Throughout your residency, think about what you might want to capture as documentation of the process. Documentation can be done with/for students and the school community, as well as to support your Teaching Artist practice and your organization. The documentation ideas in this resource note ideas and benefits for these two audiences/purposes.

Reflection Journals

• For Students/School Community: Students can use journals for first drafts, to track their learning, and to reflect on their experiences.
• For Teaching Artists/Organizations: Keeping a journal or notes can help you track what’s working/not working for your students, as well as your growth as a Teaching Artist.

Videos

• For Students/School Community: Videos can be played back for students so they can provide self-critique. They can also be used as promotional material for your final culminating event, or shown during residency celebrations and wrap-up.
• For Teaching Artists/Organizations: Videos can help you remember co-created material and student groupings, promote your culminating event, or demonstrate success for future partnership or grant proposals.

Important note: Ensure you’re following requirements of the school and your organization for media releases. Many families of students with disabilities have strong preferences for how their children are portrayed.

Pictures

• For Students/School Community: Pictures taken throughout the process and for the final product can be shared during a pre-show slideshow, given to students at the end of a residency, or shared on the school website.
• For Teaching Artists/Organizations: Pictures taken throughout the process and for the final product can be used in program materials and grant proposals.

Important note: Ensure you’re following requirements of the school and your organization for media releases. Many families of students with disabilities have strong preferences for how their children are portrayed.

Lesson Plans / Curriculum Outline

• For Students/School Community: Sharing these with Classroom Professionals can help build buy-in and participation. These documents may also be necessary for school administration to pay you/your organization. Be sure to ask what’s needed.
• For Teaching Artists/Organizations: Creating a consistent way to document and store these plans—and the accommodations you made to set students up for success—helps you remember what worked/didn’t work, and may make future planning easier and more inspired.

Agendas / Session Notes

• For Students/School Community: Keeping a record of what happens during each session can be helpful in collaborating with students to create the culminating event.
• For Teaching Artists/Organizations: Keeping a record of what happened and how the lessons were received by students and Classroom Professionals can help you deepen the partnership and improve your Teaching Artist practice.

Quotes from Culminating Event Attendees

• For Students/School Community: Reflections and positive feedback can be shared with students/Classroom Professionals to celebrate their success.
• For Teaching Artists/Organizations: Quotes can be used in promotional materials and in grant proposals.
  • It can be challenging to collect quotes during a culminating event. Plan ahead for how you plan to record quotes in a way that prioritizes consent. For example, assign an outgoing student to “interview” some of the attendees post-event.
  • You may be able to capture something a student says during the event and make note of it, even if it’s not verbatim. Follow up with the student for consent to share their thoughts.
  • You could also have Classroom Professionals fill out a reflection form and then pull quotes from that.

Reflections from Classroom Professionals

• For Students/School Community: Reflections on special moments of student growth and success can be used to motivate students or to share with parents/caregivers.
• For Teaching Artists/Organizations: Reflections can be used to plan future residencies with these students or shared in organization materials and grant proposals.

Gathering Feedback

Make a plan to gather the journal reflections, videos, pictures, lesson plans, agendas, notes, quotes, and reflections. Honor the work that you, your students, and your co-teachers put in, and the experience that came out of that work. Add it to your teaching portfolio, use this feedback for your growth, and share with your organization or school partner accordingly.