In Ms. Boccieri’s art class at IST, Thursday, February 24, was a “provocation” for creative thinking. The first graders are about to enter their 5th planner of the Year, “How We Express Ourselves”. By connecting with the book, Not A Box, by Antoinette Portis, the children learn to understand that we have to use our imagination to come up with big ideas. The bunny in this Caldecott winning book shows how much we can do with a simple box for performance (or fun) and how a ‘square’ can fit into lots of what we want to draw.
Next week, students will begin working with a “real” box to create mini stages for their upcoming theater unit. Ms. Boccieri is working collaboratively with Ms. Heard on the art of creative thinking of an actor and the artistry of stage design.
This will also help students understand ‘setting’ in their Literature classes, the importance of pre-planning with a mockup or first draft, and the power and practice of creative thinking.