Art Ed Radio

Tim and Amanda return with the July Mailbag to answer your most pressing art ed questions! They explore creative ways to use leftover clay, how to plan project timelines, and whether AI belongs as part of your curriculum. Plus, they dive into strategies for recharging your creative energy over the summer—and wrap up with a fun look at the perfect day in the life of an art teacher.

In today's episode, artist and educator Juana Meneses joins Tim to explore the art of bookmaking with found objects. Juana shares how she uses unconventional materials and found objects as powerful tools for storytelling and identity-building. Through her teaching and personal practice, she encourages students to engage deeply with their materials, embracing intuition, memory, and m...

In this episode, Tim sits down with Sarah Colvin, an educator from Michigan who is transitioning from teaching special education to the art room after completing her Master’s Degree from The Art of Education University. Sarah shares her journey of discovering her passion for art education, her decision to pursu...

In today's episode of Art Ed Radio, Tim welcomes Janet Taylor back to the show for a deep and honest conversation on one of the most complex aspects of teaching: grading and assessment. Together, they reflect on how grading practices have evolved in recent years, how student motivation has shifted, and what it means to uphold integrity in your classr...

In the June Mailbag episode of Art Ed Radio, Tim and Amanda start with an end-of-year discussion, complete with field day stories and a trip to Tim's backyard wildlife sanctuary. They then dive into voicemails and emails on everything from managing unsolicited classroom "donations" to resisting AI tools, as well as teaching students to think criti...

In today's episode, Tim sits down with Oscar Keyes and Erika Ogier to explore how educators can effectively bring digital art and creative technology into their classrooms. Erika, an elementary art teacher, and Oscar, a multimedia librarian and art education faculty member, share their collaborative journey in developing a curated list of tech tools tailored to the realities of K–12 education—tools that are free, user-friendly, web...

Today, Tim is joined by  Jen Leban for a discussion centered around technology, focus, and the changing dynamics of student engagement. Tim begins with some reflections on learning, creativity, and multitasking, and Jen dives into the impact of the attention economy on how students receive, process, and learn information. The conversation continues and covers the concept of continuous partial attention, the use of AI, and how the a...

When Tim and Amanda put out the call for mailbag questions last week, an overwhelming majority were about simple lessons or one-day lessons to help get through the end of the year.  So in this episode from the archives, Tim shares some ideas for simple one-day lessons that can fill the inevitable gaps when needed. Listen as he talks about how quick lessons can engage students, how you can make those lessons worthwhile, and why it's...

In the May Mailbag episode, Tim and Amanda answer a wide range of listener questions, from wrapping up the school year to prepping for next year, handling difficult coworkers, and even navigating retirement. Amanda shares exciting updates about The Art of Ed Community, including Teacher Appreciation giveaways and a special Art Club Live event on May 8th. The duo also chats about Impact Week, their personal gardening adventures, and...

Kyle Wood returns to the show today to talk with Tim about some of their favorite lesser-known artists in art history, and share ideas on why we need to move beyond the traditional art historical canon. Ranging from Abstract Expressionism to Surrealism, Impressionism to Cubism, they pass right by the Picassos and Pollocks and talk about Janet Sobel, Remedios Varo, Charuvi Agrawal, and so many more artists that can expand your stude...

Community manager Jen Leban joins Tim today to talk about the importance of spring cleaning and the Art of Ed Community challenges that have helped teachers get their rooms in order. Their discussion highlights the importance of decluttering supplies, tells a few stories of bizarre items found in classrooms, and stresses the balance between being resourceful and hoarding. They urge everyone to start small—even five minutes a week—t...

Author and psychologist Sheila Sharpe joins the show to talk with Tim about her new book, Artist, Lover, Forger, Thief. After sharing some early career stories from her time in the classroom, Sheila talks about her painting career and her time as a psychologist. She then tells how those experiences informed the book, delving into art forgery stories, the growing problem of art crime globally, and her goal of weaving an entertaining...

Better late than never, Amanda and Tim are back with the April mailbag! They begin with a discussion on their trip to NAEA and interacting with the art teacher community. And maybe a little garden talk because spring is here? They then get into a conversation on how we help kids accept being told no, a discussion on shifting jobs, and follow that with advice on putting together a curriculum and dealing with different expectations w...

Andrea Slusarski returns to the show today to talk with Tim about creativity, pop culture, and making connections in the classroom! They begin with a discussion on how pop culture and visual culture can be used to connect with students in the art room, and how pop culture can inspire our creative endeavors. Listen as they talk about ideas on how to connect when we don't understand our students' cultural interests, the touchstones t...

In today's episode from the archives, Tim is joined by educator Yunga Webb to talk about her role and efforts at the North Country School in upstate New York to help students find their place and belonging through the power of the arts. Listen as they discuss the programs at her school, the activities she does to foster belonging in her classrooms, and the work we can all do to create a community and a space that offers belonging f...

Continuing on with the Youth Art Month discussions, Tim invites the stars of AOE's Art Show Secrets on the podcast to share some of those secrets and their ideas for putting together a successful show. First, Jenn Russell talks about how to feature more students' work, as well as how to make your art show more interactive. Then, Sarah Krajewski talks about her prep work, her strategies for engagement, and how students can help run ...

In this episode from the archives, Dr. Theresa Haugen, curriculum specialist and associate professor at AOEU, joins Tim to discuss the importance of advocacy in art education. Listen as their conversation covers how we can make our programs visible, the connections we can build within our school and our community, and how advocacy can benefit both students and teachers. They also spend time talking about The Center for the Advancem...

Amanda is back for the March mailbag today! As always, she and Tim take listener questions and share some of their best advice. The show starts with an introduction to Tim's dog rating scale and a story about Amanda's prolific baking experiences (for an art show, of course!). They discuss helping students in creative ways, moving classes outside, dealing with parents, and then close the show with a long discussion on curriculum. 

Tim talks today about the joy of trying something new, and the importance of continued exploration of unique mediums and materials for us as art teachers. He also gives suggestions for several ideas for new art-making processes to explore, including alcohol inks, gel printing, cyanotypes, encaustic painting, and needle felting, and the show notes connect with resources that can help teachers dive into each of those processes. He cl...