Date: Mon, 26 Jan 2009 19:49:20 -0500
To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
Subject: [Puptcrit] Workshops: helping too much?


Years ago I was doing a 4th grade shadow puppet workshop at a nice
school in Chapel Hill NC.  There was a boy who was getting really
frustrated because he wanted his puppet to look just like one of the
puppets I had demonstrated.  My instinct was to encourage the boy to
create his own design as the other kids were doing but he got really
stuck on the idea and ended up after much encouragement throughout the
workshop to stick to his guns  begging me to just draw the design on
his cardboard and help him execute it.  I wouldn't and the boy was in
tears as he left.  I talked about it with the teacher afterwards and
she thought I had done the right thing though said that the boy had an
image of perfection in his mind during most art lessons and usually
ended frustrated.  I decided after that that since I am with students
in these settings ever so briefly, that if it happened again I would
first try to stear them toward their own original art, but if they
seemed persistant on wanting artistic help, that I would  help
incrimentally. First a thumb nail sketch or sequentially shape
building drawing on the board and if that didn't work, a very light
incomplete sketch on their cardboard and sometimes even elaborate
drawings if I think that it will open up some excitement of the
possibilities for them.  My thinking was that I want  them to come
away inspired to try it again on their own.  I have very mixed
feelings about it. I don't want to do  the project for them and yet if
they seem truly stuck and are getting emotionally wrapped up in it, I
want to try to move them through that to having some level of success.
 I don't know where alot of  kids are coming from so I want to give
them  the benefit of the doubt and just help.    Sometimes I will get
a heads up from the teacher about kids who may have issues and that
helps alot.  If I sense that their motivation is just laziness or
apathy I will often opt out and let them sit there and waste there own
time.  But it gets down to really trying to psyche out the kids to see
where they are coming from.  The teachers will often give me hints or
lead me but I also found that I have to work against the teacher and
be a bit subversive if I think they are the problem which they often
are.  It is tricky, any thoughts or stories?
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