[Maggie Higgins]

I believe that activism goes hand in hand with art. Being an art educator I think it is important to educate students on the power that their art has and how to harness that power in a respectful and effective way. I think that allowing students to create a project that emphasizes something they feel strongly about whether it is a rule they want dis-enforced at home, or a snack they want available in the cafeteria, students can see how their art can influence viewers if it is done in a respectful way. I also think it is important to educate children on the power their art has and the importance of producing works that send the right message and also empowering students to use their voice through their creations.

[Maggie Higgins]

I believe that hands on art making is crucial to young people as it allows us to use different motions that we typically wouldn’t use. Although this isn’t as important in adults, I believe it is very important for children to explore all of the different things their hands are capable of doing and creating. Hands on art making is a relaxing way for children to escape the rigid expectation of neatness in all other school subjects. By moving their hands and producing art at a very young age such as Kindergarten, students are becoming more familiar with motor skills and becoming more self aware of their bodies and how they hold different tools. The creativity they express through hands on art making can then be brought to other subjects to creatively solve problems and process information

[Maggie Higgins]

I believe that changing the art curriculum to best fit the students wants and needs is something extremely overdue. Although I believe that the fundamentals of art are important to help with motor skills and overall art skills, incorporating art into real life is highly beneficial. By creating a curriculum that allows children to express themselves by celebrating the differences they have with classmates, leaves them with an incredible opportunity to discover self awareness. By realizing the not only physical differences but different walks of life their classmates come from, students can take this information into the real world and have it actually benefit them. Creating a curriculum that is based around kindness and diversity while incorporating art techniques into the projects would not only help us as educators become better people but would help to raise compassionate little artists!

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