Every Child is an Artist

Just a little support from a teacher – even a ‘monstrous’ one – can go a long way, as author and illustrator Peter Brown can testify...

I’ll never forget my first scary teacher. She wasn’t exactly mean, but she didn’t have the warmth I’d come to expect from my primary school teachers; she hardly ever laughed, and she was strict. I was a sensitive little kid, with a huge imagination, and I actually began to wonder if my teacher was a monster. I know that sounds ridiculous, but I also thought there was a witch under my bed and a ghost in my closet. That’s the kind of kid I was.

One day, my monster teacher asked us all to draw some pictures. She walked around the room as we quietly scribbled away, and when she got to my desk she leaned over and said that my drawing (of a thunderstorm) was excellent. She said my drawing was so excellent that she wanted to share it with the art teacher. So my monster teacher and I marched down to the art room where she insisted that I be placed in our school’s advanced art programme. The next thing I knew I was getting up early on Tuesdays and Thursdays to take a special art class with other gifted little artists. I was taking my first steps toward a career in the arts, and it was thanks, in large part, to my monster teacher.

Of course, that experience made me see my teacher a little differently. She and I never really bonded, but her unexpected act of enthusiasm helped me realise that she was not a monster, after all. And years later, she was one of the inspirations for my newest children’s book, My Teacher Is A Monster! (No, I Am Not.).

It wasn’t long before I had a reputation around school for being an ‘artsy’ kid. Somehow, every teacher seemed to know I was a budding artist, and they often allowed me to incorporate art into my book reports and science projects and homework assignments. My teachers were genuinely interested in supporting my art whenever they could. With all that support I began to feel like a real artist.

Later, in high school, I had an amazing art teacher who introduced me to art techniques, art competitions, extra-curricular art classes, and art colleges that I never would have found on my own. My high school also had some great creative writing classes, which helped me discover my love of storytelling. I didn’t realise then just how lucky I was to live in a time and a school district that was so committed to the arts.

I’m happy to report that my old schools continue to be committed to the arts. But many American schools are now so underfunded, and so worried about student test scores, that they’ve drastically cut their arts programming. Some schools have no art classes at all. And so there’s a generation of little artists who might never find their true calling. The situation is heartbreaking. And it’s confusing. It seems to me that the future belongs to creative thinkers, but rather than improving arts education we’re going in the opposite direction. The really frustrating part is that everyone seems to agree that we need to redesign our educational system, and yet nobody is able to make meaningful changes.

Regardless of the state of education, a child’s family life has always been the key to his education. If he goes home to a loving, nurturing, open-minded household, he’ll pursue his interests with gusto, whatever those interests might be. Many parents know this, and ask for advice on how to nurture their child’s creativity. My response is simple: I just ask them to support their child’s interest in art as much as they support his interest in sports. Sign him up for an art class. Make sure he has art materials. Take him to an art museum. Buy him an art book. Make it clear that if art is important to him, it’s important to his family. In that environment, he’ll be free to explore his creative interests and decide whether art is his calling or just his hobby.

Every child is an artist. Every child loves to draw and dance and sing and imagine. If his creativity is supported and celebrated, a child might just spend his entire life doing creative things. He could make a unique contribution to the world. But first, he has to feel like an artist. And for that he needs the support of his family. Or his school. Or both. Preferably both.

My Teacher Is A Monster! (No, I Am Not.) is published by MacMillan Children’s Books.

About the author

Peter Brown is an author and illustrator of children’s books. His award-winning titles include New York Times bestsellers The Curious Garden, Children Make Terrible Pets, and Mr. Tiger Goes Wild.