Art is a great tool to use to teach social emotional learning. I loved creating opportunities for students to focus on what makes them feel special, different, and wonderful. Inner empathy and mindsets are the focus of our Arts program. Our vocabulary is centered around social-emotional learning https://info.classroomchampions.org/sel-glossary
My favorite thing that a student did in class was in response to the project directions to “Draw what is inside of your heart”. Students drew parents, friends, and wrote words including love, peace, and God. They beamed with pride and happiness, making art focusing on good things that made them feel joy.
We made projects and shared positive messages about self-worth. I knew we were successful when one student described herself with pride saying, “I’m Black, blessed and unique”! Another said, “I’m so happy that I’m Asian and artistic”! It was so rewarding to make art projects that built these students self-confidence and self-worth. Powerful student takeaways included body positivity language and comments that it is not only A-ok to be different but also something to celebrate. Our unique experiences are something valuable to bring to the table and talk about.
We spent a lot of time building connections and community in the classroom and focused on building 3-D model houses to promote rich discussion around where they want to live and what they were looking forward to in their lives. Students made architectural design blueprints and then made folded houses. We had discussions about city planning and how decisions are made about creating a healthy city. Some groups self-selected and brainstormed how to build a better community. Through the process they learned from working together, how to build a community, share and to respect one another.
Through planning our cartooning projects, I learned what was on many students’ minds. Many students were thinking about making their video games into cartoons but were focused on blood and violence. We worked with site staff to set healthy classroom boundaries on what was appropriate to create. Students actually ended up liking having to think of ideas that are original and not violent. Some of the student cartoonists became competitive with stories like the Sand Monster coming out of the ground and a mesmerized dog looking at a tree, a leaf falling on it and then walking away. Many students like telling stories with pictures instead of words but a surprising number also chose to write words, too, when given the choice to add them.
We also made “Gratitude Tree” art projects where students shared with classmates what they were grateful for including: friends, to be alive, their homes, toys, games, parents, pets, and siblings. Art classes provided students with needed downtime for self-reflection.
Having different options of projects to complete and letting students choose what they wanted to do was important. We encouraged students to take a couple of basic shapes and run wild with them inventing their own art projects. One student chose a circle and a heart and when they were done made an emoji with heart eyes. This summed up the beauty of our class and its effect on our students.
I like to bring in SpongeBob as a subject that kids are comfortable making art about and discussing as friends we want to be ourselves. Making our favorite foods out of paper like donuts, pineapples and other fruits is a great icebreaker to start conversations about liking similar and different things.
Art making is more important now than ever for our students because it unlocks a different aspect of kids’ minds which is totally different than their usual social media-focused minds that sound so much like computer responses.
Art-making mind provides interesting, caring, and personal responses. Through the program, I saw social interactions, collaboration, and experimentation increase. Art allows students to express themselves openly.