“Just an Art Teacher” Isn’t Doing Us Any Justice!

I never would even think to say “just” in front of art teacher. I guess because I’m blessed have a mother who (though she claims she’s not an artist,)  has a deep respect  and love for the arts. My mother and I learned together, went to museums together (not that she would normally do that but she wanted to support anything I was into), went to endless ballets and shows together, and learned to talk about art together. We talked a lot about my art especially when I started taking it seriously in school. 

To us, art is more then what hangs on a museum wall, it’s everywhere. It’s the way we interpret, react and respond to the world through creating. Art serves so many purposes, but mainly art shows us what it means to be human. We teach the most important subject in school so I never think to justify it. We teach students what it means to be human, how to express who they are, how to search for who they might become, and how to work with others in the act of expression and exploration. Art class has become the most holistic class in the whole school if you ask me. Mostly because we do have the freedom to explore what interests students. Through that exploration we can teach the core art skills, but our focus lies in higher level thinking skills, not always as easily “testable” as the state would want. I think that’s part of the reason we are not state mandated. They don’t know what to do with the arts because it doesn’t fit into any of the boxes they’ve created. When they do try to make the arts fit (I’ve seen some versions of a mastery test) their efforts are poor at best and don’t represent what we really teach, how to be human. 

It’s important to me as an art teacher  to teach my kids to invest in community. As we are blessed with talents and abilities it is our responsibility to give back to the community. Every school year we do a community service project. We were featured (in color) in the Home section of a local paper when we made Christmas ornaments for hospice patients and their families. We have made stained glass bookmarks for patients at a drug abuse rehab center. Our art work has graced the walls of an orthodontic office. This year we did international art that decorated the cafe area of a larger city’s International Street Fair. These service projects have encouraged discussion with my kids concerning good citizenship, families in crisis, and other cultures just to name a few.  Teaching art is certainly so much more than just a box of crayons.

On a side note: I am a fan of finger painting . Yesterday in my day care art classes we added texture to the feathers on owls we were making with fingers and paint. The kids loved it and the owls look really good. I do a finger painting lesson once a year. Usually strategically placed after the state standardized testing week. One year several of my students fingered painted a tornado on a path of rampage. Tornado activity is common here, but we had not had a recent one.  I was seriously becoming concerned about the mental health of my students until I realized we had just been through testing. The painted rampage was  reflecting the stress of  prolonged testing. Finger painting in art was/is an emotional release for them and I am happy to provide it.  Art a window to the soul?  The Mind? The heart?  Soooo much more than a box of crayons!

Sharon