CAPSTONE
PROJECT
"Growing in Art"
Building Art Skills and Confidence in a Nurturing Environment
Problem Summary
Students in our community can struggle with the confidence to participate in art class because they have labeled themselves as untalented or unartistic, producing a fixed mindset that can be detrimental to student success, both in art class and in creative exercises throughout their lives.
Values
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Growth
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Encouragement
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Self Confidence
Mission Statement
The mission of Growing in Art is to tangibly provide skills to guide students towards a positive experience with art-making. Whether they feel naturally gifted or not, Growing in Art will give students the reflection tools necessary to successfully develop a growth mindset through utilizing critical thinking skills.
Project Goal
The primary goal of Growing in Art is to infuse the art intensive curriculum with reflective practices and learning activities that guide students towards developing a growth mindset.
Objectives
Students will be able to:
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reflect on making art to articulate feelings, define goals, and later experience success by developing skills that encourage collaboration and build self-confidence.
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develop art skills and pursue individual aims through a series of goal-focused activities where they create art by building on their abilities.
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demonstrate a growth mindset by producing artwork they feel proud of and reflecting on their completed works and developing skills to share both accomplishments and how they want to grow further.
Teaching Philosophy
In a world filled with screens vying for children’s attention, art education provides a wonderful opportunity to engage children in creative, hands on, learning opportunities. These creative learning opportunities can instill confidence in children in which they flex their creative muscles as their imagination grows. As imagination confidence grows children continue to learn through practice, repetition and encouragement. Children who receive encouragement as they produce work that displays their limited skills will continue to come back and try again, thus leading to improved skills. All of these creative learning opportunities, supported by a Teaching for Understanding framework, provide an appreciation for Art and expression, which then translates into a greater awareness of the world and community. This greater awareness connects to the ultimate creator of it all by pointing the children to God, through beautiful works of Art and through their own improving skills.
