Help! I think I'm killing DS' creativity!

[jolie-fleur]

I'm brand new to this forum and brand new to homeschooling. My DS is 6 years old and after struggling through a year of junior kindergarten we finally said sayonara to public school and started at home!

It has been wonderful for so many reasons--not least of which, DS has Type 1 Diabetes and ADHD (just diagnosed in Dec.--not currently on meds) both of which are challenging in a school setting.

DS does NOT miss school and I LOVE homeschooling!

However, I was noticing today as I was sorting the last couple of months of art work that his creative projects have really tapered off in number! I'm wondering if somehow by having his "free" space and his school space in the same area that he is losing some of the pleasure of his art work? Could he need the stimulation of being outside of the home in order to find his center artistically?

I just got really sad to think that maybe my schooling is killing something in him....

Any thoughts appreciated!

[OTMomma]

I think most creative people have natural ups and downs to their creativity and art, its not a bad thing. If you are worried though, you might want to put aside more time for art at home- and bring in more materials to experiment with, paints and oil pastels are favorites here. As it warms up, you can find lots of outings to do that may inspire him- the outdoors itself, even just a backyard, is full of possibilities- add in a magnifying glass and a sense of wonder and you are flying.

Peace,

[elizawill]

i give my kids $25 to purchase art supplies or crafts each month. we usually go to michaels & i figure this is a lot cheaper than art classes. every monday they have art at home & they work on whatever project they want. my dd is naturally artistic anyway & is always working on some project (plus, we incorporate a lot of crafts into many of our subjects). i've found that having the money to buy what projects she specifically loves is very special to her. she really enjoys researching about what she'd like to try next. my ds is almost 6, and honestly, he just isn't into crafts really - so it's fun for him to find projects that are better suited to his interests. anyway, maybe something like that would work? just a thought.

[LauraLoo]

Hmmm.....I've been thinking a bit about this, too. I like elizawill's process of letting her children pick the projects they are interested in -- we might have to do more of this. I've been following Artistic Pursuits curriculum - which I think is very, very good - but I think that allowing more freedom in projects might be helpful for us, at least. Dick Blick has a catalog that you can request that has art ideas/resources for art projects. I know that Michael's also has a similar project idea for kids part of their website. Maybe this will spur some ideas.

I think having dedicated time and space is really important for art - especially for projects that are more time intensive and aren't finished in one sitting. I've been trying to squeeze in art with all the other things we have going on, and it's not getting a fair shake. I'm likely going to have to dedicate entire days to art. Having a place to display finished projects is also really important to my ds.

[Savoir Faire]

I bought the book "The Way They See It" for art...because my daughter is pretty creative, but the same thing happens to us-- I won't see art for a long time.

They have a book for older kids, I really like it because it is very kid-focused and it is all about how they view things...definitely not a "do it my way" type of program.

Where do you currently do school? Is there somewhere else you can do art?

I suggest also going to the store and having your child pick out some new materials. I personally cannot resist some beautiful new watercolors. Perhaps try a new medium, such as chalk, charcoal or oil pastels??

Good for you for noticing; so many parents don't think about how to keep creativity going!

[Lillian J]

Originally Posted by jolie-fleur

I just got really sad to think that maybe my schooling is killing something in him....

Any thoughts appreciated!

I'm not clear on what you mean. Have you been doing art lessons? Or do you mean that you think his being home so much is limiting his inspirations? Where artistic things are concerned, I'd definitely avoid making lessons of them. There's a book that could help in your thought process - Kids Play: Igniting Children's Creativity, by Michele Cassou - she also has other interesting things in her website.

I'm on the run - probably won't be online for a few days...

Have fun!
Lillan

[Chalex]

Sorry if I read your post incorrectly, but--do you mean that your son isn't doing as many art projects at home as he did at school?
Because at school, the projects are kinda forced on them, LOL.
Was your son big on doing art before kindergarten? Maybe he's actually being more himself with the number of projects or even detail/time that he's putting into them?

[Airmid03]

Just a thought ... my dd struggled through her first year in a Montessori school. Through out the year she brought home a painting at least 3 times a week. This year, she is much more settled there and her art work has tapered down considerably. The level of creativity hasn't changed, just the quantity. We think that the art area was her safe haven. Now that she's more comfortable, she doesn't need to retreat to it anymore.

I'm worried that I won't provide enough opportunity for her to explore her artistic side when we start homeschooling next year. I'm so much more likely to get kits than to set the stage for her to actually create her own project. I have a book "Scribble Art" that gives lots of ideas for open ended art activities and describes how to create an art center that allows them to be self directed. I'd love to do this, but I'm waiting until my 3yo is a little older and less destructive.

[SilverFish]

as an art teacher and artist, i thought i'd pop in and comment.

first, not all people are artists, and that's totally fine. kids are naturally creative, but if he's being allowed to express creativity in other areas than just "art" then that is just as good, IMO. that doesn't always happen in the school setting, so it might be that just being at home and having so much more freedom to learn the way he wants is creativity enough.

however, it really probably would be a good idea to set aside a larger chunk of time in a week specifically for artistic pursuits. my biggest peeve as an art teacher is that kids are expected to turn on their artistic skills for an hour or two and then turn off again... i can't work like that as an adult artist, why should they?

generally i'd stay away from books that "teach" art projects. if you're not very artistic or creative yourself, there's a temptation to use a curriculum, but i've really not seen many that are particularily good. i mean, doing crafts is great, but it's not really art, you know? good places to get inspiration are: going to the library and spending an hour or two in the artists sections, looking through collections of stuff, and picking out things that interest you. going to galleries and spending a bit of time looking at the stuff on the walls. going outside and noticing colours and textures and shapes. since your ds is quite young still, the library and gallery trips should be pretty short and well spaced out, and you can ask a librarian or museum guide for ideas of things to look at. i love using illustrations in children's books and national geographic magazines are often great starting points too!

i love everyone else's ideas of getting to go pick out new supplies... there are lots of good books out there that will help you learn to master new techniques and materials.

[FireWithin]

We've been doing artistic pursuits with my 6.5 year old. It is a really good match for him. He likes the intellectual experience about learning about a type of painting, seeing another kids example and then applying that idea to his own work. None of his own work was at all like the child's in the book.