Is This the Year for More Ceramics? (Ep. 481)

Welcome to Art Ed Radio, the podcast for art teachers. This show is produced by the Art of Education, and I’m your host, Tim Bogatz. As promised, we are talking about clay today. And I will say for all of its potential and the pure joy that it brings to our students is tough for teachers. Ceramics can feel really intimidating, especially for teachers who don’t have a background in the medium. And I’ve talked about my own learning curve with the medium. I eventually learned to love clay, but it took me a while to get there. And I have a lot of empathy for everyone else who’s in that situation right now, from not having the knowledge you need to the logistics of supplies and the messy cleanups and questions about glaze and questions about everything, and just the ever-looming fear of kiln disasters, teaching clay is a I kind of love it, but I kind of fear it part of the art room.

But maybe, just maybe we can get you through all of that this year. Joining me today is Angela Matsuoka, a K-12 curriculum designer at the Art of Ed here. And she is someone with experience both in the classroom and designing support systems for teachers. Angela understands all of the pressures and the uncertainties that come with ceramics, and today she’s going to be here to give you some advice and some encouragement and hopefully some solutions from the Art of Ed’s FLEX curriculum. FLEX has some new releases of lessons and curricula, new supports, new resources, new ways to help bring more ceramics into the art room this year. We’re going to talk about those things. And Angela will share some ways to simplify your approach, and we’ll dive into what the organizational challenges we can call them that so many of us are dealing with: how to set up your room for clay, how to manage drying work and storing student pieces and labeling them all effectively, how to work through the entire process, just logistics from beginning to end. And my hope is that this conversation and these resources can help reduce your stress while building your confidence. Let me bring on Angela, and we will start the conversation. Angela Matsuoka is joining me now. Angela, how are you?

I’m great. How are you, Tim?

I am doing great also. I’m super excited that you’re on the show. I feel like we’ve worked together for quite a while now. And never been here, so welcome to the podcast. I guess to begin, though, can you introduce yourself for everybody who’s listening today?

Absolutely. I am Angela Matsuoka, and I am currently a K-12 curriculum designer with the Art of Education. I’ve been lucky to be in my role for the past four years now, and I absolutely love it.

Before joining AOE, I worked at the Iowa Department of Education for five years as the state’s fine arts consultant. And in that role, something I’m really proud of was overseeing our state’s standards adoption process for arts and also media arts, music, dance, and theater. And other than that, I’ve also enjoyed professional experiences in the New York City community arts world as an education programs manager where I hired teaching artists and oversaw visual and performing arts programs in after school settings and senior centers.

Very nice.

And before all of that, I worked as an elementary and secondary art teacher for a total of 10 years in Washington, DC and in Iowa.

Wow, that’s awesome. Thank you for sharing all that. Sounds like some great experiences. I wanted to have you on the show today to have a discussion about teaching ceramics. I’m thinking that as people are going back to the school year, I know a lot of people are thinking this is something I want to do more of, but it can be an intimidating medium, especially if teachers don’t have a strong background in it. I wanted to ask you what advice do you have or what starting points would you offer to a teacher who is brand new to teaching clay?

Sure. That’s a great question. I would say first for anyone intimidated or perhaps new to clay, I would start small. For example, if you’re teaching elementary, you could of course begin with the goal of one project per grade per year. Or if that’s too daunting, consider every other year as a starting point. And then think about staggering these lessons, so you’re only teaching clay one grade at a time. And then also literally start small. In many cases, you can provide students with just a small amount of clay. Probably even smaller than you think, you know?

Mm-hmm.

Think student fist sized or smaller. And no more is really needed at first. Well, you’re discovering clay, they’re discovering clay. And then instead of going all out with earthenware clay, one option is you can start with air dry clay. You can still teach a lot of essential skills like hand building, pinch, coil, slab, and surface design techniques using air dry clay. And then you can build in using natural clays as you become more comfortable with the techniques, the processes. Right?

Yeah.

