Finding an escape...
Today is Friday, and the first day of autumn. The Fall is one of my favorite seasons. Not only do you get to wear cute clothes like boots and sweaters, but the colors everywhere are AMAZING! Since I've been trying to find inspiration in different places, after going for a walk this week I decided I wanted my 6th graders to do something inspired by the change of colors and the escape felt when I'm outside, somewhere far removed from the hustle and noise of life. What better way to see that than through a beautiful landscape. This is why I had my 6th graders used chalk pastels to create silhouetted skies.
Take a moment to think about this: did you know that students currently receiving special services because of identification as having an Emotional/ Behavior Disorder make up less than 8.2% of students (Bradley, Henderson, 2004) in grades K—12, and yet the number of psychiatric disorders in children is rising (Smith & Rutter, 1995)? What are you doing to let students "unwind" in your classroom?
Art critics view “pretty” pictures as delusion or lack of intelligence, images that ignore the harsh realities of life in the "real world." Images that are aesthetically enjoyable (like flowers, children in the spring, rainbows, lakes, and beautiful landscapes, etc.) are so because they serve as visual metaphors for hope.
Many teachers shy away from students creating these types of images because they don’t align with curriculum or aren’t seem as “serious” art. I caution this type of thinking. I try to remember that creating and appreciating these images does not mean complacency towards the problems of our world nor is it apathy towards the content that I am teaching. As Alain De Botton, author of Art as Therapy argues, humanity’s greatest risk is falling into despair when confronted with the realities of life. Artistic optimism, on the contrary, is the embodiment of our brain’s coping mechanism to live well- a critical cognitive and psycho/emotional skill that neuroscience confirms, and that should be honored, not criticized.
I try to afford my students the opportunity to make something beautiful just for beauty's sake. Art is therapeutic because it IS an escape from reality. Sometimes we all need that escape.
Take time to allow yourself and your students to share with you their desired view of the world.
