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On Sun, 28 Feb 1999, Wendy Manning wrote:
>
> It depends on why they are unwilling.....could be any number of reasons.
> One thing you can do is try to find some lessons that fit your goals and at the
> same time almost guarantee success. If the work looks "cool " and artistic, and
> you make a fuss over it, the self-esteem boost might be enough to encourage them
> to "move beyond crayons" when they get something a little more challenging.I have
> often found this to work with the type of kids you mention. The self-esteem aspect
> seems to play a bigger role in art then some other subjects, at least at
> middle-school level.
> Other kids have responded to my developing-the-right-brain speil, and I tell
> them that even if they don't like art they are making themselves smarter by doing
> it.
> In my experience the biggest factor of all is class size. I have a few smaller
> classes this year (24 as opposed to 33) and I've reached some kids I was
> unsuccessful with last year, simply because I have had more time to spend with
> them and could deal more quickly with disruptions.
> Having said all this , I haven't had the Grade Seven Class From Hell yet, not
> till next term. When they were the Grade Six Class From Hell they weren't willing
> to do anything and I was at a loss at how to motivate them (as were the rest of
> their teachers).
> Wendy
>
> LiegeB wrote:
>
> > Hello to all,
> > I've been reading this list for several weeks now; this a wonderful group!
> > Everyone seems to be quite committed to quality teaching so I'm hoping you'll
> > have some input regarding my recent feelings of inadequacies as an art
> > educator,
> > or educator of any type. I teach K-6, each group meets once per week for
> > only 30 minutes. The problem is I feel like I'm functioning more as a
> > babysitter than someone providing a valuable resource. There is some pressure
> > from administration to produce pretty things for the walls but for the most
> > part I am able to put that aside and I teach what I want. I guess I don't
> > feel I'm getting the results I would like (not in terms of product because I'm
> > much more interested inprocess). How does everyone deal with students who are
> > not "art majors"? I realize I can't inspire them all but what to do with
> > those that, if life were perfect would be filtered out of the class? This is
> > not to say that art is only for the serious student on the contrary I think it
> > is an essential to producing a whole person but, like it or not, there are
> > always going to be some that are unwilling to move beyond crayons, regardless
> > of age. What do you do when you realize you just aren't going to reach them?
> > And how do you prevent them from being a disruption?
> >
> > I am certain this is the right group to consult and will greatly appreciate
> > any thoughts, positive or negative.
> >
> > Hoping you're all enjoying the weekend,
> > Louisa
>
>
>