Wrapping up With Elements and Principles

Yesterday we wrapped up the Elements and Principles unit.  I definitely think the students were ready to move on after two weeks of definitions followed by examples, as was I. However, I really did try to do a job at moving through these concepts quickly and the unit still took two weeks, and in some cases, I think that I could have spent more time explaining some of the E&P a little better.

This lesson was a good practice run for teaching the elements and principles. I would like to change the method if I taught them all again at the same time by condensing the lesson down to one week.  I don't know if this can be done effectively or if I would just be wasting my time and theirs by rushing through everything too fast. Possible solution: cover elements in one week, create a project with these and slowly incorporate the principles into lessons, this way we could get into some fun stuff earlier on. 

I am still struggling with whether or not I think teaching the elements and principles in this way is a good thing, or if it is more beneficial to just dive into projects and cover them along the way.  I see clear benefits  and possible deterrents to both methods and I think this is something that  I will need to continue to ponder in my practice.