Express Your HeART- A Class for the Littlest Artists and Their Lovely Assistants

Kids are natural artists and us grown-ups tend to be naturals at telling kids what to do. Most of the time that is a clear necessity but not when making art!

If you love making art with your little ones but need to learn how to loosen up and let them do their thing, there is a workshop at ArcWorks Community Art Center that will help you learn how to follow instead of lead.

Express your HeART:

A creative play program that uses art materials to allow yound children (ages 2-5) to experience the sensory experience of art-making.Young children naturally explore their world around them to make meaning, solve problems, and understand their relationship to self and others. The art-making of young children is not about the final product but about the process of playful exploration.

• Instructor: Natalie Blue, Liscensed Mental Health Counselor
• Session 1: 4-5 p.m. on Thursdays -- June 21, 28 and July 12, 19, 28
• Session 2: 4-5 p.m. on Thursdays -- August 2, 9, 16, 23 and 30

Express Your HeART meets weekly for 1 hour and allows caregivers the opportunity to connect with the child as an "artist's assistant". When an artist employs an assistant, it is the assistant's job to provide an extra set of hands so the artist can fulfill their vision. Caregivers take on that role by allowing the child to take the lead in art-making and provide motor assistance according to the child's direction. By being the child's art assistant, a caregiver is able to be an active witness to their child's creative play and deepen the bond of attachment with the young child.

The cost is $60 for five weeks or $15 for dropping by a session.

Contact Beth Mazzetta to register, bmazzetta@ne-arc.org or 978-624-2555.

This seems like a great class to learn to play with a little kid in a rewarding way and meet some fellow local parents and guardians in the process!

ArcWorks Community Art Center is an inclusive art center, which means that we work to encourage members of our community of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to access and participate in the arts, to gain creative confidence and to challenge barriers through integration and innovation. We house an art gallery, gift shop and classroom space where we offer opportunities for all local artists and residents. We are proudly governed by the Northeast Arc, and offer programming to the people we serve along with the public.