A quick summery of what I am intending to do for my BA Hons Illustration course of 2019. Noting that this is my final year I am planning my learning objective for this year to focus on my future on being a teacher and using research to help not hinder myself in learning and progressing more. A little quote I have been taught over the 3 years of doing illustration and being a part of Newcastle college is that “there is always place for improvement” (Hails, 2018) I strongly believe that this is the way of thinking and how to progress myself into become a teacher. From this my learning plan for this year is to create a multi textual children’s book with the intentions of the book being interactive and that all children with or without a learning disability and difficulty can read it including those who are visually impaired. I found a few references of which I am stating in my proposal and treatment, Here is an ideal research and reference for a guidance into the book I am intently making. I looked at the “Baby Touch and Feel” (Kinderlsey, 2008) books for guidance and stated that this is an ideal upfront of what potentially my book could be like however with my intentions for it being interactive for children with learning disabilities and difficulties. The book will optimistically have a interactive and tactile fox character. I intend to create a book with pages showing the fox and have a multi function background based on materials and digital effects. I wanted to create digitally to enhance my skills in digital paint such as Illustrator and Photoshop, I find this will benefit my on growing skills for when I go into teaching and progressing my art skillset as an illustrator.
I took it to myself to learn about learning difficulties and disabilities so that I have a full understanding about what is needed for the multi textual children’s book. I looked at books such as the special education handbook (Farrell, 2012) of which I used to teach myself on learning disabilities such as deafness or how to observe someone with learning difficulties and disabilities, I am teaching myself this so that I can be more knowledgable for future case studies that I am arranging over the academic year. I also taught myself with the book on visual impairment (Mason and McCall, 1997) on the section about braille. This is an idea for the multi textual children’s book as I mentioned I wanted to include children who are visually impaired (blindness) so I taught myself how to understand their needs. A final book I purchased is about dyspraxia (Ripley, Daines and Barrett, 2016) I self taught myself about the difficulty and found that its a difficulty that can involve education skills and development, I took it to myself to learn about this and try and involve it to my multi textual children’s book.
I wanted to make sure I knew exactly what is needed for my multi textual children’s book. I found this to help with my decisions on what kind of teacher I want to be. From my research I have came with the understanding for children and young adults with learning difficulties and disabilities however I don’t want to become a SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) teacher although I do want to say I am openly accepting to have anyone doesn’t matter who, what or what you have in my classroom. I was self taught to understand and have acceptance to those who need education because I believe anyone has a right to an education.
My potential tasks that I am progressing my strength and weaknesses could have a benefit or a hindrance to my work could be due to time management. This year is going to be fulfilled with research, understanding and progression to my PGCE interviews. This could interact with my progression into the multi textual children’s book but with some ideas and forward actions I would be able to protect the forward plan and intentions but may produce a different final product for my final show. I will make sure that my final product either way will have the content aimed for children and children with specific learning difficulties and disabilities.
For my professional development Plan…
I intend to experience some new skills, knowledge and experience within my project. This will consist of excessive amount of research of which will make my knowledge more enhanced for my journey into my project and my upcoming future career. Gaining knowledge within this course can progress my career and help with my PGCE interviews that are yet to come. My experience within this year will be coming from commercial projects, a collaboration I have coming up and myself volunteering as an artist mentor at the Artrium Studio in Hartlepool, where I work with those who are artist influences and those with special needs and disabilities. I also have gain experience with working in a school and doing workshops last summer with children aged 5 to 11 years old.
I will ensure to adopt a organised workflow with my processes and methods, I am able to do this with a timetable and using my academic calendar. this will provide my time what to work around and being able to figure out how I can manage all my time with content and development. I am also using a hand diary along with digital diary to keep my goals and aspirations for the project I have intended to create this year. I am doing all of this so that when I go into the career of teaching, I am prepared for deadlines and using my time smartly and efficiently.
The commercial projects can be of myself translating a scene from a chosen book that is in the brief. I am considering doing this for the wonder book with Penguin Student Awards (Award, S. 2018). I am doing this because the entry list involves book covers and it could benefit my project with the multi textual children’s book I am intending to create. For my other commercials I could consider using briefs of which could benefit my skills because although I am basing my future on becoming a teacher I still want to make sure that my digital skills can expand into that career to help with my teaching in digital arts. From doing these it can enhance my possible opportunities with collaborations within or even out of college campus. I believe doing these and having the skills and knowledge could strengthen myself as a creator and educator and help with the upcoming year.
The possible research I am considering is what I mentioned earlier of where I have taught myself about learning difficulties and disabilities. However I am considering about looking into books such as “Where’s Wally?” (Handford, 2007). Illustrators like Patrick Hruby (Hruby, 2018) for inspiration for the layout and backgrounds for my multi textual children’s book. I even looked for books and children’s books with braille as I did mention that I wanted to also include children who are visually impaired in my multi textual children’s book I found some samples of the books from the Newcastle library, I found a book called the black book of colour (Cottin, Faría and Amado, 2010) As seen this is the book. I found this book interesting and gave me an idea on how I could interpret this into my multi textual children’s book.
These extra studies and knowledge will benefit my research and understanding into my project and how I can make myself professionally educated to my target audience and future career.
Bibliography
Award, S. (2018). Student Design Award. [online] Penguinrandomhouse.co.uk. Available at: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.co.uk/work-with-us/design-award/ [Accessed 20 Sep. 2018].
Cottin, M., Faría, R. and Amado, E. (2010). The black book of colours. London: Walker Books.
Hails, D. (2018). there is always place for improvement.
Handford, M. (2018). Where’s Wally? by Martin Handford | Waterstones. [online] Waterstones.com. Available at: https://www.waterstones.com/book/wheres-wally/martin-handford/9781406305890 [Accessed 22 Sep. 2018].
Farrell, M. (2012). The Special Education Handbook. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis.
Kinderlsey, D. (2018). Baby Touch and Feel Animals by DK | Waterstones. [online] Waterstones.com. Available at: https://www.waterstones.com/book/baby-touch-and-feel-animals/dk/9781405329132 [Accessed 22 Sep. 2018].
Ripley, K., Daines, B. and Barrett, J. (2016). Dyspraxia. London: Routledge.
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