Don't Judge a Box By It's Cover

Given a cigar box (or any box really) students designed the outside to represent how they are perceived by others, and the inside represented how they know themselves to be. They were encouraged to work symbolically and to incorporate found objects and small items from home to embellish their work.

We begin every art exploration with some writing. In this case it was the creation of two lists. One describing how others perceive us to be (including potential prejudices) and another list of things we know to be true about ourselves. The latter being things maybe only best friends and family know, or even secrets. To preserve personal privacy, I let students know they could write in code so even I might not know what symbols mean but they should be honest with themselves in their lists so work would have more depth.

When lists were complete, I shared what our exploration would be. They chose boxes from those I found in my classroom, but homework could have been to bring in a small box. These were then sketched from several angles and included symbols and items they could decorate their box with. My students were encouraged to bring inexpensive items from home that carried personal meaning, but I had many items available in my room:

·         Magazines
·         Access to a printer
·         Colored construction, fabric scraps, and tissue paper
·         Acrylic paint and pens
·         Craft items like beads, shells, ribbon, feathers, etc.

​When sketches were complete, students sought out 2 opinions about their ideas from peers before working on actual boxes. They were also expected to get my initials on their sketch as final approval. If I saw anything that might be unrealistic or inappropriate, I could address it and offer some alternate ideas before students dove into supplies.

As they worked, I went around asking about their symbols, offering additional suggestions, feedback, or praise. One thing we found important was to have several gluing options. Elmer’s was not always the best choice, so I had glue sticks, spray adhesive, tape, and hot glue available. When projects seemed to be about 50% or more done, we took some time to share our work with 2 peers and get additional suggestions/feedback. This helped some re-focus, share tips that worked for them, and get helpful feedback before finishing work.

As you can see, work was highly personal, individualized, yet all fell under the same overall guidelines. By tying outcomes to students experiences, point of view, and personality, diversity is assured. 

If these kind of art explorations interest you, consider exploring this blog a bit more or using the links to the right for my published resources you can keep and copy for yourself.