Directed Draw... Seahorse

I love art. I always try and incorporate art into our lessons. Some kids don't like art. However, through the use of directed draws, I can help them think a little differently about art and be successful.

Our first directed draw  was a seahorse. We use a permanent marker to draw because if we make a mistake we just "make it work". Often, the kids get so focused on wanting theirs to look perfect or just like the teacher. With using a permanent marker, we avoid perfection and just have fun.

I walk them through each drawing step, going line by line. The students also don't know what they are drawing so they can keep an open mind instead of thinking they "know" what it should look like. It usually only takes 1 directed draw to hook the kids in. Now every time I tell them to get their permanent markers, they squeal with excitement.

Here are our seahorses. I didn't get any pictures in the process this time, but here we are adding color.

Giraffes and Owls

We have so much fun with our directed draws. All the students know the directions and procedures when we complete a directed draw.

1.  Get your paper
2. Get a marker
3. Write your name and flip the paper over
4. Draw when Mrs. Farkas lifts her marker
5. If you make a mistake, make it work
6. No talking

We have had a lot of successful artists this year and their art confidence has increased a ton due to "making it work". In previous years, my students would tend to get stuck on perfection. When using a permanent marker, we avoid perfection because we can't erase. We have fun together because I even make mistakes and let the kids know I need to make it work.

However, we broke all the rules when drawing the owl. This year, the owl was completely new to me and since I usually am able to find an idea on the internet and draw from that, I don't have typical directions to follow. So, when drawing the owl, I had many mistakes and just thought I could make it work. But as we finished the owls, we realized what a disaster they were and we all wanted a redo.

Once we discussed what we needed to do differently, we found a new piece of paper and began again. We learned again what making mistakes and learning from them can do for us. Round 2 was AMAZING!

 

We also FINALLY completed my favorite animal! The kids have been begging to complete giraffes. We used a wax resist technique with our giraffes and patterns. We added patterns to the background and the giraffes spots. Then we used watercolor to finish up.