February is Black History Month, an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. This year’s theme "African Americans and the Arts" highlights the many contributions Black Americans have had on the arts, cultural movements and more.
At Tinkergarten we know that artistic expression and creativity are critical skills—not only for artists or musicians, but also for kids as a way of thinking about and being in the world. Introducing kids to the work of diverse artists helps kids to see the infinite possibilities for how and what they can create and provides models for how they can remain creative throughout their lives.
In honor of this year’s Black History Month, we share this activity inspired by the work and techniques of Noah Purifoy, a visual artist and sculptor and co-founder of the Watts Towers Art Center and the Noah Purifoy Outdoor Desert Art Museum. He remains best known for his assemblage works, art that is created by assembling various everyday objects that he had collected. Purifoy spent the last 15 years of his life creating ten acres full of large-scale sculpture made from junked materials on the desert floor. His installation is considered to be one of California’s great art historical wonders.
As featured in our February Activity Calendar, in this activity, kids take inspiration from Purifoy's work as they assemble found and natural objects into sculptures.
If you do not yet have your free copy of the February Activity Calendar, download it here.
The Guide
Step 1: Get inspired!
Look at images of Noah Purifoy’s artwork with kids. Ask kids what they notice about the sculptures. What materials do they think he used to create his art? Where do they think he found the pieces? How do they think he connected the pieces together? How does his art make them feel?
Step 2: Collect objects.
Gather objects from around the home that kids can use to assemble their sculptures. Some ideas: recycled containers, bottle tops, corks, wood pieces, and/or cardboard boxes. Then, head outside to gather some natural materials kids can add to their assemblage, such such sticks, pine cones, evergreen sprigs, leaves or flowers.
Take a moment to look at all the pieces together. What shapes, colors and designs do kids see? What do the pieces look like or remind kids of? What can kids imagine with the objects?
Step 3: Assemble!
Offer a sturdy base on which kids can build. If kids would like to simply arrange their objects, you can offer a tabletop, the floor or a flat area outside. If kids would like to glue or tape their pieces together, offer a piece of cardboard, wood slab or a cardboard box as a base.
Gather up all the materials you collected and invite kids to start assembling their sculpture!
Step 4: Support the creative process.
Step back and let kids lead the creative process. If your sculpture topples or they are struggling to arrange the pieces, frame it as a chance to problem solve and try something new. You can say something like, “Oh, your sculpture fell. I wonder how we could make it even stronger/more balanced this time.” As feels supportive, offer materials like tape, string or glue to help attach and secure the objects together.
Step 5: Share your creations.
Take photos and share your creations with friends, making sure to include the name of the artist who inspired them. What a wonderful way to honor Noah Purifoy for his contributions and get friends more curious about creativity! If you do share them publicly, be sure to tag #Tinkergarten. We'd love to cheer on your creative process!
Why is this activity great for kids?
Learning through trial and error and sticking with the task of arranging objects into a sculpture is great practice in persistence. Sticking with the task of building or working with materials develops kids’ capacity for focus and self-control. Sculpture building is also a great way for kids to work on problem solving and STEM learning (e.g. concepts of balance and the effects of gravity). Finally, introducing kids to the work of diverse artists helps kids to see the infinite possibilities for how and what they can create and provides models for how they can remain creative throughout their lives.
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By creativity, we mean the ability to both imagine original ideas or solutions to problems and actually do what needs to be done to make them happen. So, to help kids develop creativity, we parents need to nurture kids' imaginations and give them lots of chances to design, test, redesign and implement their ideas.
"Creativity is as important now in education as literacy, and we should treat it with the same status.”
Why, you ask? For one, it is through being creative that a person is able to get senses, sensibility and spirit working together. Simply put, without creativity, we don't think our kids will live a full life.
On a more practical level, it's also the means by which humans of all ages make an impact on the world and other people around them. A lot of heavy stuff is going to go down in our kids' lifetime, and their generation will need to imagine and implement solutions to big and very complicated problems. Although our kids are still far from public office or the boardroom, today's political and business leaders worldwide are already pointing to creativity as the most important leadership quality for the future.
Although years from the art studio or design lab, little kids can learn to think and act creatively if you give them time and the right practice.
Problem Solving
Category:
Thinking Skills
What are Problem Solving Skills?
When we talk about problem solving, we mean the ability to solve a problem in which the solution is not obvious and in which the possible paths to solution are many. To solve such problems, kids will need two things. First, they’ll need the self confidence and comfort to both attempt to find and persist in finding a solution. The only way to develop this is to be given the chance to struggle with ambiguous situations or open-ended problems. We parents are all guilty, from time to time, of helping kids avoid struggle or swooping in to alleviate frustration when our kid encounters challenge. The goal is actually to do the opposite whenever possible. As long as the problem is not too difficult to understand or challenging to solve, even young kids can get comfortable with the feeling of not knowing the solution and fall in love with the joy of finding a solution to a problem.
Kids also need strategies to attack problems with which they are faced. If adults are able to work with kids to solve problems “as a team” but in such a way that the children feel and act “in charge” of the decisions, adults can actually teach foundation problem solving skills and strategies through modeling. For example, when you solve a problem together, kids get practice with key parts of the process like brainstorming, testing ideas, revision and solution. It’s also pretty easy to model how to use simple strategies like trial and error or breaking a problem down into smaller parts. Although children age 1 to 7 should not be expected to name, catalog or identify when to use a particular problem solving strategy, they are able to form habits and repeat approaches once those habits or approaches have become familiar. The more problems they solve, the better they know and can use these methods.
Why does it matter?
“The highest ranked skills for students entering the workforce were not facts and basic skills; they were applied skills that enable workers to use the knowledge and basic skills they have acquired” (Source: Are They Really Ready for Work? Conference Board 2006).
Although it seems a long way to go before our young children are hitting the job market, the ability to solve challenging, ambiguous problems has already been identified as a critical skill for success in the 21st Century. With advances in technology, finding information has never been easier. However, knowing how to interpret a problem and use available information to devise a solution still needs to be learned. And, we fear that the classrooms of today are neither designed nor incentivized to teach these skills effectively. In most schools, so much time is spent learning discrete skills, that applied skills like problem solving are wildly underemphasized. In a world that demands it, it is increasingly necessary that children learn and practice these skills outside of school.
Persistence & Grit
Category:
Social Skills
What are Persistence & Grit?
A persistent person can continue on a given course of action in spite of challenges or barriers that arise. In other words, persistence is the ability to stick with something and keep trying. It's partner, grit, is the strength of character, and sometimes courage, to allow one to persist. Those who possess grit don't mind rolling up their sleeves, focusing on the task at hand, and sticking with it to completion despite the challenges that come their way.
Why does it matter?
Talent is helpful, but it's hard work, persistence and grit that unlock talent and turn capable people into success stories. As Thomas Edison so famously said, "Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration." Practice with being persistent, including the chance to struggle and learn how to overcome struggle, will help kids later have ability to wade through and make sense of confusing new information, navigate difficult situations, and solve tough problems.
Further, studies like those discussed in Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman's NurtureShock tell us that kids will actually perform better when we praise their hard work instead of just telling them how smart or great they are. As parents, we also tend to offer kids activities which are enjoyable and attainable and, as such, too easy. Bear in mind that if we spare them frustration, we actually deny them the chance to work hard and develop persistence and grit.
Age: 0 to 8+
Time: 1 hour+
Materials: recycled and natural objects; flat area to build; glue or tape (optional)
