Increasing Equity in the 3D Art Room

Last year was my first year as the Sculpture and Ceramics teacher, and I took the year to evaluate the
tools that we have in this space and how they are serving our population as a whole. I see some gaps in
our major ceramics equipment and tools that are creating large inequities for students that experience
differences in the way that they interact with materials and information. Specifically, I think that we could
be better serving our students with physical limitations that prohibit them from accessing materials fully.
The support that this equipment will bring extends beyond our special education students to general
education students that may be less coordinated or have more limited gross and fine motor control.
There are also students that have a difficult time remembering all of the different steps for building with
clay, and these supports would lessen the information that they need to process. I want every student
that comes into this space to leave with work that they are extremely proud to bring home to their
families, and to show their peers. I have gotten input on this grant from Max Glick, the special education
teacher in LC4, and Patrick Noble, the district Occupational Therapist as well. I plan to continue to work
with them to bring more adaptive tools in. I have had access to the equipment that I am asking for in a
different public school setting. They made noticeable differences in what students were able to
accomplish in their classes, especially for special education students, as well as medically fragile
students.
The equipment and tools that I am requesting are too expensive for the school’s budget, but will
make meaningful shifts in the scope of the curriculum for all of my classes for the foreseeable future.