Reconnecting our Roots:

Guiding young adults away from videophilia to biophilia

Opportunities Outdoors

My research focused on providing opportunities to get students out into nature through exploration and artmaking on the school grounds. I believed, getting students out into nature would show improvements in their attention span, increase their amount of restful sleep, reduce anxiety, and combat symptoms associated with depression. Although it was a small amount of time, my first goal was to have these activities build confidence in venturing out into natural environments and interacting with living organisms within their communities. The end in mind was having students understand their innate connection with nature.

Disconnecting through artmaking

Discovering the most efficient materials and equipment to use for art making in a natural environment is key to get students off their device and focused on creating. Observing students creating art outdoors helped me determine how feasible it is to conduct art making in this environment, without leaving a trace to potentially harm the outdoor space. Transporting art media and equipment can be challenging but exploring a solution can prevent students from feeling apprehensive about the task.

Art making foundations, processes, and traditions

Presenting basic art making foundations, processes, and traditions help students in their artistic development. Teaching students specific art making skills and witnessing the improvement in the way they approach the composition, supported my desire to include them in my curriculum. Moving away from the basic elements of art and principles of design to basic concepts a beginning artist should know about art making has helped my students evaluate their works and that of their peers.