Thursday, October 8, 2020

Think Outside the Box Thursday: Squiggle Game Extended!

 This week, I'm releasing an extension activity from last week's Squiggle Game. I got the inspiration for this activity from the amazing Thinking Through Drawing group, who are always seeking new ways to enrich the brain through engaging the hand.


For this extension to the Squiggle Game, artists are encouraged to create a story from their original squiggle drawing, because most of those creations tend to become characters. So the next step is, where is that character located, and what is he/she/it doing? This drawing activity is a fantastic way to inspire creative writing projects since you have the main character, the setting, and the action of the plot all presented in the drawing! All that's left is for the writer to weave together the pieces into a narrative. 



Thursday, October 1, 2020

Think Outside the Box Thursday: Squiggle Game

 


After months of contemplating how best to bring the Art Learning Lab to life, I finally took the plunge today and released my first attempt at a video. The Squiggle Game (or Scribble Game) is one of my favorite drawing activities from childhood. Why title it "Think Outside the Box Thursdays"? This was a warm-up prompt I would use in my art room to encourage my students to engage with their imagination and feel less constricted by a "right" or "wrong" way to accomplish their drawings. 

Every Thursday, my goal is to release a new art-making video, encouraging people to exercise their hands and brains to make something! The Squiggle Game may already be familiar to you, it certainly was a very popular free-time activity in my art room. It's a great game for every age-level and can be played alone or with friends and family. I'd love to see your squiggles. Send me an email: ArtLearningLab@gmail.com with your pictures if you'd like to share! 

Welcome to the Art Learning Lab!



It’s October 1, 2020.  In a normal year, I would have been back in the classroom by the middle of August teaching art to 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students. I love teaching art. Don’t get me wrong, I love making art too. Since the pandemic shut-down, finding myself unable to get a teaching job after moving from Austin to Oregon, I’ve spent countless hours in my garage studio making ceramics and countless more hours experimenting with my origami paper, beads, and my new sewing machine. But for me, more than getting my hands dirty creating my own arts and crafts, I love inviting others to experience art-making. Prompting artistic creation and seeing how those imaginations soar beyond what I predicted is one of the biggest thrills of being a teacher--having your expectations blown out of the water!