Ten Minutes, Five Times a Week
Ten Minutes, Five Times a Week is a simple set of drawing exercises designed to get people drawing. The resources are aimed at a broad audience, but designed particularly with educators in mind.
Each exercise is designed to give non-specialist educators the confidence to approach drawing, by committing to regular, brief drawing activities for just one week.
Find a 45-minute session recording demonstrating the exercises and approaches you’ll find on the page below.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS AND HOW DO WE FIT THE EXERCISES INTO THE DAY?
Before you start...
Before Each Session: Set Expectations
The following exercises work best if the learners work quietly and with concentration. A quiet atmosphere will help learners tune into close seeing and set a calm and mindful intention for the session.
After Each Session: Reflect
At the end of each session, it’s worth investing two minutes in getting learners to walk around the room to look at each other’s work. This will help them focus and reflect on their experiences and the experiences of others. Reflection also gives learners space to recognise the value of the work that has been made. Learners might comment on what they like about their peer’s work.
At the End of the Week: Revisit
Please make time to revisit the exercises to allow learners to articulate and reflect upon their progress over the week. You may like to ask some questions…
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What was their favourite exercise to do?
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Which outcome do they feel was the most successful and why?
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Is there something they would like to try next, for example, a new material?
You might like to give them a chance to repeat an exercise to allow them to consolidate their experiences and reflections.
The Five Drawing exercises...
Day 1. Continuous Line Drawing
Day 2. Backwards Forwards Drawing
Day 3. See 3 Shapes
Day 4. Thoughtful Mark Making
Day 5. Making Stronger Drawings
Kirsty
July 25, 2022 @ 8:34 am
I am desperately trying to encourage staff to use sketchbooks and think this resource may be a great start for some of our less confident/willing staff to try – even if only once every half term it would see an improvement.
TINA PARSONS
July 24, 2023 @ 8:44 am
HAVING NOT DRAWN OR PAINTED DURING THE PAST YEAR I ASKED MY 15 YEAR OLD GRAND DAUGHTER TO JOIN ME IN AN ART CHALLENGE DURING HER SCHOOL HOLIDAYS – A DAILY 10 MINUTE SKETCH. MY PROBLEM IS , I GAVE HER A SMALL BLANK PAGED NOTE BOOK WHICH IS ENCOURAGING HER TO WORK SMALL AND TIGHTLY. APART FROM WORKING ACROSS 2 PAGES IN THE NOTE BOOK, AND SUGGESTING SHE SOMETIMES SKETCHES ON LARGER PAPER, CAN YOU MAKE SUGGESTIONS PLEASE. I THINK THE 10 MINUTE SKETCH IS A VALUABLE WAY TO LEARN TO LOOK AT AN OBJECT OR PERSON AND TO LEARN TO SKETH QUICKLY. I WOULD VALUE YOUR IDEAS PLEASE .
Rachel
July 24, 2023 @ 11:13 am
Hi Tina, mixing up the size of paper when drawing is a great idea. Working in small sketchbooks and then on large paper is really beneficial – but why not try everything in between? A4 could be a good step up from a very small sketchbook for example. Also, try using different papers: cartridge, watercolour, sugar, newsprint, scrap, card board etc. Sometimes varying the surface as well as scale can open up how we draw and relax us into it a bit more. You could build a collection and pin them up on the wall or stitch them into a home made sketchbook? It sounds like a great project to do with your granddaughter – good luck!
Charlotte
July 30, 2024 @ 11:50 am
Could these be suitable for 5-7 year olds, or better for ages 8+?
Paula
July 30, 2024 @ 12:25 pm
Hi Charlotte – yes suitable for 5-7 too. Timewise just focus for less time…