Children

Roomprocess, focusing their minds on something else,
all the while looking at their art work from a
Children’s Easels should be implementeddifferent context, angle and distance. This process
into art rooms at school. Children’s Easelsof stepping back from your work or even leaving
are also a better platform for the making of artit completely for a time causes artists to take
and help heighten awareness and attention fortheir creativity and talent a step further.
visual arts education. Working upright, standing,Art educators have differing opinions regarding
and being able to step back and look at yourChildren‘s Easels as opposed to art tables in
work, make the Children’s Easel an idealthe classroom. Altogether they agree that the
working surface for a kids art class. This will helpchild getting the most out of their class and
with the ever growing class size and give youhelping them to find their potential as artists is the
options for your classroom layout helping youmost important thing. One element of concern
optimize your space for more effective learningregarding a Children’s Easel vs. a large class
and creativity.art table is organization and class room structure.
A Children’s Easel is the perfect answer toSome educators might think a class full of easels
the ever growing class size and really the bestcould be too chaotic and that the disorganization
surface too for your students to learn on.would cause kids to loose focus. However, the
Regardless of the age group, students that workcontrary is true. Children’s Easels put out in
on a Children’s Easel are more likely toan organized way, for example, putting them all in
become engaged and passionate about their work.a circle, allows the teacher to walk all the way
The Children’s Easel creates a largeraround the class instructing and encouraging one
atmosphere of learning and focused creativity. Bystudent at a time. It also allows for the students
standing up a child’s work space is naturallyto take a look around at their classmates’
bigger and in a classroom setting their spaceswork. Whether they are focused on a still life or
may even overlap which can encourage them tonot, this is a highly effective class structure for
see one another’s art work, and to inspirechildren’s easels. There are many other
each other.ways to set up your classroom, rows, squares or
A Children’s Easel is not new concept, theyeven clusters. Not all Children’s Easels are
have been becoming ever more popular over theone sided. Some are double sided, some are even
past 20 or so years. These Children’sfour sided making room for even more class
Easels and Creation Stations originated with theroom set up possibilities.
hope that children drawing and coloring on theirAnother misconception about Children’s
Children’s Easels would become moreEasels is that cleaning up after the class, folding up
involved in the paintings and projects they werethe easels and putting them away is too much
creating. The main reason being that creating artwork. If you are using Children’s Easels
from a standing position allows your whole bodythat require being folded up and stored away
to be involved in the process. For children with aeveryday, try assigning the students their own
lot of energy a children’s easel is perfect.children’s easel for the year, giving them
Not only does it allow them to paint more wildly,some responsibility for it in much the same way
but the fact that their painting is right in front ofas there desks in the classroom, or like their
their face helps them become less distracted.textbook. Have an inspection in the beginning and
Contrast this to the level of distraction that canat the end of the year and set up some penalties
be found on an art table where a child is morefor mistreated easels.
prone to starring at and joking with their buddiesWhen choosing your Children’s Easel, make
next to them and across from them. Anothersure you look into all the different types. They
reason behind introducing the Children’sare not all the same. Some fold up small and are
Easel is that a child can more easily step awayvery portable, some have wheels and are more
from and return to a work in progress. An artmobile, and many Children’s Easels can
teacher sensing that a child is stuck, can instructeven accommodate several kids at once, including:
them to move on to something completelyDouble Sided, Four Sided, and even Six Station
different, intending for the child to return to theirChildren’s Easels. I’m sure you will
work at a later date. They will be able to step outfind the perfect one to suit your needs.
of their potentially frustrating or stalled creative