Teaching children basic art techniques in Ifakara
BackgroundI went to Ifakara a South Central town in the Morogoro region of Tanzania. I visited a local orphanage run by a 52 year woman. There is 28 children living at the orphanage most of which have lost both parents or where abandoned as toddlers. Many of the kids are aged 6-11 however there are a few who are younger or older. Mama Tecla also works at a local government school where all of but two go, the other two go to an english medium school where she can send a child for free once a year. The children have never done any art in school and most have never used paint at all.
Goal:My goal is to begin a short art training program with the children living in the orphanage. The intention is that the children will learn how to mix and experiment with paints and enjoy the experience.
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Session 1: October 14-16th 2015
Goal:
To develop basic understanding of colour and painting skills.
Session 2: November 3rd 2015
After the success of the first session I wanted to continue to encourage and develop the art skills of the children. As the orphanage is such a long way from Dar es SaIaam I contacted Mama Tecla with the idea of sending down a lesson plan which one of the older boys could help the children to complete. She thought that this was a good idea. My Mum visits a hospital close to the orphanage so took down my plan and materials including pencils, rubbers and paper.
Goal:
The children develop observational drawing skills using pencils. Each child will observe and draw an object of their choice paying attention to shape and shading.
Letter and lesson plan for session 2:
What happened in session 2:
Although I was not able to visit the orphanage to teach the children I sent the lesson plan and letter down hopping that the children would be inspired from the last session and want to draw. Thankfully they did. After their homework was finished one of the older children took charge of the activity. Each of them chose an object and drew what they were observing. Many of the children drew objects outside however some drew what they used in their everyday life for example axes and radios. I think that the outcome of this was really positive and I am very pleased that the children enjoyed the second session. My mum brought back their drawings for me to observe and appreciate before she took them back again for the children to admire.
Session 3: December 4th 2015
Goal:
To combine observational drawing skills with painting.
What actually happened in session 3:
Now that the children have learnt to mix colours and also draw objects by close observation, I wanted to give them a further oportunity to produce artwork combining these skills. The children decided to base these pieces on motorbikes, girls, cups, kites and other objects around their compound. During session 2 Boaz, one of the older children at the orphanage, explained the task using the lesson plan I had sent. He also over saw the children as they carried out the activity. Boaz has really enjoyed having the oportunity to participate in the art and is keen to guide the younger students. In session 3 he supported and encouraged the children. These are some of the examples of the pieces from session 3 which are on display at the orphanage.
Children's evaluation
These are reflections sent to me by Mama tecla from the children who I worked with while I was in Ifakara.
Reflection
When I first thought about this project I realise now that my ideas were a bit simplistic. I enjoy art and know that in Tanzanian education art is not taught in most schools. So I saw a gap that I could in some way meet. I now see that there were implications from this project that I had not imagined before I started it.
Ethical issues
Although initially I did not think that there would be any ethical issues with this project, I later realised that by introducing the children to art I might not be benefitting them as much as I would like to. This is because if any of the children became to really enjoy art and wanted to carry it on in their life may not be able to as in their school and community as it is not a recognised subject or valued. The only way I can over come this temporarily is by sending down materials for as long as I can in order for them to improve their talent and allow them to keep on explore artistic skills. I hope that this will allow the students to carry on their interest for art until further possibilities arise in the future, but I don't know when or if this will happen. I will send down extra art equipment in order for them to carry on at least to improve their current abilities. For those who enjoy doing very detailed drawings I will also send some water colour paints which I have bought, I will also send down some other supplies including pencils and paper for as long as possible. I know that I can't keep doing this indefinitely and unless they are able to source materials, art will finish. I know that Mama Tecla who runs the orphanage is often short of money for basics like food and charcoal so I understand that she will always have to prioritise these things over art which is a luxury in this situation
Skills:
By taking on this project I knew that there would be many skills waiting for me to learn. One these I found was to communicate without speaking because of my lack of Swahili and the children lack of English. I did this by using demonstration, hand gestures and facial expressions. I used the few relevant words of Swahili that I learnt as well.
When the first session seemed a bit out of control with paint and children everywhere, and the paint needing topping up and children trying to paint on each others work I knew that I needed to get in back into an organised way of doing things. I got other people to make more paint and controlled who had new pieces of paper to slow things down a bit, I then got the group to watch me paint a detailed flower and this helped too. I think I learn that even in the muddle I could help to straighten things out and make sure that the session still worked.
I also improved my organisational skills as I had to plan the trip, the lessons and also breaking down the activities into small steps. I found this really useful not only for this project but also for future projects. When I began I had not appreciated quite how much organisation or planning would be needed to make it a success. I think if I did something like this again now I would see the preparation as just as important as what happened in the sessions.
I think that I also needed to be a risk taker in order to stand up in front of all the children and try to explain what we were going to do with the limited communication that I had. I think that grew in confidence over the few days that I was there as by the end I felt relaxed communicating with the children. In the follow up sessions I have been in touch with Boaz and making sure that he understands what each session has been about. It has been good to see that using this method the art had continued without me being there in person but by us working together.
Lastly I thought that this project needed quite a lot of commitment which I think I did well doing, making sure I kept up with emailing Mama Tecla and planning each lesson plan that was then sent to Ifakara and following up with the children via Mama Tecla when the children finished art work.
I hadn't really thought through what would happen or what I would do if the children didn't want to participate, I guess that I was lucky that they did but this is something I could have thought about beforehand.
