If art teachers were flowers, you wouldn’t be just one kind—you’d be an entire garden! You are the epitome of the rainbow, and you’re so multi-dimensional. You balance nurturing instruction, creativity, critical thinking, and personal expression simultaneously. You build students’ confidence and show them the colorful role art plays in the world around them.
You deserve all of the flowers, because art teachers are the whole bouquet!
1. You spread positivity like sunflowers.
Art teachers are sunflowers because you create a positive environment, and you are a bright presence in your school. You motivate and encourage students to see failure differently. You view problems as opportunities to think critically and creatively, and you find progress and solutions in each scenario.
Every sunflower produces thousands of seeds. Likewise, an art teacher may teach a few thousand students in their first few years alone! You really get to know who students are through their art, and you may have students in class for multiple years. Even if a student does not pursue an art career, they may continue making art and will see art differently for the rest of their life. The scope of your positive influence is hard to measure!
2. You teach the complexity of art like a rose.
Art teachers not only teach technical skills, but also help students understand how to see deeper meanings in art. Creating and experiencing art often invites investigation and the sharing of a range of emotions. Developing these skills can be complex as students persevere through the thorns, but it’s also extremely rewarding.
3. You spread the joy of creating like a daisy.
Making art is fun! There is such a simple joy when students work hands-on with materials. Every time you introduce a new supply or a fresh technique, students get excited—there is no week more thrilling than Clay Week!
Just as daisies rapidly spread and blossom, art teachers have a knack for making artmaking infectious to every student who walks into the art room. You make even the most complicated techniques achievable for all through scaffolding and building confidence. You show students that they, too, can make art that they’re proud of!
4. You’re unique like dahlias.
The most common art teacher stereotype is that you stand out from the crowd in all of the best ways! Just as there are endless hybrids of dahlias, there are many types of art teachers: the classic rainbow art teacher, the plant-and-yoga lover, or the techy art teacher gamer. You understand what it’s like to be “different” and have a gift for highlighting the same things in each of your unique students.
5. Your room is calming like lavender.
Whether it is a tedious color mixing assignment or a neurographic watercolor painting, students get lost in the process of making art. Your class gives students the opportunity to participate in meditative practices, which is a much-needed break during their academic school day.
When students can relax, they feel more comfortable being themselves, and that shows in their artwork. Fostering a welcoming environment is not as easy as it sounds—you bring students of all backgrounds, ages, personalities, and artistic abilities together as a cohesive class, sometimes with a sporadic schedule! This is no easy feat.
Plus, the art room can be quite unpredictable—you never know when the next paint spill will happen! Art teachers stay calm in the face of any and every art room emergency. You’re resilient and learn from every situation to make things a little bit more streamlined and calm every single day.
Art teachers are the whole bouquet!
Your impact is nothing but small, and we want to recognize your amazing art teacher energy, skills, and dedication by giving you the flowers you deserve. Every conversation, demo, and fresh art supply creates lasting learning and memories for your students. You’re not just teaching art; you’re helping students see themselves as creative, capable, and unique. Take a moment to celebrate the seeds you planted and the colorful difference you make every single day!
Which flower do you most identify with?
How has the flower you identified with changed over your career?
To chat about art teacher appreciation with other art teachers, join us in The Art of Ed Community!
Magazine articles and podcasts are opinions of professional education contributors and do not necessarily represent the position of the Art of Education University (AOEU) or its academic offerings. Contributors use terms in the way they are most often talked about in the scope of their educational experiences.
