I’m noticing the pride that my 5 year old has for her art – specifically how she can do things that she couldn’t do before. I’m making a book of her art, so we can look back on her growth and talk about how fast she is gaining skills because she practices everyday.

Why don’t we do that with our students?

I just made a document with all the previous designer projects within it – and wow there are a lot. These, plus the new ones from the cardboard design series, are enough options for someone to dive into.

Now the challenge is making the process of becoming a unique creator more apparent. Students want a cool project but don’t necessarily see the bigger picture. They are on a long journey and this next project is just one step in whichever direction they choose. Their judgements on it don’t matter, just the next steps they take after that.

I’ll be experimenting with pre-teaching this language, making this idea into a visual, and having students talk in these terms. This needs to become a part of the narrative of our journey.