I have quite a stockpile of art questions in my inbox. I’m sorry that I haven’t been as quick to answer as you would like but I’m afraid my personal life is starting to get rather busy again. Here’s the truth about having teenagers: they can require more time than younger kids. Do I hear a collective yell out there?
After the age of ten, my kids started to pursue sports with more intensity. That combined with homework and for my eldest (a junior in high school faced with the dreaded battery of pre-college tests) their lives have gotten busy. I’m lucky. My kids are pretty darn good natured (they get that from their dad) and seem pretty responsible but still, it gets real busy.
So in keeping with the kid-centered theme, here’s a question from Lindsey:
Hi Patty,
I’m a big fan and love your blog. You seem to juggle family and work well and I’m hoping to do the same. I have 3 kids, 9,7 & 3, and teach at two different locations for our school. I’m part time, but always seem to be working and racing to get everything done. Any tips on being a mom of 3 and an art teacher?
All the best!
Lindsey
Hi Lindsey,
This was my exact scenario when I first began teaching. Actually, my first year, I only worked at one school for a total of 9 whole hours. I seriously thought I couldn’t get any busier. My daughter was in Kindergarten and my boys were in 3rd and 5th grade. The next year, I increased my hours by taking on a second school. Strangely enough, I found it better. Maybe it was because my children were in school all day and I didn’t have to arrange after-school child care.
Now having said that, here’s what I really think. Every woman handles the different stages of their children’s lives differently. There are no sure fire tips except for one: Don’t try to be perfect. If you were to visit my house right this very minute you would find laundry over every available flat surface, dirty dishes in the sink, homework papers scattered around and basically a pretty messy house. But I don’t care. I love my house, and it’s clean most of the time, but I don’t stress about it. It’s where we live and I don’t care to make it look like we don’t.
As an art teacher, I never had to bring work home with me. I did most of my planning during breaks or after school. When I go home, my attention is on the kids. Remember the dirty dishes? Around 5 o’clock each day, I turn on the Oprah Show, tidy up the kitchen and prepare dinner. It takes about an hour. Trick is to combine the lousiest tasks with a task you love. I love cooking so cleaning up becomes a necessary ingredient to that. Whereas, trying to do the breakfast dishes while getting 3 kids and myself off to work would be far too stressful.
Basically, you just need to find out what works for you and develop a consistent schedule. Your mother or mother-in-law might have said this to you at one point: “Kids crave routine.” I think this is true and it’s the one thing that I can say that truly has worked for me. Keep it simple and keep it consistent.
Good luck, Lindsey!
As kids get older, it doesn’t get easier, it is just a shift of time management. At least when they are little they are in bed earlier. When my son was a jr & sr in high school I would be a wreck over his lack of sleep and stress getting ready for AP tests, papers, college essays, etc. If he was at the computer until 3am working on a paper, I would lie in bed listening to him and trying to get him to give it up and go to bed. And then there are, as you said, sporting events, concerts, college financed workshops, etc. But he’s a senior in college now, and generally day-to-day I don’t even talk to him or see him, unless I check what he’s up to on facebook. But when things go wrong they go REALLY wrong, and the parenting is just as important as when he was little. Recently it was a combo of complete computer failure (and he’s taking a programming class), losing his wallet w/everything in it, the long-time girlfriend breaking up, tons of snow (he and friends rent a house), rising gas prices, and super-stress and lack of sleep. And I’m hours away, but he still needs mom at these times to help him put things in perspective and figure out what to do first to solve the crisis. So on a school night I end up on the phone doing crisis management at 1AM. And still get up in the morning. Sorry to go on like this!!
Oh no! People keep telling me it will get easier. I teach art full time and have a 7, 5 and 2 year old. My house is always a disaster. I never know if I am coming or going. I am also very involved in my church. I teach Sunday School, VBS, and volunteer a lot. But I love my life and wouldn’t trade anything! (Just wish I had enough money for a maid and a cook!)
I am reading “The Art of Teaching Art to children” by Nancy Beal.
She advocates teaching painting without drawing first and allowing kids to explore their imagination and memories of holidays and their own experiences etc.
It seems like a very different approach to your own.
What do you think?
Gail
The most important question is, what do you think? Teaching art is personal and unique to everyone. I think the author probably has a good point. Exploring emotions without the mechanics of drawing is a good way to paint, but it’s not for me. I teach in a classroom setting, and if I took a relatively unstructured approach like this, then my kids would be done in about 5 minutes! I haven’t read the book so it’s unfair to make a general statement, but I feel pretty confident that I offer all my students (K-6) the opportunity to paint from many viewpoints.
My personal mission statement is to teach cool art techniques, have fun and respect the children. I don’t get too hung up on analyzing my teaching methods. Hopefully, it all works out in the end!
