January 28, 2015

Art Teacher Christmas!!!

           

New art supplies are such a gift!!!  The assurance you will be able to carry on with old projects...try new projects...and sniff markers! (Well...maybe not the last one! Haha)  I am fortunate to have a supply budget that is given me by the school.  Granted...it could always be bigger(I get less money than when I started 18 yrs ago...AND TRUST ME...supplies are much more expensive than 18 yrs ago!!).....but it is enough to do the job with careful planning!!  It is all about prioritizing & choices!  What can you not live without(PAPER!)....and what can I get every other year OR every three years(oil pastels, construction paper crayons..etc).  I know many teachers struggle with having no budget...or ridiculously small budgets(I heard one teacher gets $200 a year for over 1000 students?!?!!).  I wish we could all be given what our programs need....but as art teachers....we are survivors..inventors..bargainers...and dumpster divers!!!  I would love to hear stories of how low budgets find amazing success!!!  If ya have a minute...share in the comments how you do it!!


5 comments:

  1. I'm also an art teacher and this picture just made my morning! It makes me so happy (weird because these are not even my art supplies)...enjoy!!!

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  2. Our school district has its budget based on student population. Currently our budget is set at 5.75 per child. So at one building my student population is 260. 260 times 5.75 equals out to 1,495.00 for the entire year. The other school only has a population of 221, so my budget there is lower. I still wind up spending about a thousand dollars between the two schools every year though just getting things that the budget doesn't cover. Basic supplies I can mostly cover with the school budget but resources like Books, Artist Prints, DVDs, etc. come out of my own pocket. Two years ago, the town rewrote our curriculum and decided to introduce six new required artists but not provide us with any materials on them - that's the kind of stuff I wind up having to buy on my own. This past year I was very fortunate to have the PTA at my larger school aggressively fund raise and was given a 600 dollar gift to spend however I wanted for my classroom! I'm still dithering about how to spend it though because I want every dollar to count. Who knows when this will happen again?! I also have an Artsonia page for both my schools to help with fund raising. Each one nets me about an extra hundred a year. http://www.artsonia.com/schools/school.asp?id=151968 and http://www.artsonia.com/schools/school.asp?id=59978 if you'd like to go check them out. I also live on donations. I have identified all quilters, knitters and crocheters on my staff (and of students' parents and grandparents) and shamelessly beg for any leftover fabrics, yarns, felts, etc. I also have kids save old calenders for me and bring them in when they put up a new one at home. Some of them can be useful - I take them apart, laminate them and voila! Instant art print/drawing reference. And of course, I take donations of the usual recyclables - coffee cans, cardboard tubes, egg cartons, etc.

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  3. My district lets us charge a $20 art supply fee for each student. Kind-of like they have to buy their PE uniform they have to pay their art fee. This year my principal surprised all of us and gave all the teachers $100 to spend. Besides the art fee I also fund raise, give the kids a supply list, beg for handouts, dumpster dive, hit up some of the big companies in my area for donations, cut coupons, save everything! (paper towel rolls, old t-shirts for painting rags, empty containers, etc.), and the art club has a coffee cart that sells cold and hot coffee, hot cocoa, and muffins on Wed mornings to the teachers and students...yep, I got really creative haha!

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  4. New supply day is always fun. The kids are amazed at the amount that is delivered. I try not to drool on everything!

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  5. I use cardboard instead of canvas to paint on. And people love to help out, I find that if I'm clear about what the needs are its easier for others to help. It's easier for them to know I need 20 boxes of crayons and 20 scissors than if I ask for monetary donations. Love your blog!

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