I find that sometimes you just have to be blunt with the students and tell it like it is! We can EITHER do a project or learn from the textbook and do a writing assignment about the artist/artistic style or period. YOU (the students) make that choice based classroom behavior. I like the "door" options described in this website post!

       "A Fresh Perspective on Classroom Management" written by Sarah Dougherty for The Art of Education website; the author discussed that one idea to freshen up your classroom management is to "Make ‘Door A’ more appealing than ‘Door B’ " (Dougherty, 2014). This is allowing the students to make a choice.

In "Door A", we can learn about art by making it and discussing it together with the class.

In "Door B", we can learn about art via text books and writing activities.

 Either way we are learning about art!



         If the students are not making good choices during instructional time then they would opt for "Door B" so that the other students would be able to continue with their good choices and continue with the lesson/project. This management tool seems like it could be paired with any of the token management systems very easily in the specials settings.
I am all about giving the students choices. But some of the choices don not have to be ultra-appealing I you too find this appealing check it out at: Dougherty, S. (2014, May 14). A Fresh Perspective on Classroom Management. Retrieved from http://www.theartofed.com/2014/05/16/a-fresh-perspective-on-classroom-management/

 

Recycled Quilts

       First Graders used the cardboard inserts that separate the apple sauce cups in the boxes when they come into the school lunch room to create  "quilt".  Patterns, patterns and more patterns. After adding the color with either crayons or color sticks they got to choose from a bag of fabric strips to complete the "weaving" portion of the project.  They so love this project!