One of the most overwhelming aspects of being an art teacher is managing all the artwork. Of course, you don’t have to manage it at all; children can take their art with them when they leave class. But for me, I like to keep all of the art created in the art room in the art room.
There’s a reason for my managing madness: Art Shows. Each spring there are a medley of opportunities to showcase the student’s art, starting with the biggest: the school art show. Each child gets to display one piece. I like to have all pieces available in individual portfolios in order to select the student’s best one. Also, this system gives me the opportunity to select a variety of artwork so the parents can see all of the projects done throughout the year. You can read more about how I prep for my art show here.
Creating Student Portfolios
At the beginning of the year, I take a 18″ x 24″ piece of sulphite paper (I use whatever color I have, but color coding would be cool!), fold it in half then:
- Write the student’s name,
- Write the teacher’s last name or room number
- Write the grade level.
- * If that class has inclusion students, I like to put an asterisk next to those children’s names, because even though they attend art with this class, their artwork is group with the inclusion classes for the art show.
Portfolio Storage
So, now that you have a portfolio for each child, where do you put them? At one of my schools, I have this nifty cubical shelf. It’s old and wooden and the perfect size for holding a classroom’s stack of portfolios. By chance, this shelf has 5 cubes per row. Perfect, since I teach five classes in one day. I put a label at the very top of each row: Monday Group A, Friday Group A, Monday Group B and Friday Group B.
As you may have determined, I teach in cycles: Group A for 5 weeks, then Group B for 5 weeks. I work two days a week (Monday and Friday). So If I’m looking for Friday Group B’s portfolio’s, I just look at the last slot.
Of course, you may have a different schedule. At the other school where I teach, my schedule is different and so is my storage. I don’t have this nifty shelf, so I use legal metal filing cabinets. They are a perfect fit for my portfolios and you can organize the drawers however you like.
Organizing artwork after a class…
After a class is over, the art either goes on a drying rack or gets placed in a stack with a piece of paper on top stating whose class it is. Recently, I received a nifty tip from another art teacher to write teacher’s class names on wooden clothes pins. Clip clothes pins to a string beside the drying rack or art storage table. When a class is done, clip the teacher’s name to the top art on the pile. Isn’t this a great tip?There have been many times when my little piece of paper with the teacher’s name on it floats away, so I really like the clothes pin trick. I’ve mixed up ALOT of art by being rushed and anxious to get home or whatever.
Drying Racks
I have never been able to spend alot of money on drying racks, so I have purchased fairly inexpensive ones. There are the kinds that have a support rail along the side (red rack) and the kind that has the support rail in the center (black). The black one is certainly better, but if you have the red one, here’s a tip for you: laminate some old 12′ x 18″ papers and use as “sliders”. Place artwork on sliders and slip into place. So much better than trying to wrestle a paint soaked piece of paper.
Portfolios mean easy access…
The best part of having portfolios is when a parent comes into the art room and wants to look at what her child has done. I can easily go to the filing cabinet, select the right class, find the portfolio (never alphabetized, I’m afraid) and let the art work spill out in all it’s glorious color. And if a child leaves during the school year, her art portfolio is ready for her.
How do you manage your art work? If you do 3-D items, do you store them for art shows? Share your greatest tips!
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Thank you so much for this post- I was trying to come up with a plan this year for storing art from week to week and this has solved my problem.
I love your site!
Kelly
Patty,
Great ideas!! It gives me somewhere to start thinking about how to handle my art room next year. I am blessed with a set of wire storage shelves for every grade level, but I have never done anything more than just use a shelf per class.
I love your blog…read it daily.
I am inspired by so many art teacher blogs to start my own, but my district is currently debating our policy of student work only appearing on our intranet and not out in the big www.
Keep up your great work –
Karen E
Your blog is wonderful, I'm so glad I found it. Thank you so much for sharing your super ideas. It pays to be so organized and I'm sure your students take pride in browsing through their folders. I agree it's great to see progression through the year by holding onto work. Well done!
THANK YOU! THANK YOU! For this post. I was having a hard time figuring out how to save the students work. This helps a lot. THANK YOU AGAIN!!!!
Also, thanks for answering my question about what project to start the school year with. I would love to come see your work in person, if you allow me.
Thanks,
Evelyn
You are all welcome! I'm so glad this post has helped you out. I'll try to do more when the inspiration hits!
Happy Birthday!
I totally agree with you. KEEP EVERYTHING! I do two art shows–one in December and the other one in June. The kids make giant portfolios out of butcher paper and decorate it etc. They take all their work after the December show and then in June bring back the empty portfolio to take the second batch. I love your site by the way!
Hi Patty, thanks for sharing all your experience. Do you every send art work home? Don't the kids ask to take it home? Do you hang alot on the wall?
Hi Teebo,
At the beginning of the year, I show the students a portfolio and explain that all art created in the art room will go into this folder. After that, they never ask, but parents do. Even after explaining in newsletters, etc. some parents still wonder where their kid's artwork is!
At the end of the year, the students proudly take home their portfolios. If I didn't have all the art shows, I wouldn't keep the artwork. But I do, so this method works for me.
As for displaying art, I have four wall sections available. I rotate every month or so. One class per section.
hope thsi helps!
Thanks Patty for your reply. Everything you do on this site is so helpful. Thank you. I just order all your lessons. Thanks keep them coming. Why not publish a book I would purchase that too!
