Creating Effective Art Homework Ideas: Helpful Directions

Whether you are the most experienced teacher in the world or brand spanking new and newly-qualified coming up with effective Art homework ideas can feel like an impossible task. There are so many factors that you need to take into consideration, for example:

• The age of your students
• Their range of abilities
• The curriculum

Thankfully, you are by no means alone in your predicament. Here are some helpful directions to get you started:

Think about what you would have liked to have been tasked with

This is not as crazy as it sounds. Yes, your kids are different and times have moved on since you were a student. However, by coming up with a topic that gets your pulse racing, you are more likely to ignite their passion. Art students are notoriously zesty anyway, so it shouldn’t take much to get them fired up.

Keep your finger on the pulse

By tuning in to your class, you should pick up on the types of things that they would be interested in. You will likely have a mixed-ability group, so you need to come up with something that will stretch the minds and imaginations of the most capable while allowing those who need a little more time to produce work that they can be proud of.

Keep it simple

Some of the most beautiful works of arts have been spawned from the most simplistic of ideas. There is a tendency to think that everything needs to be intricate. However, that is not necessarily the case. By keeping it simple, you are empowering your students to run with your idea and turn it into a work that is original and of their own creation.

Research the web

There are an abundance of websites, many of which are government-sponsored that provide guidance and resources for teachers. There are also plenty more that offer lists of topics and ideas that you can pick and choose from. This is great when you have to come up with something in a hurry. However, rather than just taking the topic off the shelf I would urge you to use it as a springboard and adapt the idea/topic to suit your class.

Consider the available resources

Don’t make the mistake of presuming that your students will have access to the same resources at home as they do in class. Many parents’ simply don’t have the funds to provide these, and many don’t have the inclination to. Try and keep homework as simple as possible and if students are going to be required to use additional materials then make sure that you:

• Give them warning OR
• Provide the materials needed

I hope that you have found this article useful. Good luck!