MANAGING THE ART ROOM

John McCaulley

Art classrooms have always been sanctuaries for student focus, creativity, and deep engagement, but in today’s fast-paced academic environment, it can be challenging for students to fully grasp the core fundamentals of design. Multi-week projects sometimes leave students feeling overwhelmed and discouraged. As an instructor with the pressure of limited funding and reduced studio time, I wanted to create a learning experience that would keep my middle-school students focused, inspired, and continually engaged.

Enter the Art Journal
A few years ago, I introduced a new approach to teaching the elements of art and principles of design using small-scale art projects in an art journal. The idea was to create a more dynamic, manageable way for students to explore design concepts and multiple media, while keeping them engaged and motivated.

Each student receives an art journal, which contains twenty-five to thirty pages of 6 x 9" (15 x 23 cm) mixed media paper, bound with simple binder clips. I encourage them to personalize their journals by designing their covers, giving them a sense of ownership. Throughout the course, they use the journal to take notes creatively, sketch ideas, and record concepts, just as a career artist might.

The idea was to create a more dynamic, manageable way for students to explore design concepts and multiple media while keeping them engaged.

Engaging Through Purposeful Design
The lessons are structured around hands-on, short-term projects that focus on the individual elements of art and principles of design. For example, when introducing the concept of line, I discuss how different types of lines can evoke emotions, and then students create expressive line drawings that represent various human senses or feelings, using only black pens. When we explore texture, they experiment with both simulated and actual textures through layered abstract collages. In the balance lesson, students craft simple notan designs using only black paper and learn how to create equilibrium in a simple composition. The final mini assignment focuses on unity and challenges students to use a single word as inspiration to explore mixed-media design.

By incorporating these small one- or two-class projects, students have the freedom to experiment without the pressure of perfection. This allows them to take creative risks and explore new techniques and materials in a supportive, low-stakes environment. The shorter time frames lead to more immediate results, and students tend to grasp the concepts faster and with more enthusiasm.

A Lasting Impact
These focused mini assignments help students build a deeper understanding of artistic concepts. Through their work, they also develop essential skills in critical thinking, problem-solving, risk-taking, and observation. As they apply the elements of art and principles of design with intention, they are laying a strong foundation for their future creative endeavors.

Whether crafting a simple cut-paper collage to understand shape or experimenting with oil pastels to explore color, middle-school art students are proving that sometimes, smaller projects can lead to bigger breakthroughs.

John McCaulley is a visual art instructor for the Luxemurg-Casco School District in Luxemburg, Wisconsin. john.t.mccaulley@gmail.com