Cat and Dog Project Part 2

The students began sharing personal stories about dogs and cats they have in their lives or have come into contact with. Many drew pictures of what they already knew about having pets, using library books for reference. “Dogs don’t walk the same as us, you know.” Sid told his peers as he drew. “They walk on their four legs and sniff.” Olivia added her input, “Yeah, cats do too and they curl up and sit to stare at you. And when they lick you, it tickles!” Renee came to school wearing ears with whiskers on her face, which inspired Samay to start drawing cats of different sizes, colors and shapes.

“You know, when I first came to visit SAS before I started, there was a cat in the front, sitting on the sidewalk!” Sanaa shared this insight during one of our reflections.

“We have seen that cat too! It’s Orange!” Marcus added to Sanaa’s thought.

“Where is it? We want to see!” Several other students became excited.

Clipboards, paper and pencils in hand, we walked down to the front of the administration block to find the orange cat, affectionately nicknamed by some of the faculty as “Garfield.” Our students joined two middle schoolers doing a photoshoot with the cat, and respectfully sat down to observe and draw. Garfield posed for a few minutes before strolling away, and the students were left to finish the details of their drawings.

Observational drawings help students notice and reflect upon what they see. They allow children to organize knowledge and understanding, and develop new theories and ideas. Taking the time for observational drawings allows time to  see what children are paying attention to and focusing on, and helps in retention of learning.

“Look how his paws are all curled in!” –Ein

“So many different colors of orange!” –Mei

“Do you think he is purring because he is happy to see us?” –Renee

“He looks big, so where is he eating his food at school?” –Arunika

To enhance our observational drawings, we decided we needed an expert to help us! We asked A.J.’s dad Mr. Matthew to give us some drawing tips. We visited his high school art room, and he showed us how to pretend there is an ant crawling all around the object and then draw that line to get the outside shape. We practiced using fruit and then wooden movable people.