In a little lesson last month about feelings, we discovered the value of painting and class collaboration.
Together, the class looked at an old, dark, modern painting that was graciously donated to our class from my sister.
How does this painting make you feel?
Right away, the hands went up!
“The colors make me feel sad.”- M
“Maybe the person who made that painting was lonely!”-R
“That painting makes me feel worried. The colors are not happy.” J
“The colors are dark, It makes me curious.” -A
I asked…
How can we make this painting feel better?
We talked about what they do to feel better! Hugs, playing with a pet, or going outside were the most popular feel better strategies.
Then, we brainstormed colors that made them feel joy and happiness. The class voted and analyzed the results.
With only two girls in a class of 13, light blue was in the lead. But, pink got a boost when Miss King and Miss Julie stepped in to even that color school.
The kids used different things to paint like sponges, small rollers, and stamps. They mixed colors, took broad strokes and worked together.
“It feels fun to make something bright!”
-R
“This painting feels like love”
-L
The perceptions and interpretations of the original painting were eye-opening. The painting process was remarkable.
We all noticed how long it took, and how much paint it took...to cover up all the darkness in the old painting.
One of my students had an “Ah-Ha!” Moment! It’s the same with bad feelings Miss King!!!
When somebody makes you feel bad… sometimes it is hard to forget. Sometimes sad feelings can last a long time… unless we talk about them.
We wrote about feelings in our journal and we shared gratitude to our classmates for being kind and helpful friends.
Soon the painting was done and the kids named it,
“World of Joy.”
This class project will be on display and at the annual St. Paul Auction! The kids had fun writing letters to their parents about how much this painting should cost.
The bidding will start somewhere in the middle of $5.00 dollars to $10,000,000.00! But, to me and these amazing little artists full of feelings and intuition, the process is priceless!
We know this painting will bring a lucky family a great deal of Joy! And as for the kids, it has created a new sense of emotional intelligence and the ability to be ok with talking about big feelings.
About the Auction:
St. Paul Christian School has been holding the Spring Fling Auction for over 20 years. This auction raises money for scholarships to our school as well as capital improvements to the program.
This year our auction will open for online bidding through the GiveSmart online fundraising platform, on Friday, May 7th. It will wrap up with our Spring Fling Family Fun Night on Friday, May 14th at the school. We will have games, food trucks and all the auction items on display. If you would like to view and bid in the auction, you can go to https://spcs2021.givesmart.com to register to bid.
We hope you will join us and make this event a tremendous success!
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