And then speaking of tools and supplies, you can build those in gradually. You don’t need to purchase, for instance, sets of modeling tools to start out, you can use what you probably already have in your art room. You can use plastic utensils, stamps, and found objects to impress or to carve. Sometimes those are way more interesting.

Yeah, I was going to say I’ve used plastic forks so many times in my room. And we had a teacher we used to work with at the Art of Ed named John Post, and he taught me to just take a paperclip, unfold it, and then tape it to a craft stick or a popsicle stick, and that’s your needle tool. You can just start with the most basic things. And there’s a lot of ideas out there. Anyway, I’m sorry to interrupt.

No, no.

I just thought I should throw those things in there.

Yep, for sure. Anything with textures, right?

Yeah.

More like if you’re used to using a tool and you’re used to holding it upright, then you could always flip it on its side and impress it. Then you can also build in the use of glazes gradually if that’s intimidating. There’s a lot of other great ways, a lot of other media to use to add visual interest to ceramics, like oil pastels with watercolor or wet tissue paper, things like that. And then if you do want to add in glazes, you can always start with just under glazes and then a clear glaze. Or you can skip under glazes and just plan on glazes while you’re building up your supply closet.

And then I would also highly suggest talking to other art teachers in your district if you’re in a larger district or utilizing your networks like the AOE community. And if possible, go and physically visit. If that’s not possible, a virtual tour is always great of your colleagues’ classrooms. You can maybe even observe their classes, but if not, you could check out their storage and their organization, how they have set up their kiln room, all their supplies, and just talk through some of these ideas with them. And then finally, I would say just give yourself grace, you know?

Yeah.

Remember that students will just enjoy the process and learning along with you. And they will just be excited to dive into clay. It’s often the highlight of the year, right?

Yeah, absolutely. No, I think that’s a lot of great advice. And yeah, kids are going to be excited. No matter what lesson you choose, no matter how much clay they get to work with, they’re going to enjoy this process. But I was just going to say I love the idea of trying to visit other teachers’ rooms, whether that is in person or virtually, whatever the case may be, just seeing how people set things up, how people organize things, how they logistically work through all of the different parts of the art making process in their classrooms. It can give you so many ideas. Even if you just take one idea from this person, one idea from another person, it can leave you with so many things that can help you in your room.

Yeah, for sure.

And so I guess speaking of that idea of setup and how you put everything together, I think teachers run into very similar issues. Supplies are always an issue, storage, clean up are all the hurdles that we go through when we’re trying to teach clay. I wanted to ask you how do you think teachers can set up their space or set up their schedule to make ceramics a little less stressful? I know you already mentioned maybe just teaching one grade level at a time or some other ways to simplify, but what other advice do you have to make things a little less stressful for teachers?

Sure. Yeah, let’s talk organization. First I would say obviously consider the layout of your art room. What surface areas are you working with? Then what areas can you clear or maybe should you clear, even if just temporarily? Carts, of course, are always handy and add extra surface area for storage. Baker’s racks are great, so are utility carts. Basically anything with wheels is helpful.

I was going to say whatever you can find, whatever’s available is going to be the best cart for you.

Yep. If budget is an issue, which it probably is, you can retrofit your own cart or ask the school community for any unwanted or unused carts. I know when I was teaching elementary, I had a clay cart, but I also utilized smaller media carts like those used for projectors. Because our media center had an overflow of them, I was able to snag a couple older ones. Having a number of storage options, especially those movable ones that you can just tuck into your closet, move around to different spaces, move to the kids, that’s especially helpful.

Then another tip is creating your own damp boxes. If you have access to PRO, I know that we have some tips for this in the innovative ceramics methods PRO Pack. I’d highly recommend that, of course, that basically you can create damp boxes really easily from plastic storage containers and some Plaster of Paris. They’re a great option for clay storage when you’re wanting to keep those clay pieces from drying out in between classes.

And then let’s see, some other tips. You can use plastic storage bags to keep smaller clay projects wet. I like the ones with those sliders on top because they’re pretty foolproof and great for [inaudible 00:12:42], or at the end of class, all those clay covered hands, those are awesome.

