Art criticism and aesthetics can be tricky to do on student work in an elementary room, as from my observation this year it is very difficult to keep students on the same page if a project goes on for more than a few days. Student attendance is a big issue right now and one that instructors have to work around, and it’s hard to take the time to have the same kind of critique you could have with a larger student body. What has been successful is providing some time for students who have completed their work to reflect on their success and struggles with some guided self-critiques, which helps to push writing and use of academic language.
What has worked great is showcasing fun and flashy examples of art subjects at the beginning of class when students have about ten minutes of unbroken attention they are ready to provide. I was able to witness some great examples of landscape criticism in an elementary setting this year, where students were presented a large landscape photograph as a group and worked together to identify different parts of the image and what made it a successful image. I think it’s important to at least ask these types of questions to provoke students minds and get them asking aesthetic questions as they look at art and the world around them so that when they get to higher grades they will have a foundation to build upon in more robust aesthetic writing and discussions.
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