What's Going On In the Art Room?
This year, like the past couple of years, you might notice your little ones bringing home scraps of paper from the art room, or maybe your student will brag about the really tall tower they build in art class, or the yummy popsicles they are making out of clay. This probably doesn’t sound like the art class you had as a child, does it?
That’s because it’s not. Art standards have changed, and 21st Century skills have been added to the mix of what we are teaching in the classroom. Standards have changed, because the job market has changed. What students needed to know 20 or 30 or 50 years ago is not what your children will need when they graduate. What they will need are problem solving skills. Creative thinking skills. They will need to have ideas, and know how to take those ideas and make them a reality.
Coincidentally, that’s what most artists do. They generate ideas. They gather materials to “make” their idea come to life. They create their art. They put their materials away. They reflect on their art. They display their artwork. These are the skills that we focus on in the art room at Aspen Creek Elementary School. I teach the children how to work as an artist. They learn how to get their materials independently, how to use and expand their ideas, how to reflect on their artwork by sharing about it, and how to display their artwork, digitally or otherwise.
We still study famous artists and artworks and learn about different art media and techniques. However, the student is the artist and my classroom is their studio. The first semester is focused on learning how to create their artwork independently through the different studio centers offered, and keeping the studio in working order. We also cover some art history during this time (painters, architects, collage artists).
The second semester will have some different offerings, like printmaking, clay, and fiber arts or weaving. While the artists are required to do some basic skills in these areas, they are not required to make a project. So if your little artist doesn’t bring home a weaving project, it’s probably because it’s not their cup of tea!
And finally, I want to address the artwork. Some of what comes home will be frame or shelf-worthy. Some. Likely one or two pieces from the year. The rest, well, will not be. Not all work that artists make is display ready. Most are experiments and trials. Either experiments with materials, or practicing getting those ideas out! These are scribbles. Mental scribbles. Which is what I would expect, for the most part, from 5-11 year-olds.
Could they make “prettier” artwork if I told them what to draw and paint, and made them do that? Yes. This is the artwork you may have seen from your child when I had them in kindergarten and they weren't ready for choice-based art education yet. That type of art doesn’t teach them to use their own ideas. This is children’s art, which doesn’t look like adult art. I ask you to encourage the scribbles. It is important to give them the time and the space to experiment and practice and even play! To like creating and making and not feel like they have to make a product to adult standards of finished. To them, it is finished.
Don’t know what to say or how to ask them about their artwork? Simply say “Tell me about this”. And then listen. They will tell you all about it. You can also ask “Why did you make this?”, “What materials did you use?”, “Why is this important to you?”. I bet they will surprise you with their answers!
I’ve set up an online art gallery on Artsonia for Aspen Creek Elementary. Feel free to log in to see what’s being made by your child’s class. We’ve just started to learn about posting our art on Artsonia, so be patient if there’s not much to see yet! I will take care of posting as much Kindergarten and First Grade artwork as I can throughout the year. Please know, this is a huge time commitment and I usually have much more time in the Fall. Don't worry, if you don't see a lot of work on your child's page in K/1, your student will learn how to upload their artwork on their own starting in second grade and my expectation is that each finished piece is uploaded to Artsonia.
Aspen Creek Elementary Artsonia
Thank you for taking the time to learn a little about the art studio! You may always contact me with questions or concerns.
Mrs. Cook