And then it’s also important to think through how student work will be labeled and identified. One tip I have is not carving student names and initials onto pieces when they’re wet because we can probably imagine, or we’ve experienced what it’s like when a kindergartner tries to carve their name on the bottom of a sopping wet [inaudible 00:13:18]. Even if that structural integrity is somehow, say, good luck reading that name or those initials later. Definitely writing those names or initials onto pieces when they’re leather hard, or at least they’ve just had a chance to dry out a little bit is one tip.

And then for works in progress, students can write their names with a permanent marker on their plastic storage bags. Or for works that are completed and they’re drying out, you can have students write their names on little pieces of paper, sticky notes, or even masking tape right next to their work to temporarily label it before you go back in or your students go back in and carve their names in when they’re leather hard.

Yeah, I was going to say that was always my go-to, either note cards or sticky notes. And then I had tables rather than carts, but you just divide up by class, and then have them put their work on top of a note card with their name on it, in period two, in period five, whatever the case may be. And usually that is enough organization to keep your sanity and allow them to find their work when need be.

Yep, for sure. Okay, so a couple more is I would suggest prepping and dividing your clay prior to class if you can because it makes passing out supplies super easy, and then it also maximizes studio time, that precious studio time for your students. Let’s say you only have prep time in the morning, because we know that planning time is precious and sometimes few and far between. What you do is you divide your clay into just rough spheres. And you can always add a few extra per class just in case. But then you’d keep that clay stored in either that damp box that we were talking about earlier or in a plastic bag until you can teach that class. And I’d also say talk to admin and custodial staff so that they’re aware it’s a clay day or a clay week, because heads up is always nice-

True.

… to be able to offer support too in some way.

That’s really good advice. I like that, because I think a lot of teachers just feel like, oh man, we’re going at this alone. And there are ways to ask for help. And if you’re in the elementary room, can you talk to classroom teachers and see if they have any suggestions or any offers of help as well? I like that idea of just reaching out and seeing if you can get support from other places. Anything else you were going to say? I’m sorry.

No, no, that’s a great point just because I know it’s like we’ve all been there, sometimes we feel a little siloed or especially when we’re the only art teacher in our building or even our district, some of us teach K-12, then sometimes it can feel a little lonely.

For sure, for sure.

If you can’t tap into other art teacher colleagues, job-alikes within your district, then yeah, for sure, reaching out to any colleagues is always a good idea. Speaking of that, I guess my last bit of advice is just leveraging your networks, your art teacher community. We talked about the AOE community, which is just great because there are spaces for levels. Are you a high school art teacher? And there’s a lot of different sandboxes or spaces where you could pose some questions or do a search for ideas. Maybe someone else has already asked this question. Also social media and things like that.

Yeah, absolutely. Those are all great ideas. Now, I also wanted to ask you, you mentioned PRO learning earlier. I know you do a lot with FLEX curriculum. And I was actually very excited about this because FLEX has a lot of new offerings when it comes to ceramics, both new lessons and new resources. I wanted to ask you, you’ve been involved with this whole process, what are you excited about with the new offerings? What do you think teachers should know about with the new things in FLEX? And how can teachers use some of the resources? Or how can some of these offerings help teachers if they are looking to teach more ceramics this year?

Yes, I’m so glad you asked. Okay, you’ll notice that we have three new FLEX collections with six lessons a piece. That’s a total of 18 new advanced ceramics lessons.

I was going to say that is a lot of ceramics lessons.

It’s really big, really… Yeah. And we also have over 25 new ceramics resources that you’ll see embedded throughout the lessons and in the collections. And so that’s a ton of new content that we’re really excited about. These lessons were created for the high school classroom, but I will say that I think elementary and middle school art teachers will find inspiration in all these new lessons and resources too.

Yeah, and I think elementary teachers are really, really good at looking at ideas and being able to simplify them for their students, so I think that’s a good option. Can you tell me about the collections that you have?

