Many of my students are coming to school with the feeling that they failed out of art in middle school. Students stepping into the studio for the first time assume that their inability to draw a stick figure makes it inappropriate for them to be there. That’s why I’ve made it my priority in the first month of drawing class to inspire confidence. The project that really convinces my students they are artists and designers who are truly thinking in two and three dimensions is the architectural rendering. The final result changes over the years, but the application of precise lines, use of geometrical terms, and the project’s flexibility to be inclusive in skill level and comprehension are topped off with a pinch of surrealism.
Art teachers present a variety of lessons that emphasize student choice and the Teaching for Artistic Behavior (TAB) approach. Students work in groups to create a project using unfinished artwork; participate in an afterschool TAB program based on the Studio Habits of Mind; use the concept of the lighthouse to create personal pieces that honor who or what inspires them; embrace brainstorming and media exploration through sketchbook art journals; and more.
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