Structure and Freedom: risk taking and the art of not knowing

The school day begins.  Children enter the gate, peek through the round window, bid a final farewell and walk into school.  There are a few tears.  There are confident strides and last looks. They are beginning a new school year, meeting new teachers and peers and leaving the comfort of a familiar summer behind.  In classrooms they discover new things daily, attempting new works, adapting to social expectations and honing self regulation skills. They sit cross-legged in a circle, wait in turn to speak and navigate the various routines and spaces of our school.  As adults we often overlook their resilience and courage, taking for granted how much newness a child encounters daily and how willingly they do so.  

To reproduce a taste of this newness, I set up a provocation for our teachers to participate in.  I offered them a wide brush and some sumi ink with which to create the impression of a body and hair using the simplest of brush strokes.  Details were added later. As we worked, our discomfort, resistance and vulnerability became obvious. “Will other people judge our work?” “Am I doing this right?”  To counter this discomfort some announced, “I’m not good at this” or “I’m not an artist”. For others this activity was well within their comfort zone and they completed it sweat-free. By the next day our work was available for all to see in the school lobby.  

This week, I invited children to participate in the same activity and wasn’t surprised when they eagerly began to paint.  So eager in fact that parameters were harder to maintain. I noticed this. But continued to ask each child to use a simple brushstroke to express the body and another for hair. Art involves structure and freedom.  Both are necessary. Children typically embrace the freedom while adults cling to its structure. We need them BOTH.  

Children help us rediscover freedom and curiosity.  Adults have the ability to mindfully offer a structure to support growth, learning and skill development.   It’s a good balance. I look forward to learning and teaching alongside the children this year to discover the joy of not knowing, the power of risk taking and art of making mistakes.