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| Open studio drawing on First Friday in the Journey Art Gallery classroom. |
Every month our visitor amaze me! The question this past
First Friday and the responses it generated should be a wake-up call to
parents, teachers, administrators and those in government who think they know
what is best to teach and test in our schools. The question was: Name a subject, skill or topic you feel should
be a mandatory requirement to graduate High School. Reading the list of
answers, we seem to be failing our young people big time as far as preparing
them to become adults. If these products of our educational system go on to
become teachers themselves, without the skills we feel they need to know, when
will the cycle be broken so it can be “fixed” with the information in place to
make our world better?
Back in the 1970’s, programs were added to our schools that
fell under some type of classification whose content included practical life
skills. Not woodshop or home economics type of information (still divided by
gender in those days…no girls in woodshop which is where I wanted to be), but programs
for students whose plans did not include continuing on to college. Programs such
as these taught the stuff all of us should have learned before putting on that
cap and gown (which in my case was a bright gold so I looked an oversized
banana). Back in the day, our parents were still involved, but not helicopters
or bulldozers by any means. They set examples of how to go to work, keep a
house, maintain friendships, step in with advice but get out of the way when we
had to fight our own battles, watched our grades, but not harass our teachers
and so on. Somewhere along the lines, that system fell apart and a subject of
some of my past postings so no repeat rantings here. (You’re welcome)
64 answers to our question were actually written onto the
chalkboards, but I overheard many more say that their choice was already on the
board so they did not contribute. It may be time to allow for tally marks to
indicate repeats. Before I get to the
list however, a few sentences about our Community Participation Project and upcoming
events related to them.
The project this month was to create a fusion of colors and
shapes as determined by the numbers that turned up on three dice. (Yes, I know
that “dice” is not the plural form, but the plural is awkward and not used by
most people so I will suffer the grammatical wounds and use the more plebeian
tense.) Each month I learn more about how people think and how much joy they
get from doing something so simple but that can have a big impact. When limited
to one shape and a specific number of them, decisions held greater importance.
If given an unlimited number and choice of any shapes, participants were not as
invested in their overall location…the restriction of these options became a personal
design challenge and created a sense of belonging to a greater whole. Simple
lessons were learned….some people can’t let go of the grid, some don’t want
their piece touching others, colors appear to change sometimes, optical
illusions are created, edges are sacred…..the power of a little piece of paper!
The final product is a dazzling neon fusion unachievable by any planned
process. It had to grow organically and haphazardly over a period of hours.
All of our projects (the stick figures, the jelly-wish, the heArt
attack, the loom weaving (now finished to 9 x 3.5 feet off the frame), the
great square inches, the fusion and many, many Pollock pieces) will be on sale
starting June 27th and continuing through mid-July, to raise money
to fund more projects. Our July project
will be outside as the Snarky Studio will be filled with about 23 or so of
Hoard Couture dress series. Now on to the answers!
Name a subject, skill or topic you feel should be a mandatory requirement
to graduate High School.
I have tried to divide these in to relevant categories….
Traditional: how to spell (2 votes) – be able to read
– handwriting 101 – primary English speaker – cosmetology – roman numerals –
cursive – speaking – more math – art history/appreciation – art (2) – theater –
play an instrument – learn guitar – US citizenship
Personal: meditation – self love – self control –
self respect – yoga
Practical: vaccinations – drive a stick shift – boil
water – know how to swim – drive safely – spend a week in the woods exploring –
stand up comedy
Financial: banking – value of one cent –
self-sufficiency – balance a checkbook – live within means – credit management
– money management – budgeting – financial independence - make change for a dollar (without the use of
calculator or device…math done by brain power)
Social Skills: kindness to animals – how to be a good
listener - how to keep quiet when necessary – both sides of an argument – sense
of humor – that success takes time – time management – tolerance – grace –
manners – social skills – common sense 101 – morals – patience (2) –
responsibility – respect
Adulthood: parenting (2) – how to be an adult –
sexuality and genders - change a diaper
– relationship skills – alternatives to abstinence – spend time with and
respect elders
All good answers and observations. Thank you to all who come
by to participate and play.
