I was talking to a colleague the other day about a similar experience with our school art teachers. Rather, we were commiserating over that experience. We had art teachers who told us we’d never amount to anything. We would never do anything in art or learn how to do proper artwork. It caught my attention that I’ve been hearing a similar complaint from parents and students. They hate art and they blame their art teachers for it. I didn’t have to wonder too much to find an answer. 

Our job as educators is to deliver the information in a way that reaches the students. We have to be versatile. We have to be creative and adaptive.

In teaching, one size does not fit all.

It pays to learn how students learn so we can adapt our strategies to fit them. That still doesn’t answer the question of why children have started to hate art. When I look around at how some of us teach art, I can see why.  

1. The content is too difficult! Oftentimes, we make the mistake of teaching subjects that are too advanced for a child’s age. That only leads to frustration. As both the child and teacher struggle with what should be a fun learning experience. Concepts like shading and perspective have their time and place in the art room.

They’re important, I can’t deny that. But there is a time and place for it. A child of 5 can learn the simple concept of above and below the horizon line. But a child of 5 or 6 doesn’t have the awareness to understand what a 3 dimensional object is on a plane surface. A child of 7 can learn that far objects appear smaller. We build on the same concept as children grow and their abilities grow with them. 

1. The content is too boring! Another mistake we make is trying to teach subjects that are too boring for children. Instead we should be focusing on what they’d enjoy learning. In all my years of working with children I’ve never once heard a child say I want to draw a portrait or a still life object. Children say I want to draw animals, unicorns, mermaids, volcanos or anime characters. Those are fun subjects we can use to teach important concepts in art  

1. Not enough variety in the media taught! Not all children will enjoy drawing and painting and some prefer a more hands on approach. Instead we should provide a large variety of materials. that will allow children to explore and find what excites them. The world of art is more than watercolours and acrylic paint. 

Children also enjoy building sculptures with cardboard and clay. They love making mosaics and accessories. Why should we limit them to only one or two mediums. when there is a whole world of fun materials they can explore and learn from. Not only will that keep them interested. it will foster their imagination, creativity and problem solving skills. So it’s a win on all fronts

1. The class is too long! young children have a short attention span. They get tired and bored after a while. The shorter classes allow them to enjoy the class. It will also respect their physical abilities to sit through it. Young children can’t sit still and we shouldn’t expect them to do so. It’s in their nature to want to run around and explore. And an art class should be fun and invite them to exploit that nature. 

When I was a child myself, I loved art. Every chance I got, I would get a white piece of paper and start drawing. I didn’t think anything could make me hate it, but a teacher I once had did. He couldn’t teach me and in his frustration he told me I’ll never make it as an artist. I had no business being in an art class.

So I listened and for a whole year I couldn’t even look at a pencil. I can’t imagine where I’d be today if I had continued to listen to him. I also can’t imagine what the world would miss out on if all those children gave up on art because we couldn’t do our job.

Art is magic and it should remain as such for all the kids out there. So let’s make sure they find the right fit. The right class that respects their abilities, their interests and their age limitations. Let’s keep that magic alive for them, sign up for one of our art class and watch grow up and change the world.