I was tiptoeing around the subject, so I’m going to be clear here. Cookie cutter lessons are a waste of your time and do little for students. Consider why teachers use these projects - they produce good results. Is this a valid reason for teaching a lesson? We shouldn’t be in the business of worrying about what looks good on the wall, but rather with making students who are independent artists. These sort of step-by-step projects often take weeks to produce and leave students with little more than the work itself. Other issues include:
I think that most teachers realize how empty cookie cutter projects are, but many do them anyway. We’re pressured to put on a show, to always have appealing work on display. However, just because it’s expected doesn’t mean it’s right. If a lesson of yours produces indistinguishable work, get rid of it. If it is all about the product, try something new. Try lessons that:
The most important thing when deciding what to teach is this: What do I want this experience to leave my students with? There is no one right answer to this question. It might be an understanding of art history, a love of painting, the ability to create independently or mastery of a specific skill. “Something pretty on the wall” is probably not your answer - don’t let it be your contribution. 
11 Comments
6/11/2016 01:21:55 pm
Well said Melissa! Might I also add that sound process, well taught, will naturally lead to a superior finished product. A teacher who gets students to think about art, look at art, discuss art and reflect upon art is going to have students who consistently produce GREAT art. Even more so than a 'cookie cutter' teacher, because hanging together in the hallway, each piece will stand out as unique. I look at our field a lot, and I see things and think "this is not good enough, we need to change this". I agree that cookie cutter lessons are so ridiculous in theory that they have no purpose. My biggest problem with my art education was that I would go home and try to replicate the process we used to make something in the classroom, and I couldn't do it. The specific material or motivation was only part of that one lesson, and I could never replicate it on my own. When I am teaching now, I try my best to guide students through processes with media as a parallel path to their development of ideas. This way they can have that as a skill later on. Do students more readily learn skills if they have choices over the outcome, or if they are working toward a set outcome? Is it important to take students through a step-by-step process first so that they can self-evaluate and make changes before letting them loose? These are some questions I ask before planning a lesson. Using aggregations of lessons can be a time saver for those of us who can do the ideas, but need a shortcut to learn a new skill. Practicality, however, has to be tempered with a focus on learning and authenticity.
Sarah K.
6/13/2016 08:54:39 am
Stephen, you are a thoughtful teacher who, from what you have written, seems to understand that there is a place for facilitating the learning of a process and a place for developing creativity. There are techniques that students need to learn before they can feel confident enough to develop an idea. Developing creativity is as much a process as a natural endeavor. The older the child, the more they need to create something 'beautiful' or 'accurate' and they will give up if they don't think they have the necessary talent or skill. It's a developmental process -- in the child's physical and mental development as well as in the creative. It's a thin line, and it takes the questions you ask to help them build their ability and their creativity.
Ilona Szekely
6/11/2016 02:53:35 pm
I think this is such an important topic. It's something I talk to my pre-service students about all the time. I will use this in my class. Good work, and glad to know you are out there teaching.
Mike sacco
6/11/2016 08:42:26 pm
nice blog, but your header says the complete opposite of my own personal philosophy it stopped me dead in my tracks. I m not interested in making artists, I'm interested in teaching art and having kids value and appreciate it. if a few artists get made along the way, that is awesome but not necessary. to each his or her own I guess.
Pamela Lewis
6/11/2016 08:54:06 pm
Is this really a thing for art teachers? I see it a lot with general ed teachers, sure, but for art teachers? Maybe I'm naive, but in my neck of the woods, I don't think I could find anyone to disagree with you. It is important--yes! But not exactly a news bulletin.
Ida
6/11/2016 10:07:35 pm
This is such an important topic and is an obvious hot button issue among art educators. Thank you for reminding me that I"m doing what I'm supposed to be doing. The other part of my art department does cookie cutter art and sometimes it is hard because the majority of the community and district think her curriculum is so much more effective. It is nice to have reminders that although the product in the hall may be bright and shiny, the lasting effects are minimum. My students remind me all of the time that picking their own ideas is their favorite so I know I'm on the right track but it is always nice to hear that you have others thinking like you. In small districts, change comes slowly and it can feel like you're on an island so articles like these really help motivate me! Thanks again for sharing your thoughts, ideas, and work in your classroom.
Jeanette
6/12/2016 12:37:32 am
I don't like cookie cutter lessons either but use them to take an idea further or to test certain skills . Mind you at the end of a term or for fast finishing students then they come in handy. 6/12/2016 04:01:00 am
In art classes, students are generally taught to develop their skills using art materials, tools, techniques and processes. The question is: how do they use these skills in ways that are meaningful to them? Self-directed projects allow class time for students to generate personal and relevant ideas for their own art making. Through these projects teachers facilitate different learning styles and cater for the diversity of student interests. The teacher, as facilitator, guides the student through experiences that enable them to think for themselves, reach their own conclusions, and apply what they have learned into new contexts. This can be achieved through: open free time, working from a self-generated design brief or creating opportunities for students to explore materials as a starting point.
Sally Powell
6/12/2016 07:30:50 am
One of the problems I experience when I leave ideas open to personal interest, I get a lot of cliche ideas and just decorations. It is very difficult to get students to think on a deeper level without giving(sometimes forcing) ideas to start with and then allowing them to pursue their personal manipulation.
Carolann
6/12/2016 07:35:19 pm
Absolutely! Thank you for the clarification. PINTEREST is not the issue. Single solution, copied cutter lessons are! Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
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Mrs. PurteeI'm an high school art teacher who's really interested in student choice and creating opportunities for self expression. I'm also a writer for The Art of Education and co-author of The Open Art Room. Archives
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