teaching art

I teach elementary school art in Ranney School, an independent school in New Jersey. What a perfect fit this career has become for me. As passionate as I feel about art and creativity, I become even more inspired by the work of my students. I asked my 5th graders last spring to define creativity and here are some of their wonderful thoughts.

“Creativity is like an empty world with nothing in it and you use your brain full of ideas to fill it.” - Gordon R.

“Creativity is an instinct. Everyone has it. Creative people are just people who dare to use their instinct of creativity. The people that say they are not creative are just people who don’t let their creativity thrive.”-James G.

“Creativity is when you get lost in your work and have fun.” - Ben S.

“Creativity is knowledge doing its own thing.” – John L.

“Without creativity life would be dull. I like to make things up and draw what I like and feel. I like to sketch characters and animals. Creativity isn’t art; it’s a way of life.” – Peter W.

“When I think of creativity, I think of beautiful paintings and works of art. Creativity helps people express themselves. It means tons of bright colors and beautiful designs. When someone is creative they spend time on their work so that it can be perfected in different ways. Everyone is creative in their own way.” - Emerson G.

“Creativity means being able to express yourself freely.” - Anna C.

“Creativity means a spark, an idea, and having your own style. I love to dance, sing and act. In dance, creativity is moving to your own beat or when you do improv which is making a dance up on your own as you go. You have to put emotion into it. In acting, you have to put creativity into being the character and be the character, not the actor. In singing you don’t always have to belt it out. You should put your own voice into it. Overall, creativity means be yourself.” – Sarah P.

“Creativity lets you express yourself in any way you want. I feel creative when I play the violin. Even though I didn’t write the songs I play, I love the feeling of knowing that I can play the song. I feel accomplished when I play a piece well.”  – Samantha J.

What does creativity mean to you?

To see this original post and stories about our projects, click on this link for my school blog:
Mrs. Levine's Art Room


And here is a link to the Ranney School home page at artsonia.com to see all of our projects from every grade. Just seeing what my students can do should inspire all of us!
Ranney School Art