I call this activity the Summer Vacation Graffiti project. It is a great starter lesson – a quickie to get art on the school walls. It is technically not graffiti, which is a type of spray painted calligraphy using text, but it can be – words can be incorporated.

Students are asked to draw images that relate to what they did on their summer vacation. We reference the principles of art to compose the space of their final copies.

This was the very first video I made in September 2020 for that year of teaching remotely. I do cringe at some parts – specifically my drawing. (and of course, the way my eyes look like I don’t know where the camera is or the way I can’t remember the easiest word or some dumb thing) OMG, it was so hard to draw with the paper taped to the wall. I guess I should have rehearsed it first, but who has the time for that? Also, no lighting props, lol.

I was in a tiny music practice room adjacent to the faculty bathroom.

Usually when I do this lesson, I have samples of previous work to share. And when we do it in class, we don’t jump ahead to the next and the next step. It is not a race to finish.

One thing I cannot teach is that amazing feeling I get when I am drawing. You will either have it or not. Kids will say, “That’s so satisfying,” when it happens to them, which I love! <3