Yeah, absolutely. In terms of these collections, Wonders of Wheel Throwing is one of my favorites because this collection and then these six lessons are really the first time in FLEX that we’re introducing wheel throwing skills. And you’ll see throughout the progression of those lessons in the collection that we’re building those skills sequentially for students. The Wonders of Wheel Throwing collection begins with the basics. We’re walking students through how to throw a small cylindrical form successfully on the potter’s wheel. And I love that within that first lesson, there’s student collaboration and peer observation built into that. And then from there, we move on to expanding and varying forms on the wheel. We’re adding design elements and increasing complexity. You’ll even see double-walled forms and then compound forms in the final two lessons of that collection.

Yeah, and I think that’s really cool because I feel like, well, when I first started teaching ceramics, and I think a lot of teachers when they first start teaching, they do the cylinder; kids get good at just throwing their basic cylinders. And then it’s like, now what? What do we do next? And so I like the scaffolding and the increasing complexity with those. I think that’s very cool.

Yeah, absolutely. Then with the other two, I’ll say we have the Surface Design Explorations collection. And that’s a really fun one because it introduces a bunch of new ways to create designs and then textures on ceramic forms. If you’re looking for new ways for your students to explore texture, color design into their ceramic work, then this is a great collection for you.

Nice.

Yeah. You’ll see within that collection, there’s lessons that walk students through how to build their own texture rollers and use them in their ceramic work. There’s experimenting with underglazes and glazes on test tiles first, and then later on final ceramic pieces. They’re using techniques like sgraffito, slip trailing, and then even clay appliqués or these… You’re rolling clay slabs and then cutting them out and adding 3D elements to your pieces. In this collection, the Surface Design Explorations collection, all of this is happening at the same time that we’re teaching and reinforcing essential hand-building skills.

Very cool. Yeah.

Yeah, and then finally in our third collection, that one’s called Fired and Refined, that really is great for increasing student independence and introducing complex and alternative processes. Two lessons that I really love in that collection are the Inspired Collections lesson and the Exploring Raku lesson. With Exploring Raku, I love that there’s a lesson in FLEX now that introduces alternative firing methods. Because we know that Raku is like a beast you know?

Yeah. Right.

It’s this process that many educators are interested in, but they’re like, “How do I start? What would this look like if I were to add this into my curriculum?” If you’re interested, then I would definitely look at that Raku lesson. And then my other fave is the Inspired Collections lesson. For our advanced students, let’s say they’ve really varied their forms on the wheel and they’re building those skills, this lesson is great because it walks students through how not to just throw one form or create one object, but really build a unified and thoughtful collection.

Yeah, I really like that. And I know we spent a lot of time talking about beginning stuff at the beginning of this episode, just the basics, but I love that there are so many advanced ideas in these collections because I feel like there’s not a lot out there for ceramics teachers. There’s not a lot of guidance on creating a cohesive body of work and things like that and how to help students do that. And so I think those lessons and those ideas are going to be really, really valuable. And I guess within the different ideas, the different lessons that you have there, those different collections, I know there are a ton of resources too, which I think are great. Can you talk a little bit more about some of the specific resources?

Mm-hmm.

Like I said, there’s sometimes not a lot out there, and I’d love to know, I guess just some more specifics about the resources that are in those collections.

Yeah, absolutely. The resources are really great because you’ll see them embedded within our FLEX lessons, but they’re really great as standalone pieces of content too. They’re great as anchor charts. They offer some visuals and some written descriptions of processes. Some of my favorites are the ceramic techniques resources. We have 10 of these launched.

Wow.

Yeah, they’re fantastic. You can just do a keyword search for ceramic techniques under FLEX resources, and you’ll see them all. But they really run the gamut and cover a lot of different ceramics processes like… I’ll just name a few, like bass relief, transfer printing, which is a fun one, adding handles, feet and spouts forms, slip trailing, slip casting, things like that.

Very cool.

Most of them, but not all I think are one-pagers, which makes things really easy and handy.

Oh, for sure.

Or two-pagers. But I love those. And then also, we were talking about air-dry clay earlier

Right, right.

