Meeting Individual Needs
An Inspiration to All
Marisa J. Main
We have all heard that art is universal, cross- ing all languages and continents. Research
artwork with the attitude of a true
professional. Cassie’s tall art desk
accommodates her wheelchair and is
filled with her personal art materials
first step. Even when students do not
use them, the stencils are helpful in
showing the placement of important
features in an artwork. The stencils
also shows us that the urge to create
including Prisma-
can also be made
art is innate and emerges long before
color pencils instead with a contrasting In many ways, Cassie is
we;learn;to;write.;Understanding
of the harder lead
color and glued to a typical seventh grader
this need serves as the foundation
of regular class-
of teaching all students because
room ones; shallow
white paper to cre- who loves art. What is
ate visual aids that
everyone deserves to know about
containers so that
show each step of not typical or ordinary is
and experience art. It is this innate
she can choose her
the drawing process. her positive attitude and
desire to create that is most apparent
and inspiring in Cassie Yeager. She
pencil or crayon
colors; water bowls
determination.
These;“step”;visual
aids break the lesson
has loved art for as long as she can
for painting; and her personal brushes down into simple components and
remember and has developed her own and pastels taped at the ends. She has
allow absent students to catch up on
method of making art.
even created intricate paper weavings, their own.
In many ways, Cassie is a typical
manipulating the paper with the tip
For Cassie, I traced a stencil onto
seventh grader who loves art. What is of a pencil eraser.
white tag board during a class dem-
not typical or ordinary is her positive
onstration and gave her the option of
attitude and determination. Cassie
Mixed-Media Stencil Starts
using it. I chose heavy tag board over
cannot hold a paintbrush, pencil, or
The following mixed-media lesson
white drawing paper for a sturdy base
crayon in her hands. She has never
emphasizing Henri Matisse, and his
that can be easily rotated.
been able to create art like other
flat patterning provides an example
Cassie draws along with the rest
students in her class. Yet these facts
of how Cassie has created art along
of the class, often finishing first. She
never stopped her. Cassie creates art
with;the;class.;Using;Purple Robe
created her artwork on her own, with
with the use of her mouth instead of
and Anemones as the motivation, the the exception of the figure silhouette
her hands.
Adaptations
Cassie enters class every day with a
smile, never complains, and is will-
ing to try anything. With minor
adaptations, she creates amazing
class explored the unique and inge-
nious ways Matisse used vivid color
and flat pattern.
With many of my art lessons, I
offer stencils as a successful start.
These stencils are not mandatory
but offer some students a helpful
at the beginning of the lesson. Her
work ethic and determination are an
inspiration to all.
Marisa J. Main is an art teacher who lives
in Huntington, West Virginia. mainmj@
