How to make a difference in young people's lives

As an art teacher I find that I am blessed with the opportunity to make a difference in young people's lives every single day.  Every second I spend in the classroom or preparing to be in the classroom I am building opportunities to strengthen and build bonds with my students.  I have been given the chance to work on projects and ideas with children which offers them the time and freedom to be uniquely individual.

In this way, I am building a future for each of my students by facilitating in their development.  By simply becoming that positive figure, that role model they can look up to and ask questions to, I can help them to feel much more secure and willing to learn and grow.  This becomes my main goal of education.  I wish to inspire my students to be creative and open, to think critically, and to broaden their minds to new and vast ideas.  In this sense, i hope to open these doors so that my students feel comfortable and willing to try new things.

When I think of how to build on these relationships, I know I must get to know my students on a deeper level rather than just chatting in class.  I hope to participate in extracurricular activities, coaching teams, and learning about my students' interests that lay outside of the education world.  By being this inquisitive and interested mentor, I hope to gain a deeper connection with students.  In this way, I can become a driving force in their growth and show them that anything is possible.

"Individuality of expression is the beginning and the end of art." -Wolfgang Von Gothe

To me, this quote means many things.  It describes a very authentic view of art and the idea of how it is created and for whom.  When I look at this quote it makes me feel as if art is never ending.  And that is the truth.  There will never be a time when art is no longer changing, growing, and being produced.  No matter how much art is created, it will never be finished.

Art is the one thing that cannot be ended or destroyed.  No matter what, there will always be a new idea to try, or a new way of looking at an old work of art.  Ideas cannot be stopped, and likewise neither can art.  This is possible because each mind is uniquely different and will always have original thoughts and ideas.  To express one's thought is this movement toward new and uncharted territory.

Even though an idea may have been announced or thought of before, it will always be slightly new due to the variations of the mind.  In this way, art cannot be ended.  It will always have growth and continue to inspire each and every person in a new and interesting way.