The process involved in the Eyeball It!® lessons guides young artists to learn skills and make wide-ranging creative choices of their own, rather than following specific directives. It fosters independent visual thinking in the students. I would love to have my freshman design students at Philadelphia University arrive on campus with this kind of background and sense of curiosity and invention.

Ellen taught at the University of the Arts in the Professional Institute for Educators for many years. The Professional Institute for Educators serves K-12 teachers throughout the region in providing graduate courses for professional development and career enrichment. Ellen brought a level of artistic sophistication to her classes, while always being warm and generous with her students at varying levels of experience. She is adept at working with teachers and understanding how to help them develop art projects which work for a range of young learners. She thinks in a collaborative manner and across disciplines; this enthusiasm translates to K-12 students who have multiple learning styles.

Ellen has a deep passion for arts education and advocated for incorporating an art component into our critical thinking problem solving curriculum. As a result, we are now able to offer these engaging art lessons to the community centers we work with each summer. In addition to the lessons being free to use, they are written so that with a short amount of training anyone can facilitate well.

This summer, more than 120 kids across 5 community centers participated in the Eyeball It arts lessons. These lessons are among the kids’ favorites in the curriculum. While all of the lessons are hands on and interactive, the Eyeball It lessons’ focus on the different types of art provides a new opportunity for the kids to creatively express themselves. They learn ways of drawing with different perspectives, create art using different types of paint, explore the world around them to create 3D art, and more.

Instructors also love the lessons because it gives them an opportunity to facilitate a new way of learning and thinking for the kids. They are able to encourage the kids to be creative and take risks. Many instructors work with the community center staff to create displays or showcases of the student work around the buildings. The kids take pride in their work and these displays help them contribute to the overall culture and feel of the center.