Pottery Unit
As part of each of the five interdisciplinary units, teachers of one discipline use the language and concepts of that discipline to teach the theme, thereby also teaching the connections between and among disciplines that often are missed in traditional high school classes. During the pottery unit, for example, teachers focused specifically on cross-disciplinary applications and connections as every teacher of every subject made curricular connections to the pottery theme. “We investigated pottery from many different perspectives:” said history teacher and Unit Lead Teacher Susan Hedges, “historic, economic, chemical, geological, mathematical, geometric, symbolic. The students are discovering concepts and thinking beyond the textbook basics.”
“We are not creating potters,” remarked Mrs. Susan Meyers, “we are creating a culture in which students become thinkers and learners.” Thus, science teacher Dr. Norma Johnson discussed the science of pottery: chemistry of glazes, chemistry and geology of soil, and soil science with a focus on clay. Her classes also have grown plants used for natural dyes in the school’s garden, with the help of local organic farmer Kevin Meehan, so that these could be used in the glazes. Mathematics and physics teacher Richard Harris introduced the physics of the wheel, the physics of the kiln, the properties of translucence, heating and melting points, and the stresses on the pots as they are being thrown and baked. Rinnel Atherton’s geometry students examined the mathematical concepts related to pottery pieces, including size and proportion, ratios and symmetry.
Susan Hedges’ U.S. History students looked at the development of pottery as an industry, and the development of a variety of ideas that connect communities, including the “Ugly Jug.” Rather than just memorizing dates and places, students studied the history of art. Under the direction of Monique de LaTour, art students learned color theory, design, and production, creating tiles and decorative pots. Spanish teacher Jeanne Gilbert focused on vocabulary related to pottery during this time period and also introduced students to comparative cultures by analyzing the differences between clay works from the United States and clay works in Spanish speaking countries.
As a culminating activity, each Hawbridge student produced a relevant product designed to reveal his or her understanding of the connections across content areas, as well as what had been learned about pottery. Among those were exhibitions of tiles and pots the students had made; power point presentations on the history of pottery; drawings and paintings of decorative earthenware; mathematical drawings showing scale, dimension, and proportion; and clay dug on the Hawbridge campus and converted to usable clay for pots.
Each of the five interdisciplinary units will include visits by at least two guest speakers who will address the entire student body, and two field trips away from Hawbridge. One of the field trips for the pottery unit was to the Ackland Art Museum at UNC-Chapel Hill, where students participated in a gallery activity entitled “Close Clay Vessel Viewing” in which they practiced attending to a work of art in different ways (verbal description, written description, drawing). The content for this activity was the museum’s Asian, North Carolina and ancient Greek ceramics collection. While at the museum students noticed an ancient Asian pot much like the one in the novel, A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park, which freshman English students read. The beautifully illustrated prose-poem, When Clay Sings by Byrd Baylor, also was included in the English pottery curriculum. Thus, students not only critically read story, they learned the story of pottery and art. They also have begun developing research skills, and learning the power of symbols.
Other highlights of the UNC visit were a painting of the dye house in which the school is located, but prior to the restoration, entitled Saxapahaw, by UNC faculty member Kimowan McLain; tours of the campus; and lunch in the Ackland courtyard.
The second field trip was to Seagrove on Friday, September 21. There, students were involved in hands-on learning experiences at the various potters’ studios, and the group visited the North Carolina Pottery Center. Center Executive Director Denny Mecham and Artist-in-Residence Hitomi Shibata conducted tours of the center and the kiln area behind it. Ms. Mecham’s lectures were science-oriented, continuing the school’s interdisciplinary theme. Bonnie Burns of the Great White Oak Gallery demonstrated throwing techniques and conversed with students, faculty and parents in the Marion Stedman Covington Education Building. Henry Glassie’s quote, painted above the display cabinets, was a favorite of the group. It states, “All art is craft. It must be made as well as thought. What is lost is the truth that all craft contains the potential to rise to art.”
Also included in each interdisciplinary unit will be visits by community members who are expert practitioners knowledgeable in the particular content or craft who will work directly with students, thus making practical connections in appropriate classes. Several potters from the Saxapahaw area, including one who uses a traditional wood-burning kiln, have been on the Hawbridge campus to share their knowledge with students and assist in art teacher Monique de LaTour’s classes.
At least two outside experts also will address the student body during each unit. Pottery expert Dr. Terry Zug, former chair of Southern Folklore at UNC-Chapel Hill and author of Turners and Burners: The Folk Potters of North Carolina, and Dr. Steve Davis, UNC-Chapel Hill Research Archaeologist and author of Excavating Occaneechi Town: Archaeology of an Eighteenth Century Indian Village in North Carolina spoke at the school during the Pottery Unit. Dr. Davis’ talk prepared students to participate in an on-site archaeological investigation of the remains of an early 19th century house. Dr. Zug displayed and discussed pots from his private collection and prepared students for the visit to Seagrove. Both professors were invited through Carolina Speakers and were warmly received by the Hawbridge community.