Lawrence Schaedler-Bahrs

Art 133
Unit 4 Paper
3/16/17
Unit 4: Play
Play is important. It is a freeing agent, from the doom and gloom of everyday life. It is a

core part of humanity. From the ancient cave dwellers to modern city dwellers, we all indulge in

playful activities. As humans, it becomes an exercise for the mind, body and soul. It allows for a

development of adventurousness and encourages risk, unlocking often hidden doors within ones

humanity. Madan Kataria, a physician in Mumbai, India as quoted by Daniel Pink (2006), says,

When you are playful, you are activating the right side of your brain. The logical brain is a

limited brain. The right side is unlimited. You can be anything you want (186). When we play,

we become limitless in our possibilities. Playing as artists is especially essential, as it allows for

experimentation with materials and techniques as well as testing boundaries concerning rules and

structure. It gets the creative juices flowing. Douglas and Jaquith (2009) explore this notion of

play in terms of the art classroom and how teachers allow students, through choice based

learning, to explore mediums, methods, etc, and allow them to develop as artists. Art that is

created from the meaningful context of young artists lives enhances relevancy and authenticity.

Students who maintain control over their work are invested and have incentives to take risks.

Resulting artwork is often powerful and profound. The most radical method of this choice based

teaching and learning curriculum is full choice. It gives students full ownership of process,

direction, and outcomes including media selection, content and etc. (22). Modified choice is the

next most freeing concerning exploration but allows for some reigns to be held by the teacher as

the teacher is flexible but still either choices the media or content to be presented. No choice is
the most rigid, with the teacher choosing all media and content (22).Playing is essential in any

case, whether it be in general, as human or as a budding artist. It allows for a exploration of who

we are and who we can be.

Play in the primary education art setting, can be adapted by me through a mixture of

modified choice based learning and full choice. I would like my children to be able to explore the

artwork and themselves, however I feel as though age should be taken into account. Younger

children would benefit more from full choice as they have yet to be put into a box so to speak,

by society and its constraints, so they can still explore mediums and be free to develop as artists.

Older children have developed a rigid frame of mind due to current educational standards that

emphasize no choice method, in which they need direction. I feel as they can be brought out of

this rigid framework through subtle methods and ease.

References
Pink, D. H. (2006). A whole new mind: moving from the information age to the conceptual age.
New York: Riverhead Books
Douglas, K. M. and Jaquith D. B. (2009). Engaging Learners Through Artmaking: Choice-Based
Art Education in the Classroom. New York: Teachers College Press.