Preschool Art: Craft & Construction: It's the Process, Not the Product
By MaryAnn Kohl
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About this ebook
MaryAnn Kohl
Award-winning author MaryAnn F. Kohl has written 14 books for Gryphon House, and is a regular featured columnist for Parenting Magazine. She has written the best-selling favorites Preschool Art, The Big Messy Art Book, Making Make-Believe, MathArts, and First Art. She is co-author of Global Art and Cooking Art with Jean Potter. MaryAnn lives in Bellingham, Washington.
Read more from Mary Ann Kohl
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Preschool Art - MaryAnn Kohl
greenpressinitiative.org.
It’s the Process, Not the Product
Why is art process important?
Young children do art for the experience, the exploration, and the experimentation. In the process
of doing art, they discover creativity, mystery, joy, and frustration, all important pieces in the puzzle of learning. Whatever the resulting masterpiece—be it a bright sticky glob or a gallery-worthy piece—it is only a result to the young child, not the reason for doing the art in the first place.
Art process allows children to explore,
discover, and manipulate their worlds. Sometimes the process is sensory, such as feeling slippery cool paint on bare fingers. Other times it is the mystery of colors blending unexpectedly, or the surprise of seeing a realistic picture evolve from a random blob of paint. Art process can be a way to get the wiggles out,
or to smash a ball of clay instead of another child.
How can adults encourage the process of art?
Provide interesting materials. Stand back and watch. Offer help with unruly materials, but keep hands off children’s work as much as possible. It’s a good idea not to make samples for children to copy because this limits their possibilities.
Sometimes adults unknowingly communicate to a child that the product is the most important aspect of the child’s art experience. The following comments and questions serve as examples of things to say that will help encourage each child to evaluate his or her own artwork:
Tell me about your artwork. How did the paint feel?
What part did you like the best? The yellow is so bright next to the purple!
I see you’ve used many colors! How did you make such a big design?
Did you enjoy making this? I see you made your own brown color. How did you do it?
Process art is a wonder to behold. Watch the children discover their unique capabilities and the joy of
creating. This is where they begin to feel good about art and to believe that mistakes can be a stepping stone instead of a roadblock—in art as well as in other aspects of their lives. A concept children enjoy
hearing is, There’s no right way, there’s no wrong way, there’s just your way.
Getting Ready!
Being prepared makes art experiences all the more enjoyable.
Here are some tips for success:
Covered Workspace
Cover the workspace—whether it is a table, floor, chair, wall, or countertop—with newspaper. Tape it down to prevent wiggles and spills of art materials. It’s so much easier to bunch up sheets of paint-filled, sticky newspaper and find a clean space underneath than to clean up uncovered workspaces time and again. Other workspace coverings that work well are sheets of cardboard, an old shower curtain, a plastic tablecloth, big butcher paper, and roll ends of newsprint from the local newspaper print shop.
Handy Cleanup
Make cleanup easy and independent for young artists. All the less worry for the adult in charge! Place a wet sponge or pads of damp paper towels next to the art project for a simple way to wipe fingers as needed. Rather than have children running to the sink, fill a bucket with warm soapy water and place it next to the work area. Then add a few old towels for drying hands. Damp rags and sponges are handy for wiping spills, tidying up, and cleaning splatters as needed.
The Cover-up
Any old apron, Dad’s old shirt (sleeves cut off), a smock, and a paint shirt are all helpful cover-ups for creative preschoolers. Instead, consider this: wear old play clothes and old shoes and call them art clothes,
used for art only. It’s a wonderful feeling to get into art without being concerned about protecting clothing. These clothes become more unique with time and are often a source of pride!
Other Tips
• Create a separate drying area covered with newspapers. Allow wet projects to dry completely.
• Always protect a larger circle of space than the immediate area around the project. Think