In response to a classmate's blog and articles from class this week, I have been thinking a lot about specified 'instructional materials' and the limits of their usefulness. as an art teacher, i certainly used slides and some background informational worksheets for opening sketchbook activities that were designed by a textbook company... but with slightly more time and effort, i was able to find even more specific and applicable slides to link to main class activities. i feel like the best teachers are constantly designing and tweaking the materials they use in class to better fit the interests and ability levels of their students. with such immersive and successful materials already on the being made by various industries, it seems most efficient for teachers to find ways to use the existing and most current materials as a gateway to the content. this requires teachers who are incredibly creative and connected to the students. the teacher will have to be sensitive enough and involved enough to know what games, tv shows, and trends are salient enough to be points of departure.