Theme: Beginnings

Start the beginning of the school year with fresh ideas and a spark of inspiration. In this issue, an elementary art teacher promotes kindness through a schoolwide art presentation; middle-school students participate in a humorous rite-of-passage pinch pot lesson; students interview one another and create abstract continuous-line portraits; and more.

Contents:
Early Childhood
Lions, Tigers, and... Teddy Bears! by Bob Reeker
Expressing a personal connection to art.

Elementary
Patterned & Printed Self-Portraits by Michael Van Meter
A mixed-media exploration of the self.

Catching Kindness by Wendy Libby
Promoting kindness through a schoolwide art presentation.

Middle School
The Tree of Life by Rachel Wintemberg
Inspiration from artist Gustav Klimt.

Pinch Pot Creatures by Melody Weintraub
A rite-of-passage pinch pot lesson.

High School
The Pineapple & the Suitcase by Ken Vieth and Betsy DiJulio
A contemporary teaching collaboration.

Damaged Goods by Jude Saleet
Initiating new work from old.

All Levels
Scribble It Out by Lisa Kay
Therapeutic approach to art.

Fostering Respect by Elisa Wiedeman
Creating a classroom environment of respect.

Looking & Learning by Karl Cole and Robb Sandagata
Bernard Pras: Art and Illusion

Departments
ClipCards
Maple Medals by Aileen Pugliese Castro
Abstract Playgrounds by Wendy Libby
Recycled Mosaic Mural by Carrie Trimmer
A Play on Words by Frank Juarez

Advocacy: Sharing Student Successes: Get Published by Frank Juarez

The Open Art Room: The Ten-Minute Composition Challenge by Melissa Purtee

Assessment: Parents and Portfolios by Libya S. Doman