For the first 4.5 weeks of school, the Art of South B has gone virtual. All classes are being taught online through Google classrooms. After this period of time, we will return to school with a hybrid schedule. One group of students will come on Monday and Tuesday, a second group will come in on Thursday and Friday. Everyone will be virtual on Wednesday. There is also a third group of students who have chosen to stay virtual the entire semester. It's going to be interesting to say the least but we are making it work. Here's how...

On Mondays, we introduce a new unit. We use a flipped model, presenting the information through prerecorded videos. The students watch the video and then follow that up by filling out a Google form.  Each form reviews the information from the unit video but also asks the students the consider the 'what and how' of a project they will design and create in response to the unit topic. 

Tuesdays, and also Thursday, are designed as studio days. Students are given this time to move through the artistic process. Students should have already designated a space in their home for their home studio. They also had to decide what materials would be available for them to use. They had the opportunity to purchase materials, use materials they already have around the home, or be creative with non traditional materials.

Wednesdays are reserved for learning about interesting artists. Similar to the Monday unit, the Artist of the Week is presented through a prerecorded video. Similarly, there is also a Google form to complete to demonstrate the students understanding. Each Artist of the Week is selected to coincide with the Monday unit information. It all fits together quite nicely. 

On Fridays, the students are asked to present their work. Each student was provided a template Digital Portfolio created in Google Slides. Students update three slides each week. The first contains the unit title, the second is where they insert a photo of their work, and the third is where they describe their artwork through answering  an essential question. At the end of the semester, the students will have an entire portfolio of all the assignments and work they created for the class.

During the week, each class is designated a meeting time for "live" class. During this scheduled time, the teachers are available to meet with the students, through google Meet, to answering question and concerns, or simply discussing the progress of the student's projects.

This entire process came with a ginormous learning curve for teachers, students and parents. To coin the expression, it was a lot like building the plane while we were flying. Despite all of that, the students are stepping up to the plate and creating some great works of art. 

Every year, the Franklin Square Gallery  has an art exhibit dedicated to high school students. Unfortunately this year, they were not able to have that exhibit but they still wanted to do something for the students. They decided to ask the county art teachers to submit student artwork. They then selected 15 pieces to be printed on large panels and displayed outside the building.

Of the 15 pieces selected, 8 pieces are the works of SBHS students.

If you are in Downtown Southport, please stop by the Franklin Square Gallery and have a look. ​

​Each one of you is in an elite group. At SBHS, there are over a thousand students. Many choose to take an art class, but out of those thousand students, only eleven will graduate knowing they completed at the highest level. 

​Not only are you elite in SBHS, you are the only students in all of Brunswick County to reach this level. For this alone, you should be immensely proud of your amazing accomplishment. 

​Completing the AP Portfolio is difficult enough, however, you accomplished this facing even greater challenges. This year, the AP Board changed the rules for submitting work. Instead of asking for a concentration of art, they required a Sustained Investigation. Behind the scenes, art teachers were panicked. It wasn’t clear what these new specifications meant. Still, you stepped up to the challenge and each of you created a body of work that met these new requirements.

​Next, instead of being in school where you had the support of your peers and the ability to have a question answered face to face, you did this all remotely. The easy solution would have been to quit. You knew you were going to pass the class. You knew you were going to graduate. 

​But you didn’t quit. Again, you stepped up. You dug down deep and joined the select few students who can proudly say, “I did it.”

​I want to give you one more piece of advice. The AP College Board occasionally does not score things appropriately. 

​There is a chance, when we receive the scores in July, that some of you may not pass. It has happened before to students that I believed couldn’t help but pass, only to have them receive a lower score. 

​If by chance this happens to you, it changes nothing. Do not let it even cross your mind that you are not one of the most talented students in all the country. 

​In a minute, I will be forwarding your AP portfolios to our AP coordinator. I want to congratulate you and thank you for all your hard work and dedication. 

​I truly enjoyed having each and everyone of you in class. You will all be missed dearly. I wish you the best in everything you do!

​Congratulations!

There were several art exhibits that we had planned to participate in which unfortunately couldn't take place. However, we can still have a show!

You are invited to take a walk through the Art of South B's first Virtual Gallery! We are spotlighting the works of our AP Art students who worked so hard all year long to complete their AP portfolios. 

So come on in! We're open!

This work of art by Trey D. is 4 x 5 feet and was created on 480 'Hello, My Name Is' stickers.