Mrs. Tracy Workman To All Instructors

I have always been a student of the arts: visual arts, music, and performing arts. The study of and especially the creation of artistic works is a big part of what makes me who I am. After high school I spent a number of years as a portrait photographer, working primarily with small children and high school seniors. It was fun, but I missed working in other media, so in 2004 I decided to share my love of art by teaching a small art class for home-schooled children. There were 5 children in the class aged from 8 to 14 and I taught the class for one school year. It was this experience that caused me to fall in love with teaching art. It was amazing to see my students grow in ability, self-confidence, and their love of art.

After teaching these 5 students I decided to go back to college and become an art teacher. On August 8, 2009, I graduated from the University of Florida with highest honors, a Bachelors's degree in art education, and a minor in art history. For three and a half years I was the art teacher at Imagine Schools - Nau Campus in Port St. Lucie FL, teaching approx. 650 K-8 students each year. Over the years. I have also been active in leading small groups of children/adults in Summer art camps, musical productions, theater/video productions, and puppetry. Now, I am excited to be teaching at the SALT homeschool co-op for the 12th year. I am also a big believer in the power of story. Storytelling finds it's way into pretty much all of my classes. My award-winning drama and film program is currently in it's 10th year! In this class I get to work with a talented bunch of teens to create our own story together! I have been having a lot of fun putting my knowledge to work and making a difference in the lives of my students just as my art teachers made a difference in mine.

It is my belief that education in the arts is an essential element of a balanced general education and that it will help children to better understand the world around them, foster creativity, encourage self-expression, build artistic skill, promote appreciation for various cultures, and other ways of thinking, and engage children in critical thinking.

Check out my current student art gallery on Artsonia:
http://www.artsonia.com/schools/school.asp?id=148416
Also check out my art class web page at:
http://tracyworkman.wixsite.com/artclass2