As educators and business people consider what children need to be successful in this rapidly changing society, creative and critical thinking, problem solving, communication, collaboration, and persistence are recognized as the most important skills for success in education and the workforce. Among these, creative thinking is referred to most…

Building upon lessons learned is relevant to art and life. As an art teacher dealing with teens, the author tries to give her students an understanding of art as a window to the "big picture" as well as a practical, relevant skill. She developed this lesson plan, "Celtic Roads," with that objective in mind. The success rate is high, the product is…

Is there beauty in the wall socket that people plug their appliances into daily? Can one find beauty in the grate covering the heat vent in his classroom? The author posed these very questions to her third-grade students. She had the students take a good look at the outlet cover (or plate) on the wall. After thinking and discussing the outlets,…

This paper asserts the importance of allowing children to use their own perceptions in developing their imagination and drawing skills. It discusses why children draw, and how teachers can foster creativity, create appropriate activities, and evaluate the child's progress. Children draw to symbolically explore their worlds, and that by the age of…

Does a drawing embody the form and focus of what the artist actually sees, or instead, is it only after seeing the finished drawing that the artist knows the true meaning of his or her visual experience? It is the knowledge of the visual experience that drives the representation of it. Knowledge of the visual experience is present in varying…

Projects are in-depth studies of a topic undertaken by a class, a group, or an individual child. Projects are intended to strengthen children's dispositions to be interested, absorbed, and involved in in-depth observation, investigation, and representation of worthwhile phenomena in their own environments. This Catalog on the Project Approach, the…