Meet the Preps: For Miss Linsey, art class isn't about making twenty-five versions of the same project. It's a place to explore, experiment, make unexpected discoveries, and create something that belongs entirely to you.
Hi! I'm Miss Linsey, the art teacher, and this is my fifth year teaching at my dream job — art with kids!
I say "with" instead of "to" because that's something that's super important to me. We create and learn together.
Art is so multifaceted! There is so much art in the world that it's hard for art teachers to decide what to focus on because the possibilities are endless.
That's a good and bad thing.
Good, because we will always have plenty of amazing options.
Bad, because we can't do it all!
And we want to! Haha!
Explore. Experiment. Express.
Something I like to focus on in art is three things: explore, experiment, and express.
Your kids might not come home with a finished piece of art after every class, and that's okay. We spend time exploring different art styles and mediums, experimenting with them, and figuring out what happens when we try something new.
Sometimes the process is just as important as what eventually comes home.
Perfect Is Not an Art Word
There is one word that is not allowed in art:
PERFECT.
There is no such thing as perfect art.
We might think we've made a mistake, but a mistake in art really isn't a mistake. It's something we weren't expecting that could now turn into something beautiful.
Or, in the words of Bob Ross, a happy accident!
So before we give up and throw something away, we try to make it into something different. We add to it. Change it. Look at it another way. See what it could become.
Sometimes it works out.
And sometimes we still look at it and think, "Yikes, that did not turn out the way I wanted it to."
And that's okay too!
Because all along the way, we are exploring and experimenting with different ways to make art.
Art is also a way to express our feelings, thoughts, and ideas. Sometimes what looks like a crazy mess is actually a reflection of something your child was thinking or feeling while they were creating.
If they come home with something that looks a little messy or confusing, ask them about it.
There is usually a story behind it.
"It Better Not Look Like Mine!"
I am not a cookie-cutter art teacher.
It is very important to me that kids make their artwork their own. I tell them all the time:
"It better not look like mine!"
Haha!
I might teach a specific skill, technique, artist, or idea, but I always encourage students to add something that makes their work their own. Do something differently. Make a choice. Add an idea I didn't give them.
Being creative and playful doesn't mean we aren't learning.
We learn the elements of art, work through our grade-level standards, explore different mediums, and learn about both classic and contemporary artists.
And then we use what we've learned to create our own art.
A Stress-Free Place to Create
I want art to be a stress-free zone.
A place for playful creating. A place where kids feel safe trying something new, changing their minds, making an unexpected choice, or creating something completely different from the person sitting next to them.
I want students to have the freedom to make art their way.
That doesn't mean everything will turn out exactly the way they imagined.
Actually, I hope sometimes it doesn't.
That's often where the interesting stuff happens.
Making It Matter Through Art
To go along with our school theme this year, Make It Matter, I want families to know something simple:
Your kids matter to me.
Creating a safe space where creativity can flow matters to me. Helping your child have a positive experience with art matters to me.
But most of all, I hope students learn that their own creativity, imagination, ideas, and effort are worth something.
I want it to matter to them.
Their art matters because their ideas deserve to be expressed and seen.
A Little About Me
On a more personal note, I have six kids, two sons-in-law, and a granddaughter.
She's my favorite. ❤️
I love my family, chocolate, nature, rainbows, and Hallmark movies.
And of course, art!