February 16, 2012

Inspire Art Homework

This was the highlight of my day. One of my students wasn't happy with her "Blue Willow Pattern" project. You've seen the project all around I'm sure so I don't have to explain it. Anyways, I thought it was great but there was no convincing her. She had something else in mind. So she brought home a paper plate and a marker and created this Blue Willow Pattern. "There is never enough time in art." She is right. So, on top of all her other homework, she completed this.

Many of my upper grade students have been bringing their work home lately to work more on it. They ask ME! I feel so encouraged. . . especially because they are bringing it back. One student, who I've watched go from scribbles to sophisticated drawing, asked to bring his playing card home (we are designing playing card portraits.) He was so proud to show his mom his work. He's been working on a scrap piece of paper to make designs that he will add this weekend to the card. I LOVE the little ones, they area squeezable, creative and exuberant, but the upper grades and this level of work really picks me up after talking about lines and identifying shapes and where the trash can is for 5 hours of the day. Somewhere in my next life I will be making more of my own art and teaching in a high school (photography/video preferably.) For right now, I am happy to be where I am. I always say I will stay here as long as our principal stays. I bet you've never heard that one, but a good principal is hard to find. We all can agree on that, I'm sure.

It is so awesome to see students inspired enough to bring art home and do it for homework. I have a four day weekend and I have grad school homework to do that I've been putting off. . . wish I felt inspired to do it!

Hope you are finding some inspiration somewhere in your life!



6 comments:

Hope Hunter Knight said...

I agree that there's never enough time in art class. I see my kids once a week for 45 minutes, K-5th, and I find myself pressing many of them to work more quickly - it's a terrible feeling because you can tell they are really thinking and processing. I always tell them that I wish we could stay and paint/build/stitch all day, but we have to work within our allotted time. There are always those few who have only incomplete projects in their portfolios, and I find it so frustrating! Luckily, I only have carpool duty in the afternoon so that gives me 30 minutes in the a.m., and I open that time up for those kids who want to come work a little longer.

Phyl said...

I also have a couple of 6th graders who take stuff home, but most of my 6th grade this year, no. I've been offering them study hall time in art all year and last year I had 15 or so of them every day it was available, but this year, they rarely come. I don't know why.

About a dozen of fifth graders come in at lunch time a lot, and sometimes those that go to aftercare ask if they can come in instead of going out on the playground, and they are just plugging away merrily on their papier-mache cats. It seems like they'll never get them done! I was frustrated today because there was an assembly I didn't know about and one 5th grade class missed art completely. If the teacher had told me ahead of time, I would have rescheduled them for during my prep, but the teacher didn't bother. She just doesn't get it. Her kids are WAY behind on their cats.

Phyl said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Phyl said...

Excuse my deleted comment. The new format for word verification is driving me nuts. I can't read them!

Anyhow - I forgot to say how lovely that plate is!

Unknown said...

I feel you Erica. I feel so bad when I have to "push" my kids to finish their projects. I can't remember a year that has kids being absent as frequently as they are this year. There is always the rare child who will come in faithfully at noon recess for as long as it takes to get caught up but there are many more who never take me up on the offer of extra studio time. I sometimes wonder if I should just cut my project paper down to 4"x4" so we'd have a better completion rate!

P.S. I LOVE the Blue willow Plate! We did it in 5th grade this year and they were awesome!

:)Pat

Katie Morris said...

The Art room has been a popular place lately with my 4th-6th grade students! I gave them 3 class periods for their Jr. Duck Stamp/State Fish drawings but that's not enough for the kids who are really into it. I posted all the extra times I have open on the 2 days a week I'm there. One day I had 20 4th graders in at recess! Of course some just didn't want to "walk and talk" on a day that was too cold but I'll take it! My K-3rd students don't have the option since I don't have any empty slots besides my 40 minute plan.