Patt, Do you plan your whole year ahead of time. I am a new art teacher. Any advice you have is so great. Thank you again.
Hi Teebo,
My first year, I tried to plan my lesson in stages, but you know, sometimes it's hard to be too structured. Many times you have to be flexible.
My best advice for you is to do a variety of lessons yourself and get a feel for how you would teach that lesson. You might discover that you would add or delete a step. Also, teach what you enjoy doing yourself.
Good luck and don't worry…art is fun and as long as you are relatively organized and enjoy what you are doing, you will be hugely popular!
Hi Patty, love looking at your site. Great ideas! I am going to tackle the precious peacock with our third graders before Christmas. I know it isn’t a turkey but it gives about the same impression. May even look at it on red paper
My question is what are the dimensions of your cubby shelves? Obviously they must be 18 inches wide. Just thinking I might put in a work order and see what I can beg to get done. I love the idea of laying the work flat.
Thanks again, Debbie
Hi Debbie,
The cubbies are 18″ wide. If you are getting a custom made cubby case, ask for 19″. Wider helps!
Hi Patty! thanks for always answering my questions. Do your students sign their names on the front or on the back. thanks again.
Great ideas; I am in my first year and feel overwhelmed. Your lessons are terrific! My roster is about to change; back to back classes up to four in a row. NO break between classes; none; not even 5 minutes. No sink either; any ideas????!!!
Hi Anonymous,
Have you read this post?
http://deepspacesparkle-artroomorganizatio.blogspot.com/2009/10/prepping-multiple-lessons.html
The post linked above might help you manage your class schedule although I think the first thing you need to do is to talk to your teachers. Have the arriving class delay a few minutes.In addition to that, dismiss the existing class early. Between the two shifts, you should be able to arrange for a 5 minute turnaround. No one expects an art teacher to herd one class out while the other class enters. If they do, you still need to change that. You'll provide a better program if there is a minute to breathe.
As for the no sink dilemma: Go to Home Depot and buy a couple of 5 gallon buckets. Fill one with clean water and leave the other empty. Dip empty water containers into the bucket of clean water to fill up; empty dirty water into empty buckets. Kids can do this as well.
For hand cleaning: use baby wipes.
Good luck!
Do your parents get upset that you don't send home work earlier in the year?
Do you spend time yourself filing artwork into these portfolios, or do you get a parent helper to do that. I would think filing the artwork would take the most time.
Great tips! I love the idea of color coding student portfolios.
Please check my blog for more tips and projects:
http://www.sgpart.blogspot.com
Hey
I have cubbies also and organize with portfolios…the only way to go! I teach 6 classes a day for 4 days…on Fridays we go in the gym for Art, Music and PE all together. This method works like a charm for me.
My solution for messy hands has been *Art Water*. I have several little spray bottles that I spray the kids hands with…you’d think it was gold water!!! It’s just water! Usually a few sprays and rubbing their hands together gets all the bits of clay or paint off until they can wash up better when their class goes to the restroom. Saves lots of clean up time!!!
I have large shelves where I store artwork in piles by class, but I don’t save everything – the volume would be too immense. I pick and choose what I want to save for the show. But anyhow, about your shelves – I’m curious – they seem rather small. In my classroom, we do a LOT of large artwork – often 18×24″ or maybe 18″ square. Do you only do 12×18″ artwork or do you have additional storage for bigger stuff? How about anything with a 3-D element? (I don’t necessarily mean the big stuff like papier-mache, but even just relief projects, or anything with an element that protrudes or is a strange shape or size.)
Yes, my shelves were small but they were all I needed. I teach fewer classes than you, so my storage isn’t as much of a problem. I don’t have those shelves anymore. They were at the school where i used to teach. I have large filing cabinets now where I store my student’s portfolio’s/projects. For large scale items like paper and 3-D projects, I usually display them and then the students take them home. You’re right about saving stuff for the art show. If it can’t hang on a wall, I won’t save it in the portfolio!
My first art lesson of the year is to give each student a portfolio to decorate however they want. The only requirement is that on one side they must have their name. Usually, they make giant bubble letters for their names.
Hello I love this site!!! I teach preschool art and I have 19 classes a week. I do a artist of the month and teach about a famous artist like Jackson pollock we splatter paint, Van Gough I add sand to the paint to make it thicker and we make sunflowers and starry nite. My question is should I save all the artist of the month art work for the end or save it for the whole year I am torn. I use folders and a ols cd rack to orginaze my portfolios Good Luck and thanks!!
I keep all my students art in the art room (in portfolios) so that they all of the art is available for end-of-the year art shows. If there is a need or purpose for keeping the art, keep it. If not, let it go home. This might be better considering it’s pre-school and moms want that cute art on the fridge ASAP!
i LOVE the shelf used to store art. I have cucumber and strawberry boxes (the big flats that grocery stores get) for each day. Then each class has a folder. It works great until I start hoarding art for the art show.
Might have to steal that idea for next year!
Hi Patty,
When you hold your annual art show, how much art are you sending home during the school year and do you think it’s worth it to save everything for one night vs. students sharing their art w/ family by taking it home during the year. I can’t figure out how to have a big art show unless I keep most of everything!
What do you think?
Joslyn
I save everything, but remember, I only teach students 15 times during an entire year. I would save only the pieces that are finished. So any worksheets or experiments or even simple warm ups, I would send home if you were limited with space.