Waterside Network Group meeting - 20.05.10

I can categorically confirm that these do not represent anyone present at the meeting. Honest.

OIS Full Governing Body meeting - 21.05.10

When I’m in a meeting I have an overwhelming desire to doodle. It’s not that I’ve switched off what’s going on around me - in fact, I find it helps my concentration to cartoon (insert medical explanation here). Usually it’s cartoons on the back on an envelope or meeting agenda, but it can be a sketch pad, napkin, beer mat… Pretty much whatever’s at hand. They’re not planned, they rather just appear in a jumbled mass of (typically) green pen. This was last night’s scribblings at a school governors’ meeting.

I’ll be taking part in two cartoon workshops in the coming weeks. First up I’ll be in Winchester on Thursday 3rd June at the Winchester Discovery Centre. As part of the John Burgerman exhibition I’ll be taking children on two half day sessions to help develop their cartoon doodling. More details here.

Then, on Saturday 5th June at 3pm I’ll be at the Ejectorseat Arts Festival in Palmerston Park in Southampton encouraging children (and adults if you fancy it) to get cartooning and be on hand to lend tips and advice. More information can be found here.

I’ll maybe see you there!

Spent today at Orchard Junior School taking part in their New Forest Day for Year 3. The day was divided into thirds with Sue Palma from the New Forest National Park undertaking map work, Suzy Moore from the New Forest Museum presenting New Forest artefacts, and then myself talking about local wildlife. The three classes were rotated amongst us, so we had over an hour with each. During my sessions we focused on the more unusual creatures of the forest, from muntjac to red-legged partridges, and then finished with a step-by-step drawing. Children’s knowledge of the immediate world around them can be patchy, and with the New Forest, literally, on their doorstep I was expecting a mixed level of awareness, but what was encouraging was that although they may only be able to name a handful of animals (I’m surprised at how many adults struggle to name 20), a deeper understanding of why we need to look after the forest was clearly present. Hats off to some amazing artwork, too.