I recently finished a client project for a big kid art desk, mainly for two girls, ages 6 and 8. They have a younger brother who is 3 years old, but my client didn’t think he would be using this space quite yet. I did create something for him that you’ll see later in the post.
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Are you familiar with Invitations To Create?
Invitations To Create are open-ended art prompts set up for kids to encourage creative exploration of materials. I first learned about these types of art prompts when I was a Reggio-Inspired preschool teacher and have since used them with my own kids for the past 9 years.
Invitations To Create have been the one tool I go back to again and again to keep my kids engaged with their art supplies and to learn new skills.
I’ve been working on a few new projects that involve Invitations To Create and I’m so excited to share them with you today!
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Last November, I hosted a Family Canvas Challenge to encourage family connection and creativity during the busy holiday season.
I was blown away by how many families around the world joined in (close to 1500!) and were excited to do art together as a family.
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Two years ago, I was inspired by an Art Pantry reader, Emily, and her family advent tradition of working on one canvas for each day of the Advent calendar. I loved the idea of layering different materials each day on a collaborative canvas and turning it into a fun game that we could do together as a family.
We adapted this idea and worked on our canvas about twice a week for a month. Each time we worked on it, I would bring out a new material, hide it in a bag, and set it out on the canvas for my girls to discover. They loved the anticipation of not knowing what the next material would be!
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This is a mini solo podcast episode, where I share the inspiration behind my business, The Art Pantry. I talk about why I view kids’ art spaces as workshops and what kids learn in them that goes way beyond art. I also share about my online course, Design Camp, and have a free download for you with art prompts for kids that are based on the skills I discuss in this episode.
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The other day I was going through photos of our art space over the years and it hit me how much my girls have learned from having a dedicated art space in our home.
I always say that having an art space is about so much more than just having a place to do art. But I realized that maybe I take this for granted and maybe other people don’t know what happens in an art space over time.
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It’s Back to School time so Aaron and I thought it would be helpful to share our unique perspectives on the subject. Since I’m a designer and organizer, I share tips on setting up your home environment for back to school success. Aaron is a family coach and education consultant so he shares tips on how to re-think your daily routines to create more peace, joy, and connection in your family.
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Art spaces for kids are places of exploration, investigation, discovery, and creation. It’s important not to limit your materials to only art supplies (especially for kids over age 3), but to offer them a variety of materials to enhance their learning experience.
When we began planning this 3-month Airstream tour around the US, I knew right away that I wanted to host pop-up family art events along the way. I wanted to connect with families across the country and share creative activities that might inspire them to bring more art and creativity and into their lives. But how was I going to pull that off?
The best thing about being a blogger is the friendships that I have made with other art teachers and creative mamas around the world. So once we had our trip route down, I of course went straight to my community of art teacher friends along the route and asked them to collaborate on a family art event in their town.
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You probably know this by now, but I am a huge fan of the incredible art teacher and blogger, Meri Cherry. I remember discovering her work a couple of years ago when she wrote a post about wood working with toddlers. I immediately felt a kinship and was so excited to find another Reggio inspired art blogger. We eventually got to meet in person over a plate of tacos and we both couldn’t stop blabbering on about Reggio and kids art. We have been friends ever since! Meri has a way of sharing her experience as a teacher that is unlike any other teacher and blogger I know. Her beautiful photos and down-to-earth voice bring you into her world and make you feel like you are being let in on a secret. So it’s no wonder she recently published an e-book called Art Secrets Every Teacher Should Know, A Reggio Inspired Approach.
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