About

Faculty Sketchbook Project

The Graded Gazette

Though it may sometimes seem like teachers spend every waking hour at school, they manage to find time to engage in other enjoyable activities when they are not teaching, planning lessons, or grading assignments. That’s right: Teachers have hobbies! These pastimes might be athletic, artistic, intellectual, or social in nature. Some teachers devote several hours to honing skills and may even pursue activities competitively. Others approach their hobbies with a more laid-back attitude.

Art is a particularly popular pastime among Graded faculty. So much so that 30 teachers have come together to participate in the Sketchbook Project, an artwork exchange group led by Lower School English Language Learner (ELL) Teacher Tim Cabrera. At the start of the project, each participant selected a discarded book from the Lower School Library and decorated its cover. Since then, the books have been exchanged between club members each month. When a teacher receives a new book, they pick an empty page and embellish it however they see fit. Though there are no steadfast rules to what teachers should produce, many participants like connecting their artwork to the books’ original stories. 


Cristina Cipolla, a pre-primary teaching assistant at Graded, is one of the participants in the Sketchbook Project. Ms. Cipolla loves how the initiative connects people through art and allows them to get to know one another in new and unique ways. She often draws mandalas on the pages of the books she receives. Her interest in mandalas and their symbolism was piqued when she received one from her mother.  Ms. Cipolla researched how mandalas may be utilized as spiritual guiding tools, how their patterns convey balance and harmony, and how their geometric designs represent the universe. Inspired by what she learned, she began creating her own and quickly realized that the practice had a powerful soothing effect on her.  

 


Fanny Guimaraes, a lower school Optimal Learning Center (OLC) teaching assistant, is another Sketchbook Project participant. Her artwork, shown below, is influenced by the books she receives through the exchange. Art, to Ms. