I have recently taken a course in Art therapy and have started using this to help my two adopted children manage their feelings through art mediums.
We have two journals, one is an art journal and the other is a nature journal. Both are dotted on the inside to help the girls plan their layout and keep their sentences as straight as possible. I also have a huge box full of bits and pieces, such as paper that would normally go into the recycling bin, plastic, card stock, washi tape, numerous pens and pencils, paints and even wool, fabric and an old book.
Our art journal is really a secret therapy journal, I encourage them to try different pieces of art medium, such as water color, acrylics, mixed media, mosaics, Mandalas and so on. We have studied artists such as Van Gogh and his Starry Night painting, learning all about where he was when he drew and painted these paintings. We have looked at drawing flowers, insects, trees, including paper folding too! But interspersed within these journals are deeper works where we focus on our feelings, wishes, worries and how we can resolve them.
Just yesterday we made a jar full of emotions drawing, drawing the outside of the bottle and then little pencil circles inside. I then asked them to describe an emotion by colors, Happy was yellow, angry was red and so forth. I also chose the word Dark, and explained that this was a feeling that made us feel so low, we wanted to cry or feel so sad that nothing seemed to make us smile. Well, I was blown away as it triggered a shut down on my eldest daughter who immediately put her head on the table and wouldn’t talk or do anything for over half an hour.
I continued with the lesson and finished off the days journal and then quietly went over to chat with my daughter who was obviously in distress. By now, she had started drawing her jar with lots of dark circles and words that showed me she needed to talk...so we did talk...she let out all of her sadness and worries. After that she was back to her happy self again and she told me that she felt so much better after talking to me. We all have to remember that art is a medium to be able to express our innermost feelings and thoughts, this was an amazing opportunity for her to let go of some really sad memories and recover in a positive way.
I’ll talk about the Nature Journal in our next post, remember that this is a perfect way for kids to explore art, life and learn so many mini lessons in a fun and exciting journey. Perfect for every family regardless of whether you homeschool or not.
But I would never have known that I could do this, if I had not have met a good friend called Tina La Vallee from Tildenville Marketplace. Our adventure started early on this year when a group of amazing like minded women decided to launch We Make Creativity in Winter Garden, Florida. Together we want to share our love for arts, communities, children, older adults and those who may be disabled in some way or just want to learn a new skill, to join us all in bringing spirit, live and self love and belief that we can be creative.
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