Teacher of the Week: Post-It Picasso Whitesburg's Tyler Watts uses Symmetric Shapes to Teach Math

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Time now xxxx earlier this week we told you about an eye-popping display that is now up in whitesburg.

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Caudill memorial library artwork by tyler watts the "post-it picasso" post it picasso1.jpg tyler watts created this display at the henry m.

Caudill memorial library.... made entirely out of post-it notes.

His artistic skills have earned him the nickname: "the post- it picasso."

But it isn't just his artistic talents that impressed us... but also his devotion to his students.... and that's why he's our abc 36 teacher of the week.

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White abc 36 teacher of the week l3: good morning kentucky!

White tyler watts teacher of the week l3: good morning kentucky!

White abc 36 teacher of the week :39 i taught from the floor a lot, i would always teach on the floor, it's the biggest canvass you can have in a classroom.:46 it started as math lesson.... a way to teach his first grade students at letcher elementary school about line symmetric shapes.

:49 we were using post-it notes to create line symmetric shapes and by doing that, we would create bigger shapes and these crazy shapes, next thing you know, the idea popped into my head.1:02 teaching his students about shapes is when tyler watts' artistic talents began to take shape too.

That was in 20-16... and since then... watts large-scale post-it note creations have gone up around the state at businesses... schools...even at the state capitol.

His talents have been on display at the harry m.

Caudill memorial library in whitesburg for the last few years.... a partnership watts says started when he was tutoring students at the library and mentioned an idea for a 4th of july display.

1:27 we did the statue of liberty.

It was kind of small compared to what i'm doing now.

It was only the size of one window, half a window maybe but that's where it started.1:43 his displays take up more window space now and have become something of a tradition in the town of whitesburg.

Watts latest project for the library... a muppets christmas display.... took two weeks and 10,000 post-it notes to complete.

And, like many of the displays he has done, watt's students were also involved in creating this one.

2:25 i let my students have ownership it, which has been cool during the pandemic to give them ownership on a large-scale project.2:32 watts.... who now teaches 4th grade math.

Says his student use their math skills to help calculate how many post-it notes he will need to cover a display area.

10:06: math can be tied into so many different things and, you know, even art, and if they see it being tied into something as simple as art, then hopefully it helps them make that connection, 'hey this is getting real you know.

10:19 and it's not just the math they help him with.

3:17 they help me rule things out on the design a whole lot, they don't care one bit to do that, but i have the kindest students in the world, they're sweethearts.

They're good kids.

And it's been like that for years.

Letcher elementary is such a special place."3:28 but the art is just one of the many ways watts keeps his students engaged and learning.

He says he's found humor goes a long way as well.

13:08 i love making the kids laugh and if i'm doing that then the engagements already there, then it's time to throw in the curriculum.13:13 soc fs lotto mm:jackpot amounts december 18, 2020 $310 million tonight $304 million saturday pause for morning brew animation time now is.... and it's time for pause