Archive for the ‘Art’ Category

Oklahoma Schools Arts Integrated And Learning Styles Go Hand-In-Hand

May 10, 2015

Many people understand the importance of exposure to the arts. We love art; it is a necessary part of our society. In fact, for every culture and every society, art in some form or another is critical to how we live. For many, many years, arts programs have been cut in Oklahoma City Schools in efforts to divert funds to “more pressing” subject areas like reading and mathematics. While these are indeed necessary subjects for Oklahoma City Schools students to master, including an arts education in a student’s learning experiences can do nothing but improve their time attending Oklahoma City Schools, as well as contribute to the amount of success they see as a whole.

Most Oklahoma City Public Schools concentrate on teaching students in three ways; by showing them how to do things, by telling them the information they need, or by giving them opportunities to try things themselves (also known as visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning styles).

There are, in fact, many learning styles as identified by Howard Gardner, psychologist and noted pedagogical theorist:

– Linguistic – “word-smart” – Interpersonal – “people smart” – Bodily-kinesthetic – “body smart” – Logical-mathematical – “math smart” – Naturalist – “nature smart” – Spatial – “picture smart” – Musical – “music smart” – Intrapersonal – “self smart”

More than ever, schools are realizing the importance of addressing all of these learning styles. Students attending certain Oklahoma City Schools are reaping the benefits of the commitment to providing educational experiences via these learning styles.

In efforts to give more and more students an education that addresses their specific learning style(s), some Oklahoma City Schools are integrating the arts into their programs. Following an “A+” model originally begun in North Carolina, Oklahoma City Schools are instituting their own arts integration programs. Originally a project of the DaVinci Institute, it is currently administered by the University of Central Oklahoma.

The model being used by Oklahoma City Schools looks at 8 different areas to improve arts integration in their schools:

1) Arts; 2) Curriculum; 3) Multiple intelligences; 4) Experiential learning; 5) Enriched assessment; 6) Collaboration; 7) Infrastructure; and 8) Climate

For teachers employed with Oklahoma City Schools, the program has been a godsend. All educators strive to “light the spark” and desperately want to reach all – 100% – of their students. For the instructional staff, of the Oklahoma City Schools using this model, discovering how to appeal to the different ways children learn has been exactly what they have been looking for.

Another impressive aspect of the program is the Oklahoma City Schools professional development that goes along with it. Instead of giving newly trained teaches the manual with the expectation that they follow the model, the A+ model provides extensive and ongoing training and support to all teachers new to the program. Oklahoma City Schools’ teachers focus on learning to work together, using research-based practices to establish curriculum that includes interdisciplinary themes that foster arts integration across classes as well as use Gardner’s various learning styles.

Clearly, Oklahoma City Schools are working to improve learning, one style at a time.

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Coordinated Body Motion Is Key To The True Martial Arts

May 7, 2015

I am going to tell you the straight goods about this thing called Chi. It is easy to understand, but you are going to have to give up any thoughts of mysticism. No matter if you study wudan or Shaolin, you are going to have to accept a more logical way of thinking.

In the first place, this mysterious thing we refer to as chi is a catch basket.Chi is real, chi exists and can be used, but everybody confuses it by calling whatever they don’t understand chi. If somebody snuffs candle at ten feet with a punch, it is the chi, but if somebody makes all the green lights, it is also the chi, so the subject of chi has been thrown around and totally confused.

To make chi one must discipline their body so it acts as a coordinated unit, I call this Coordinated Body Motion. In olden days instructors would tell their students to use the body as one unit, but that doesn’t describe what one is actually doing. One must break the body down, piece by piece, and understand all those pieces, if he is going to use it as a whole unit.

All motion of the body must start at the same instant in time. The fist and the foot move forward together, as one. There must be no push backward to give movement forward, the movement is only forward, and it must be done at the same moment.

All motion of the body must stop at the same instant. The fist and the foot end movement at the same moment. There is no staggering or swaying, the weight simply drives into the ground at the point of impact.

The parts of the body must move according to their weight and length. The hips, being heavier than the foot, must still achieve a smooth arc of motion that begins and ends at the same time as the foot. The fist having a longer arc than an elbow, or a shoulder, must still start and stop at the same time as the elbow or shoulder.

When the body starts and stops at the same time, and all the body parts are properly calibrated for the length of distance they must move and the amount of weight that must be moved, then you will achieve CBM. Coordinated Body Motion is the secret of this thing called Chi. CBM will release Chi.

When you move with CBM your attention will be off the body and on the target, and then intention will flow. It is Intention that is Chi. Intention will fill up the body with energy, and enable you to have those amazing abilities that true martial arts possess. Of course, this is just the first step, a simple little step, and to make your way to the end of the Martial Arts, and to find the True Martial Art, no matter whether you study Aikido or Karate or whatever, you must find the remaining steps of the Martial Arts.

Martial arts gear Getting equipped for success

April 29, 2015

In today’s world, knowledge of self defense is very important to a person. In order to learn the proper way of a martial art, a person will have to go through some intense practice sessions and wear the proper uniform associated with that style. Popular martial arts, like judo, karate, taekwondo all have unique gears associated with them. Wearing these outfits enables a trainee to protect vital organs of the body while practicing. It also allows the student to move his/her hands and feet properly, without any hindrance.