I read this book a few years ago and took away a few practical tips for supplies. Beals classroom style is laissez faire, as she has more time with her students to allow for a more explorative approach, which would not work in a one 40 minute class per week. The students can do the exploring of ideas and emotions during “down time” in art, heck, they would do it all the time, if we let them free draw! Not for me, I’m with Patty!
Oh my goodness, The Lord must have had me wake up for a reason (it’s 4:00 a.m.) that was to find this post ! I was logging on to find something to teach for a Mother’s day project. (Any ideas? it’s gotta be cheap but a big WOW factor), I would love to do something with clay, like a vase for flowers, but we don’t have a kiln.)
I was stressing out today as I left my one school with my packed rolling cart and have to go to my other school tomorrow. I, too, have taken on a 2nd school this year. I have 500 students at one school and 540 at the other.
I am a mom of three kids also (20, 15, 13). I had to find a way to make more money to help out with the college bills for our oldest.
I don’t have my credential and only get paid what the PTA can raise for art. I feel like I am there all day and only get paid 1/2 of what the teachers get paid. I wish i would have taken time to get my teaching credential but now doesn’t seem to be the time. College tuition for my child is a higher priority than college tuition for an almost 50 year old!
With the kids sports schedules, and me working 5 days a week now, it seems like everything is always half done. When I was only working three days a week, I was able to manage the house better. The off days were used to plan my lessons, purchase supplies, schedule orthodontist appointments and clean the house. Food was on the table and there was no clutter, except for my art projects.
Now there are breakfast dishes, laundry, mail, bills, sports equipment AND art projects. The part that is difficult is that I love my job and don’t want to give it up. The students get so excited when they see me rolling up with my art cart. They can’t wait to see if it’s their classes’ day for art.
At home as a stay at home Mom for so many years, I did the mundane housework jobs with no “OOOOS and AHHS ” for a clean sink or an empty laundry basket at the end of the day. With teaching, there is nothing greater than seeing the kids’ reaction to the way Kosher Salt makes water color SPARKLE into starbursts or the joy in the child’s face as he hold up a drawing and say,”I can’t believe I drew this, I thought it was going to be hard!”
Trying to find the balance is something I am always trying to do. I have new appreciation for moms that work full time. I was always the mom on my kid’s field trips and at every elementary school function, room mom etc. As the kids leave elementary school, you are not needed as much for jr. high and it just seemed to be a good transition for me to work more. The extra small income makes a difference in the stress of bills. So it’s trying to find things that i can multi task and do. I cut water color paper at night while watching American Idol my teenage daughter, that’s our date each week. I sharpen crayon or pencils while sitting at my son’s baseball games. The crock pot has become a great friend when I remember to use it.
This web site has become a huge blessing to me. I am thankful for Patty and her time she puts into posting useful information. For years I sat for hours trying to create ideas for projects. My only inspiration were the Usborne Art books that I would buy. At my school every lesson has to be completed start to finish in an hour (or 1:15 for older kids 3rd – 5th) so that limits what I can teach. I can’t teach any two session projects.
Patty, you truly are amazing! How you can teach, parent, have a passion for cooking and attend your kids’ events, plus write a book on top of writing two different websites is beyond me.
Thank you again for the encouragement. We all need it.
This is the only site I can pull up at school and I feel soo fortunate to have found it. I have been teaching for 12 years(k- 5) and have my Masters in Art ed. I am very lucky to have a job! My children are 33,31 and 26. I have a great respect for teachers that have kids still living at home – I do not know how they do it all. Thank you Patty for all you do on this site – I would love to meet you some day!
I think you would like The Art of Teaching Art. I don’t think there is any contradiction. Any good teaching is a matter of instinct and always wanting to do better, always trying to hit that sweet spot, where the kids are completely engaged in their work, you can almost see the brain growing. I believe the students learn as much from the teacher’s attitude as from the lesson – when the teacher values good work, beauty and creativity, and is always interested in learning. Surrounding the children with good work – have you tried showing children slides of great art? that is where a digital projector has no substitute. You can learn about an artist and the work, and children are uncannily perceptive – have each child tell something about the picture. If they are shy ask what their favorite part is. It is inspiring as well for the art activity. I think the only way to teach art badly is to have a situation in which you are saying, “no.”
I love having a life outside of school and school to think about while I am at home.
When one stresses, the other calms.
Every evening is a negotiation of who is driving where&when&time for the next day. Lovely chaos with teens! The best part is seeing how much they are changing, just like the toddler years!
Patty, when you say to get “small, medium and large round watercolor brushes (for tempera projects as well), large wash (or mop) brush and stiff large brushes” what sizes are you talking about? I am a K classroom teacher, not an art teacher, so I am a bit bewildered by all the sizes when I search online for brushes.
Thanks!
Great question. An all-pupose size 8 or 10 round brush is great for any type of tempera or watercolor project (bigger is better for the little ones). I also like the stubby brushes that you might find in the pre-school section of craft stores for painted paper projects. With just these two brushes, you can accommodate a lot of art.