Another year - another fantastic group of shoe designs! Four teams each received a brand new pair of shoes to customize using Music, Action Sports, Art and Local Flavor as the theme.  The result is a creative collection and among the strongest we've ever submitted. New this year was a 2D design component with the broad theme "Technology & Design." As a unit, the students worked together to creatively solve the given design requirements for this authentic challenge! And it was really FUN ..read more

My last blog update was over 3 years ago. The Millis High School Art Department was swimming along in a tide of happy contentment. Students were learning, creating and growing. I honestly felt like my reflections and postings here were getting a bit repetitive. And then the Universe said, "HA!" and we've been hanging on to this wild ride since March 13, 2020!  ​ Since then we have learned what it means to exist through a global pandemic, we've experienced divisive political and social upheaval. Educators everywhere (myself included) are negotiating what it means to meet the increased nee ..read more

We are halfway through the third quarter of this school year. I know that because I just updated my grade book. The 2017-2018 school year marks an increasing shift to a choice-based art program based on the artistic behaviors in the digital domain. My focus is on balancing the  introduction of  new skills and artistic concepts with encouraging the creation of original art.   Art, Design and New Media: The first priority and mutual goal is to establish that everyone is up speed on what it means to create, store and post digital media. File types and the lesson of n ..read more

 My school has a seven day schedule and each period has a long block once during that rotation.  In digital photography /advanced computer art  I've started a tradition called the "Double Challenge." It's a great opportunity to try something new - to add some hands on skills to our digital repertoire and to step away from our computers for a bit. We've done light painting, photographed lizards, designed spooky book covers and made and created  paper lanterns.  When I saw this Create a Futuristic City tutorial on the High School Photography Teachers Facebook group ..read more

There are always amazing things happening in the Millis High School art department - this post is a quick highlight on a few special things from this Fall! These three photos are currently on display in The Massachusetts Art Ed Association Exhibit: High School Photography/Altered Images   as part of a continuing series of art education exhibitions in the second floor atrium/gallery space at the State Transportation Building in Boston.  The exhibit is currently on view: Monday, October 2 - Friday, November 17, 2017 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.Monday - Friday (Closed Holidays & ..read more

Millis High School End of Year Art Exhibit Opening Tuesday, May 9, 2017 6-8 pm Light Refreshments Millis Public Library Roche Bros. Community Room The show features a wide variety of student artwork, including Johanna Carr’s “Faces of My Hometown” Portraits in Oil Selected works will be on display throughout May. Contact: Carol Haggerty, chaggerty@millisschools.org ..read more

I KNOW that taking a photo a day will result in improved photographic skills and potentially yield other great benefits - and many seem to agree. My digital photography/advanced computer art class, however,  was not quite so enthusiastic but we pressed on anyway. Some are following along with me, using the prompts provided by an Austrailan named Chantelle on her (unfortunately named) website, Fat Mum Slim. Checking the #s each day allows us insight and inspiration as we see how other artists and photographers from around the world interpret and present the daily prompt.  Students are ..read more

Can you believe that my picture was in the newspaper on the first day of kindergarten and on the last day, too? ​I knew I had these clippings and uncovered them the other day.  The newspapers are over 50 years old and I decided to share them here because of the  relevance to Black History Month (and to what's going on in our country and schools today).  See below for caption/article transcriptions: Classroom photo caption: Bayonne's youngest students, members of the kindergarten class at Woodrow Wilson School, began their scholastic careers this morning. For many of them ..read more

The Millis High School Art Department congratulates all those that submitted pieces, and we are pleased to announce that the following students have received awards through the Scholastic Art and Writing program:   Johanna C was awarded a Silver Key for her oil painting of Kylie and 2 Honorable Mentions for her oil paintings Chopper and her Self-Portrait.   Adriana G received a Gold Key for her photograph,  Ride Of Self Reflection and a  Silver Key for her photograph Stories On Province Street. Emma M received 2 Silver Keys ..read more

I will preface this post with saying that I love learning, evolving and trying new things - especially when it comes to my teaching practice. BUT this is one educational sequence that I've been following for a few years and it's a tried and true way for students to learn the basics in Adobe Illustrator - including the pen tool! Engagement and motivation stay high as everyone gains skills  while getting to be creative. Success for all.  Here's the basic one-two-three: 1 2 3 I was introduced to this pen tool worksheet by my mentor, Bonnie, and I'm not sure if she designed it he ..read more