Different martial arts have their own unique gear. Some, like judo and karate, require minimum fighting gear, except proper kinds of clothing. Weapon based martial arts like kendo, however, need special equipment for proper learning.

Judo and karate require special kinds of clothing. The uniforms consist of jackets, trousers and belts. The jacket in judo holds special significance. It is used to grip the opponent and throw him/her off balance. Hence the jacket needs to be very durable so that it does not get torn during practice. Jackets made of thick, coarse cotton fabric are recommended, so as to facilitate gripping. The trouser should be of durable but lighter fabric and should have drawstring at the waist. This enables the user to control how much pressure the trouser would have on his/her abdomen. Elastic waistbands are not recommended, because of their uncontrollable pressure on the student’s abdomen. Also, elastic waistbands have a chance of snapping under pressure. The belt needs to be of durable fabric and should be double layered. A belt is the representation of the student’s skill level. As the skill level of the student increases, the belt color also changes correspondingly.

In karate, the belt needs to be the strongest part of the uniform. It is usually thicker than the belt used in judo. The color of the belt denotes a student’s skill level. The jacket is usually brushed to give a smooth finish, unlike judo. Taekwondo uses uniforms similar to judo in appearance, but the trouser is the strongest part of the outfit here, since this self-defense technique relies on speedy kicks.

Kendo is the sport of sword fighting in Japanese style. The student has to wear specialized protective equipment for learning kendo. This includes a wooden breastplate, a bamboo sword (called -shinai-) and a lot of protective gear to cover almost every portion of the student’s body. The purchase and regular maintenance of all this gear makes kendo quite an expensive martial art.

Learning martial arts is a very good way of acquiring skills for self-defense. But proper choice of gear is very important to obtain all-round success in any of these great self defense techniques.

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Buy paintings at your leisure online makes it easier

April 18, 2015

There are many ways to buy a good painting. To buy paintings you need to find a good gallery or surf online. There are many websites online that have lots and lots of paintings from various artists all over the world for sale. The advantage to buy paintings from a website is that you can get a variety of choices to choose from and the websites are open to all kind of artist to upload their paintings for sale.

There is always a commission earned by the website or gallery who sell paintings. One can buy paintings to make an investment. There are many art collectors who buy paintings to make future profits. Some of the art collectors have their own galleries and they are looking for paintings from young artists which are unique and can add value to their gallery. These galleries also have their websites so you can take a look at the collection they have which they want sell.

There are many website where you can get the reproduction of the original paintings done by the famous artists like Pablo Picasso, Claude Monet, Leonardo Da Vinci and many more. These reproductions come in lesser price off course and they are made similar to the original paintings. The company that reproduces these original painting are the companies who would have permission to do so legally. When you buy paintings other than the paintings that are famous then you don’t have to worry about the authenticity of the painting.

In case you decide to invest in paintings then its better that you have through knowledge of art and its finer details, if not then the best advice would be to pay a professional for their service and make a good and genuine investment of your hard earned money. If you are buy paintings for decorating your house or gifting someone then you must check your budget and there are many websites online who sell paintings. You might look up someone in your town that is collecting art to sell and does the marketing online. Buy paintings at your leisure online makes it easier and better decision with regards to the colors in your house and you have a wide variety to choose from.

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Is Martial Arts Equal Self-Defence

April 17, 2015

The answer is no. No doubt what you learn from combative arts classes could be used for self-defence but they are just not self-defence. In reality, what you have learnt from the martial arts classes have nothing to do with the realities of protecting your personal safety. But again, we constantly attempt to find out what is the best combative arts for someone to learn about self-defence.

Realise this, if self-defence is what you are looking for, most of the martial arts school will not be able to offer you that, especially on staying safe in a modern urban environment. You may ask why do you say so?

1. Self-defence has something to do with “defusing violence”.

Violence can originate from an argument, physical contact, a date rape, a drunk friend, a fight, etc. They are all violence. Do you know that these pose different problems and there are different solutions?. How many martial arts school’s syllabus actually teach the students about how to response to such a situation? Do you think by breaking board will help you in “defusing violence”? Different violent situations will require different levels of response. You will learn such level of response in self-defense lessons but not combative arts.

2. Martial arts emphasis on fighting style.

As you know each violence situation differs, self-defense is the answer in dealing with it. Remember this, what works for one situation may not work for another. Martial arts emphasis on fighting style. Form is more important than substance. But for self-defence, your personal safety is the priority. You learn how to defuse violence or getting out of that situation. It encompasses common sense, habits, lifestyle, alertness etc.

3. Martial arts are training but not education on how to deal with violence.

Martial arts are training and sports. People constantly mistaken it for education. Self-defence by its very nature addresses specific conditions and problems. Do you think the SWAT officer’s high risk entry training is of good help in controlling a drunk in a bar? Of course not. The training that works for such an officer doesn’t work for you as well. Self defence requires education and training. In combative arts, you will learn very specific things, however, that surely doesn’t mean that you are prepared to handle all violence situations. You need to be educated about what martial art techniques can be used for self-defence in each and every different circumstances.

You must know that most martial arts have become sports regardless their combative history or self-defence use they claim. There’ is a huge difference between sport fighting and defensive movement. If you still think that any martial art could be used for self-defence then you are exposing yourself to the danger.