Fun Idea

At the beginning of the school year I saw a post on Facebook about a boy whose mom wrote affirmations on each of his pencils. I thought it was a brilliant idea to help promote positive self esteem, so I wrote on all of my pencils in the art room. I wasn't sure if the kids would even notice, but they had joyful looks on their faces and they read their own pencil and then asked the kids near them what their pencils said. It was very fun to watch. 

I use black Sharpie on the yellow pencils, and silver Sharpie on the black pencils.

I learned the hard way that  they must be sealed or the Sharpie will rub off after one class. It is hard to come up with dozens of unique affirmations, so I found this site with a list of positive things to say to students.

Apron Art Room Hack

Here is another great idea to share. I actually saw this at a Home Depot Kids' Workshop. One of the other parents did it for their child and I thought it was brilliant. I have been using the idea in my classroom for years now. 

All of my aprons are adult size, so for the smaller kids I put on waist tie through the neck before tying it. This pulls the top of the apron higher on the child to protect more of their shirt and I don't have to buy two sizes of aprons. 

Another Brilliant Idea

I forgot about one of my good ideas this year! I was lucky enough to get some money donated to my program. My first instinct was to get something to help with clay presentation. I found these great phone/tablet stands on eBay. A two pack was only 99 cents! I purchased enough for one grade level to be displayed at a time. They work awesome!

They fold up so that they don't take up much space while not in use and it makes them super flexible for slab style projects of many sizes!

Brilliant Ideas of the Year

Every now and then I have an idea that transforms my teaching and/or organization. This year I actually had a couple of them, although I can't take credit for one of these ideas.

1. While in college I spent some time as a server at a couple of different restaurants. We used a product called a Ketchup Coupler to combine the ketchup in the bottles to reduce waste. Hello, paint jugs! Now, this doesn't work quite as beatifully as I imagined because the top of the bottle is a bit larger than a ketchup bottle, but it does work and has already saved me some paint. I got mine as a two pack online for less than $15 (I don't remember exactly). 

2. We have a new art teacher this year, whom I get to mentor. She has a broad background and extensive knowledge in ceramics. She told me that there is a type of underglaze that DOESN'T stick to the kiln! It's called velvet underglaze, and it isn't glossy when fired. My mind is blown, and I now have a pint of black velvet underglaze that I use to paint students' names on the bottom of their projects. No more trying to read carved names!