Why I chose to do this project:
I chose to do this project as art is something that I really enjoy and have a passion in. Although it is one of my IB subjects I also like to do art in my free time and I think that every one should at least have the opportunity to create and experience art. This is why i thought that going to a place where I already had a connection with would be a good idea. It was only really until I arrived that I realised how little opportunity the children at the orphanage had. I am really glad that I decided to go to the orphanage because it allowed me to understand their back ground and how I could help out more. Despite the challenges with numbers of children and language and my concerns about further opportunities I feel that this was a responsible project. When all the paintings were on display at the end of the first session that was a good way to know what I had hoped for had happened. I also saw the pleasure the children had using paint and brushes for the first time and also the recognition the children gave each other when they recognised that that had painted a great picture. There was one boy in particular who is very quiet and usually draws footballers in his note pad, when he painted a picture of Ronaldo several children sat round him watching and admiring him. He had a look of happiness when he finished and he saw his picture on display. I think that some of the good things that came from this project are not things that you can really count but I think that they are things that will have made a difference to some of these children.
Ethical issues
Although initially I did not think that there would be any ethical issues with this project, I later realised that by introducing the children to art I might not be benefitting them as much as I would like to. This is because if any of the children became to really enjoy art and wanted to carry it on in their life may not be able to as in their school and community as it is not a recognised subject or valued. The only way I can over come this temporarily is by sending down materials for as long as I can in order for them to improve their talent and allow them to keep on explore artistic skills. I hope that this will allow the students to carry on their interest for art until further possibilities arise in the future, but I don't know when or if this will happen. I will send down extra art equipment in order for them to carry on at least to improve their current abilities. For those who enjoy doing very detailed drawings I will also send some water colour paints which I have bought, I will also send down some other supplies including pencils and paper for as long as possible. I know that I can't keep doing this indefinitely and unless they are able to source materials, art will finish. I know that Mama Tecla who runs the orphanage is often short of money for basics like food and charcoal so I understand that she will always have to prioritise these things over art which is a luxury in this situation
Skills:
By taking on this project I knew that there would be many skills waiting for me to learn. One these I found was to communicate without speaking because of my lack of Swahili and the children lack of English. I did this by using demonstration, hand gestures and facial expressions. I used the few relevant words of Swahili that I learnt as well.
When the first session seemed a bit out of control with paint and children everywhere, and the paint needing topping up and children trying to paint on each others work I knew that I needed to get in back into an organised way of doing things. I got other people to make more paint and controlled who had new pieces of paper to slow things down a bit, I then got the group to watch me paint a detailed flower and this helped too. I think I learn that even in the muddle I could help to straighten things out and make sure that the session still worked.
I also improved my organisational skills as I had to plan the trip, the lessons and also breaking down the activities into small steps. I found this really useful not only for this project but also for future projects. When I began I had not appreciated quite how much organisation or planning would be needed to make it a success. I think if I did something like this again now I would see the preparation as just as important as what happened in the sessions.
I think that I also needed to be a risk taker in order to stand up in front of all the children and try to explain what we were going to do with the limited communication that I had. I think that grew in confidence over the few days that I was there as by the end I felt relaxed communicating with the children. In the follow up sessions I have been in touch with Boaz and making sure that he understands what each session has been about. It has been good to see that using this method the art had continued without me being there in person but by us working together.
Lastly I thought that this project needed quite a lot of commitment which I think I did well doing, making sure I kept up with emailing Mama Tecla and planning each lesson plan that was then sent to Ifakara and following up with the children via Mama Tecla when the children finished art work.
I hadn't really thought through what would happen or what I would do if the children didn't want to participate, I guess that I was lucky that they did but this is something I could have thought about beforehand.
Why I chose to do this project:
I chose to do this project as art is something that I really enjoy and have a passion in. Although it is one of my IB subjects I also like to do art in my free time and I think that every one should at least have the opportunity to create and experience art. This is why i thought that going to a place where I already had a connection with would be a good idea. It was only really until I arrived that I realised how little opportunity the children at the orphanage had. I am really glad that I decided to go to the orphanage because it allowed me to understand their back ground and how I could help out more. Despite the challenges with numbers of children and language and my concerns about further opportunities I feel that this was a responsible project. When all the paintings were on display at the end of the first session that was a good way to know what I had hoped for had happened. I also saw the pleasure the children had using paint and brushes for the first time and also the recognition the children gave each other when they recognised that that had painted a great picture. There was one boy in particular who is very quiet and usually draws footballers in his note pad, when he painted a picture of Ronaldo several children sat round him watching and admiring him. He had a look of happiness when he finished and he saw his picture on display. I think that some of the good things that came from this project are not things that you can really count but I think that they are things that will have made a difference to some of these children.
Update:
I have kept contact with Mama Tecla through email, she has been updating me with how all the children are doing and how they are keeping going with art. The last time my Mum went to visit she took some more supplies including water colour paints and she gave a lesson following my lesson plan showing the children how to use water colour paint. I really like using water colour as I find it an easy medium to use for detailed art. While I was there the last time some of the children liked to do really detailed art using pencils however it is very difficult to use finger or powder paint as it is very watery and does not get absorbed by paper quickly. Powder paint is also difficult to use with large brushes. I sent my Mum down with watercolour paints and small brushes. At first the art created was good, but they needed more practice, I was worried that once my mum left the children would not have the time to carry on practicing. However recently I got an email from Mama Tecla with a photo of one of the children using the water colour paints painting a very beautiful scene. the children talent has increased substantially and i am very proud to have been apart of that.
During a talk Ishmael Baeh said that there is infinite talent but limited oportunity. I feel as if I have given the children of the Mama Tecla orphanage the opportunity to unleash their talent. The children already had the talent in them, I just gave them the opportunity to explore and improve that talent. The paintings are now being sold to visitors of the orphanage as a small source of income for the children. |