My overall passion for visual arts is what drives my philosophy, and my individualized experiences are what have developed it even further. The main idea of my teaching philosophy deals with exercising creativity because it is a skill that can be used across the board. This central theme is what drives the remaining components of my teaching philosophy. The environment for exercising creativity will be achieved through the structure of my classroom climate. With an open and comfortable environment, students can more easily express themselves and be open to discussions. I believe that this is a powerful tool when it comes to teaching the arts because students have the potential to build their own art experience. My final point is about how to incorporate a balance of art history and contemporary art in the classroom so students can learn about current happenings of the art world. This knowledge of both art history and contemporary art will allow for students to see a variety of different practices, and further decide which is most suitable for their creativity. Throughout the course of my teaching career, I want to create a curriculum that allows students to exercise their creativity. This practice is often suppressed the higher students move up in their education, and I want to provide my students with an opportunity to carry on this practice. Creativity goes far beyond the art classroom, and through practice can become a skill applicable cross-curriculum. This idea of exercising creativity provides the opportunity for all students to be artists, disregarding the stigma. It also creates this exploration component of my classroom where students will be provided with the opportunity to discover their skills and creativity. My next focal point has to deal with classroom climate. In my classroom, I want to create an open environment that allows for students to be comfortable with expressing their emotions and exploring their feelings through artwork. I also want to create an atmosphere that allows for open discussion. This is important to me because I want my students to feel confident with freely exploring whatever content most interests them. Students can then develop the idea that art can be a channel for outlet, self expression, or a way to work through an issue. This environment will allow for students to make what they want of art, whether it be a pursue of technical development or just a way to work their emotions out. Each student has a right to an individualized learning experience, which includes the arts. During my education career as a child, I was under the impression that the occupation of artist was extinct because my art teachers never discussed contemporary art. This is where my teaching philosophy has drawn from my individualized experiences. In my classroom, I never was presented with the opportunity to learn about what artists are doing now because of the art history emphasis. I believe that it is important to learn about art history but in a way that does not ignore contemporary practices. Through my teaching, I want to give my students the tools to study historical art in a way that guides their understanding of current practices. This will allow for students to create their own art experience through the studies of varied art practices. As an art education advocate and practicing artist, I believe that my passions and experiences give me the tools to create a successful art classroom. Through combining an emphasis on creativity exercise, setting up open classroom climate, and integrating contemporary art alongside art history into the classroom, I am setting my students up to artistically flourish. I want students to use the arts in a way that is most compatible to their interests and needs.