“Progress always involves risk. You can’t steal second base and keep one foot on first base.” -Journalist, Robert Quillen
When high values are placed on achievement, there can form an intense desire for guaranteed success. With this growing desire for success almost always comes a reluctance to experiment or be original; these avenues have a high failure rate. We sometimes see this reluctance to risk as children learn to copy a masterfully drawn eye or anime figure. It’s easier to work from a flat drawing to make a flat drawing than it is to translate a three-dimensional object to a flat drawing. Children who have attained a great amount of accuracy through the first method may balk at being presented with the idea of drawing from direct observation of source material. Yet, to progress in art one needs to learn to draw from the source. Drawing from a source has huge advantages for the artist. It presents more detail, more options for variety, and more choices of subject matter. It requires higher thinking skills to interpret three-dimensions to two-dimensions. It is ultimately the method an artist must use to avoid copyright infringement. Artists are original thinkers. To be creative, artists must take risks. Not all artworks produced from risk taking are successful, yet risk is from where all the greatest artworks originated. Children must learn to take the risks required to be original if they want to do anything in the arts publicly. So how can we encourage this type of creative risk taking in our children?
- Start with a few areas or tasks that require decision making. Make sure that these are areas where you can “let go” and not voice your own opinion. Then let go. Approve of the fact that they made a choice and allow them to follow through. For some of you, giving your children freedom to make choices on the small things is natural. For those who provide absolute control and always have the last say, it may take real thought before you come up with areas of control that you can give to your children.
- In art lessons, provide the balance. You child does not need a say in whether the lesson is done or how it is presented. Those are your choices. But, set aside achievement through copying for the greater goal; achievement in creating something original. Once you have been involved in the presentation of the lesson, practice a hands off approach when it’s time to produce art. Let your child try out her own ideas. Lower the risk factor for her by pledging to not make negative comments or offering unwanted suggestions for improvement. By working out their own ideas, children will be more comfortable with risk and learn from both their mistakes and their successes.
Brenda Ellis is author and illustrator of the ARTistic Pursuits art program for children, which has become a staple in the homeschool community for 20 years. Her combined experience as a homeschool mom and classroom art teacher of twenty years has been used to help families get a great art education at home. You can contact Brenda by email at: alltheanswers@artisticpursuits.com