“Diversity is the mix. Inclusion is making the mix work.” -Andres Tapia

Education is essential to a functioning society, its main objective is to prepare students for the real world. One thing we can guarantee to students about the real world is that everyone is different and different doesn’t mean bad.

 

Last Saturday @FEELartistic Studio, we held an event that encouraged special needs inclusiveness. Students from our different community came together to work on one large canvas and make a painting representing the Tree of Life. They used both paint brushes and handprints in order to accommodate all skill and ability levels.

We started off by letting everyone get to know each other and mingle for a bit. Once everyone had a paintbrush, we had volunteers squirt paint directly on the canvas. Every student participated in painting the background with long linear strokes giving a surprisingly uniform look. Next, we added yellow to the blue where we wanted grass and blended it until we had a nice hill for the tree.

Once the tree was up with branches, out came the finger paints. Everyone dipped their hands in paint and covered the branches making the most beautiful, colorful and diverse leaves. We had a little face painting fun at the end, but laughter equals success! It was a good sign that at the end of the project the students were comfortable enough with each other to let loose and have fun.

In essence, that was the motive of this event. The purpose of our project is to reach out to the special needs community and embrace it with the spirit of inclusiveness and improve our awareness and knowledge of and deliver that message to the community.

Please visit our website @ Feelartistic.org