Art class has learners from 7-12 years old coming in from the Ottery community that the center serves. I work with people who want to be there. It started as a table in the games hall where the learners got to know me and what art class evolves. I was lucky to be invited by Heinrich Jacobs who I knew from a Butterfly workshop and he encouraged me to continue. After nine months of regular art class I have regular attender and my own class room at the center. They attend and write their name down so I can see who is most regular. They don’t have to do it right first time, as there is another class next Thursday. The aim is to progress to better work, this can never be learnt by talking or reading only by doing.
It is always good to have something to work towards. I plan the trip while we meet regularly through the term. The trip is at the end of a term and learners all hang out together and get to know each other. I have gone to Muizenberg Festival and Rondevlei with the learners.
I restrict the class spaces to ten at a time as I must prepare a station for the learner. The ones that arrives on time get a station. However they need to keep their attention span long enough to stay on that station and take ownership of it. Otherwise the artwork does not get completed. I am focusing on how to get the learners to slow down while they work so that they can reach a more refined finish to what they do. I segment the process to highlight landmarks that they should reach before getting to the end point.