Art Class Feedback!

Gabrielle Wood
Apr 24, 2024
3 min read

Updated: 4 days ago

When you get a message from a parent after art play club that says:

"My child would like to do this all of the time, forever".

This was a total *heart MELT* 🥰 moment!! It just means so much to me to hear that kids are enjoying my art classes and actually want to come back again and again!

If I could live in this little world of creativity that we create at after school club, I totally would!

At the end of term I like to check in and ask the kids what they like about art play club.

Want to know the most common answer I got this week?

"We get to be creative and make whatever we want."

THIS IS LITERALLY THE WHOLE POINT OF MY CLASSES!!

Ok, I'll calm down now but it is so life affirming to me that the kids get it. They understand the brief and they love my class because of the exact intention that I set for it. Winning!!

So you might be thinking this is a very simple acknowledgement and I need to calm down. But here is why I am so excited by this comment. During art class kids are encouraged to play with ALL of the art materials to see which suits them best and which they prefer. This isn't an accidental outcome. I do it because that is what artists do! Artists play around with materials and mediums until they find the one that is for them. Why shouldn't kids get chance to do that to? Who am I to tell them what to make?

Setting the class up in this way means that children have the chance for lots, and I mean LOTS of thinking, wondering, testing, trying, doing, making and trying again. They are playing. Playing which is actually learning, building resilience, confidence and boosting self esteem. They do this for the whole time. And soon, their playing becomes a piece of art work that they'd like to keep or give to a friend or show to their parents. Then, it's a piece art work, to be proud of. The product of the playing.

In my opinion, without the playtime; the thinking, doing, undoing, trying again, testing a new way, realising that doesn't work, going back and trying again... they would never have made that piece of art.

And their takeaway wouldn't be as positive.

Here are the other takeaways:

"We get to play with our friends and create things together"

"We don't get told what to do"

"It's messy"

"I like that we can choose what we want to use and choose to use everything if we want to"

"I like using clay and making it into slime."

"I like painting with acrylics and stencils and watercolours"

"I like it when we can use fun things like balloons or boxes"

"It's fun because we can play the whole time"

At after school club we learn lots of different things about ourselves, each other and how to be an artist. We use clay, beads, paint, thread, make art journals, create mini worlds, draw with pens, pencils, sharpies, posca pens, create art works from our imaginations and no two pieces ever look the same.

I created Art Play Club to be a place for unstructured art play where children are encouraged to let go of perfection, embrace their own innate creativity and work alongside other artists. Where they find joy in the making and make art because it's fun.

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