactment of real and imagined events through roles and situations. Drama enables both individuals and groups to explore, shape and symbolically represent ideas and feelings and their consequences. Drama includes a wide range of experiences, such as dramatic play, improvisation, theatrical performance and film and television drama, and embraces both the processes and the presentations of drama.

All forms of drama share common elements used to shape and express meaning through action. These include: human interaction, role and character, focus and dramatic tension, movement and dramatic action, sound and voice, language and text, space and time, mood, symbol and contract. Drama stimulates and shapes aesthetic development and enjoyment through valuing both affective and cognitive responses to the world.

Drama recognises and draws on many different contexts, including those from past and present societies, cultures and constructions of histories. It has the capacity to move and change both participants and audiences and, through shared responses, to affirm and challenge values, societies, cultures and identities.

Resource 3

Further Reading and References

Books

Arts and the Environment, Gould League, written by Terry Keyt, Thais Sansom, Bruce McLish, Sara Glenie
Australia’s Southern Shores, written by Harry Breidahl, Published by Lothian Books 1997
Environmental Starters, Gould League PO Box 1117 Moorabbin, Vic. 3189, ph (03) 9532 0909 fax (03) 9532 2860
Exploring the Oceans, written by Mark Rodrigue, Gould League & VAEE, PO Box 1117 Moorabbin, Vic. 3189, ph (03) 9532 0909 fax (03) 9532 2860
Field Activities for Coastal and Marine Environments, Commonwealth Coastal Action Program, Report Series 10, compiled contributions by MESA http://www.environment.gov.au/portfolio/education/aeen/pd/cms/introduction/homepage.html

National Curriculum Profiles
A statement on the arts for Australian schools
The arts — a curriculum profile for Australian schools
Curriculum Corporation, St. Nicholas Pl., Rathdowne St., Carlton Vic. 3053
Tel: (03) 9207 9600 Fax: (03) 9639 1616 Email: sales@curriculum.edu.au

Videos

Aliens from Inner Space, BBC, narrated by David Attenborough
www.videoplusdirect.co.uk
Ocean Drifters, National Geographic
www.nationalgeographic.com or their customer service line Email: NGSline@customersvc.com
Coastal and Marine Resource Guide, A Component of the Coastal and Marine Schools Project, Commonwealth Coastal Action Program, Report Series 7 www.environment.gov.au/portfolio/education/aeen/pd/cms/introduction/homepage.html

Audio Tapes

Sound Effects and other sounds of nature tapes, at various music stores

Posters

Beach Combing, Gould League, PO Box 1117 Moorabbin, Vic. 3189, ph (03) 9532 0909 fax (03) 9532 2860
Rockpool Life, Gould League, PO Box 1117 Moorabbin, Vic. 3189, ph (03) 9532 0909 fax (03) 9532 2860
The Unique South, series of 3, Marine and Coastal Community Network (mccnvic@ozemail.com.au)

• Seagrass Meadows
• Kelp Forests
• Sponge Gardens

Plus education supplements on request

Resource 4

Practical Use of this Module with Children

The following performance sequence was taken from a trial of the module that was done early in November 1998 at Timboon P-12 in Victoria. The performance was the culmination of a single ‘Ocean Arts Day’ and included grades prep to Year 3.
Due to the constraint of distance the teacher and volunteer inservicing was done via telephone, fax and post. Each leader was given a time structure and general layout of what their part in the day would entail.

The activity room was set up in activity stations — visual arts, music, and dance — which utilised the entire area. It was decided, though, that the music would be better off in a nearby area. While one grade was working in the activity room the other grades were working in the classroom.

Because of the size of the group participating there was a need to have two performances. The performance sequence was to be cued by an MC. With extra time the children could be guided to compose the script for the MC. However, with restrictions in time this narration was written and delivered by a adult coordinator.
To avoid confusion the classes were instructed that the last activity station they attended would dictate their part in the performance. The exception occurred where the class in visual arts needed to either join the music group or dance groups as directed.

Performance 1: Prep and Year 1

MC: Under the sea lots of things love to live in and near seagrass. The seagrass helps to keep the sand in one place and not get washed away. The seagrass blows one direction then the other as the waves and currents go by.
CUE: Year PREP seagrass meadow group begin moving with the waves. The tiny animals move into and hide in the grass.

MC: The seagrass moves in one direction then the other as the waves and currents go by. On the land not too far from here there are sand dunes. They are covered by lots of plants. If the plants weren't there the sand would be blown and washed away. When too many people walk all over the plants they get squashed and die. The wind begins to blow.
CUE: Year 1 music group begin sea and wind sounds.

MC: the wind gets louder. The waves begin to rise.
CUE: Year 1 wave group begin a Mexican wave with their plastic bags.

MC: Uh oh. Because the plants on the dunes have been squashed by people’s feet they have died. Now there is nothing to hold the sand and it begins to blow away. Let’s see what might happen if the sand blew out to sea.
CUE: Year 1 wave group begin washing up through the seagrass and tumble onto the beach (mats).

MC: Look at the waves moving over the seagrass. I sure hope that the little animals living in the seagrass are tucked up safely. But wait. What's happening now?
CUE: Year 1 last line of waves draws a blanked over the top of the seagrass.

MC: The sand settles heavily over the seagrass. The seagrass is very uncomfortable. But do you know that people can help the dunes and the seagrass by making special places to walk. They can replant some of the plants that died. Let's listen as some volunteers sing and work to revegetate the dunes.
CUE: Prep visual arts and music groups begin planting and singing.

MC: Hang on!!! Something else is happening now! Look at the little seagrasses.
CUE: Prep seagrasses begin to push the blanket away and wave their arms.

MC: there are new little shoots pushing the heavy sand away. And have a look at that — along with the new shoots I can see tiny little flowers dancing back and forth in the currents.
CUE: Prep seagrasses to sway and flick open their hands like little flowers.

MC: It looks like the seagrasses must be feeling much better now that the sand dunes are safe again.

Resource 5

Sequence for Performance

Resource 6

Integrating Arts into Coastal and Marine Education Themes