When student council asked for pictures of the first few weeks of
school to add to a slide show for later today, I sent off the ones displayed here.
The
current students I have in class now are not new to our choice-based art studio. I am
currently working with 6th and 8th graders only (next semester I will see the 5th & 7th graders). These veterans know their way
around the studio and returned to school with ideas and ambition,
ready to start in where they left off last spring. 
We
have had about 5 weeks of school. How is it possible that all this
varied activity is packed into so short time frame?
The
answer is: ChoiceThat, and an unusually warm September, which allowed our studio to expand into the backyard on many occasions.
In these first few weeks of school, students have chosen to explore new media and techniques and have returned to favorite materials, tools and resources. They pursue both new and familiar subjects and/or practice to improve skills. All of these creative styles and approaches are evident in the photos included here.
Sometimes
I am too busy to take photos, and miss the opportunity to illustrate
really good learning. In one 6th-grade class today a student learned to use the sewing
machine for the first time and another finished a small woven pouch that has been a work-in-progress for days and days, Near-by an exuberant friend-group found they had to problem-solve what to do with papier-mache' helmet-masks too
soggy to try on ("we NEED them for TONIGHT!!!")
While all that was going on, across the room, two students tested the etching press and
another engineered and tested paper-straw arrows so they would fly true from his
redesigned hand-made cardboard bow.
