I'm fascinated by the storytelling that Bill Traylor conveys through his art. He's one of those artists that pulls me in and I have to stay. How could I express this feeling to a 2nd grade class? Ironically, through storytelling itself. I told them how Bill started painting when he was 85 years old. How he would sit on a box and paint the scenes that would travel by him. And how his favorite mediums were black paint, crayons, and discarded cardboard. They were hooked.
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| These were made by 2nd graders using white paper and black marker. |
I asked the kids to imagine themselves sitting on a old rocking chair just watching the day go by. What might they see? What animals would pass by? Most importantly, what story could they tell? I was amazed at how quickly and how eagerly they grasped the idea.
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Bill Traylor at work
Bill Traylor source here
