Know anyone from Baldwin Park, California? These teachers have some wonderful things to say about my draw-along school assemblies.
Deon Lee – I want to tell you how very much my students and I enjoyed your assembly today. So many times school assemblies are hit or miss as to enjoy ability and relevance to students. Your assembly, however, was both enjoyable and relevant. I teach kindergarten and so many times, when asked to illustrate something, my students’ first response is, “I can’t”. After your assembly, more, if not all of them, had an “I can” attitude. You showed them through your fast paced instructions, that drawing is just a matter of lines and shapes.
At first I doubted whether kindergarteners could complete the drawings and I was rushing around, “helping” them. After about five minutes of this, I noticed that not only did they not need my help, but they were actually doing a great job and I was amazed at how much their drawings looked like your sample! I finally decided they did not need my help so I sat down to take part and have fun too.
I enjoyed the control you had of a cafeteria full of kindergarteners, first, and second graders. The noises you made and the mental pictures you created helped capture the attention of a room full of 5 to 7 year olds and helped illustrate concepts like “eyeballs” and “motion”.
Afterwards, my students had a sense of pride and accomplishment in their drawings. When we went back to our classroom, I allowed them to choose the drawing they liked the best and color it. They also enjoyed writing a short story about their drawing.
Thank you, again, for such an enjoyable assembly. My students will be able to use what they learned immediately and feel more confident in their drawing ability.
Pam Shaffstall – I really enjoyed the drawing assembly that you presented to our school.. Pleasant View School was so lucky to have you, as a presenter. Your control of the children, ages 5-8, was outstanding! I observed that every child was on task and very excited about your drawing lessons. I feel that it instilled a sense of pride in every child and showed them that they could really exceed at something, if they tried.
Sandy Campos – Thank you so much for the great assembly. My students really enjoyed it. I noticed that throughout the day, if they had to draw something in class, they were using some of the techniques that you showed them during the assembly. I also want to acknowledge that fact that you totally captivated their attention with your dynamic personality and great management.
Martha García – My second grade students and I really enjoyed “Kyle’s Cartoon Platoon” program! Before the program, I was skeptical. How can you have so many children, at the same time, participating in an interactive program while maintaining control?
Well, Kyle Tiernan pulled it off! He really knows what he’s doing! I really liked how the students were completely and thoroughly engaged! This not only kept the focus on learning, but kept discipline issues to virtually non-existent! It was fast paced, my students definitely had to pay attention to keep up, but isn’t that part of the goal? They were so focused.
I liked how Kyle integrated math into the activities with lines shapes, points, etc. I also liked how he used and emphasized key vocabulary for this program. My students enjoyed this so much! It gave them confidence that they were able to really draw a cartoon figure! It emphasized the step-by-step process to take on a task that otherwise may have seemed overwhelming to them. Hopefully they will apply this to all kinds of learning. This program made critical thinking fun! Finally, with all the focus on content standards, the truth is that we just don’t have a lot of time for art, unfortunately. Kyle’s program gave them a meaningful art experience with cross-curricular benefits! I’m all for anything that gives art “back” to the students!!!!!
Jackie Arias – I really want to thank you for coming out to our school. Your drawing assembly was fascinating. I am a horrible drawer and the kids laugh at my drawings, but this assembly really made me change my perspective on drawing. I really can do it (with a little step by step help)!! The kids also realized that they can actually draw!! We hardly have time for Art and Music because of the rigid standards and we have to integrate it into our day, but something like this really is good for the kids..they actually learned to listen, learned Science, Math and ultimately Draw!! The first grade team is really interested in having you come out again and doing another assembly for just us!