We have some great leveled air-dry clay resources that are leveled K-8 and then 9-12. And they’re called air-dry clay finishes. They’re just lovely to look at too. The visuals are great. But they really offer suggestions for using alternative media, mixed media to finish air-dry clay pieces.

Oh, very cool. Those all sound great, so yeah, thank you for sharing those. And then I guess I just have one last question for you. I would love to finish with some advice or some encouragement from you. What would you say to teachers who are looking to teach more ceramics this year? They may be looking for ways to move beyond just pinch pots or coil pots or some ways to experiment or allow those advanced students to take risks, or maybe it’s just taking advantage of some opportunities for ceramics that people haven’t thought about before. What advice, what encouragement would you have for anybody in any of those situations?

Yeah, absolutely. First, I would say remember to have fun, encourage invention and learn with your students. If you’re able, sit down with them and create with clay alongside them. Then look at the work of contemporary ceramicists and maybe local artists with your students for inspiration and to form community connections. We all know that those real world applications can be really powerful.

Then I’d say if you don’t consider ceramics in your wheelhouse, you can also look into taking a pottery class at your local community art center or a pottery studio, because I’m sure you’d have a blast. Maybe you could earn some PD credits. And it could give you new ideas and grow your confidence to teach ceramics.

Then bringing it back to our new content in FLEX, I’d suggest taking a closer look at our lessons and resources, because there’s so much there for you if you’re interested in learning how to teach wheel throwing or those surface design techniques like we talked about or hand building, different ways to use slabs, using stains, the use of hump and slump molds, all of that in these 18 lessons and these resources. And then finally, I would say just embrace the mistakes. And the kiln explosion is probably inevitable. Because we have all been there, and they’re all learning opportunities. It’s a process and we’re growing. Have fun exploring, ask questions, ask for help when you need it, and share your ideas and your learnings with your art ed community.

Yes, yes. Love that. No, that’s all great advice. Angela, thank you so much. I appreciate you sharing your expertise and all of the resources, lessons you’ve put together with FLEX and all of your great advice here. It’s been great talking to you. And we appreciate you coming on.

Thanks, Tim. It was such a pleasure.

Thank you to Angela for the conversation today. And to wrap it up, I will just say that teaching clay is one of the most engaging things that we can offer our students, but it comes with a lot of challenges. And it’s normal to feel overwhelmed. But if you take a thoughtful approach and you have a willingness to learn alongside your students, it’s absolutely possible to make ceramics a regular part of your curriculum, to make it a rewarding part of your curriculum.

And in our discussion, Angela emphasized the power of starting small and planning intentionally and giving yourself grace. And all those things are important. Clay objects don’t have to be huge or elaborate to be meaningful. Just a small sculpture, a simple coil vessel, a textured tile can be a great experience for students and a manageable one for you. And that can be a great place to start.

And I think overall, looking at that journey, Angela reminds us that building your ceramics practice is a step-by-step journey. And you don’t have to know it all right away, but hopefully we can give you the tools here to get started or to maybe do a little bit more. And if you’re further along in your journey, that’s a great place to be. But no matter where you are, the newly released ceramics content from FLEX has something for you.

For those advanced teachers, there are three advanced collections. There’s Wonders of Wheel Throwing, Surface Design Explorations, and Fired and Refined. And each of those have lessons that are scaffolded, lessons that are ready to come into your classroom. And they’re adaptable to what your students need.

And for everybody, no matter your level, there are over two dozen supporting resources too. This includes technique guides, anchor charts, project ideas. And having all that can really help eliminate the guesswork and give you confidence to take your ceramics teaching further. We’ll link to all of that in the show notes, or you can visit the Art of Ed website, explore these ceramics collections, and see how these lessons can be helpful as they come into your classroom. Check those out. And this year, keep asking questions, keep trying new things, and see if this might just be the year for more ceramics in your art room.

Art Ed Radio is produced by the Art of Education with audio engineering from Michael Crocker. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or share it with another art teacher who could use it as they are starting their school year. We’ll see you next week.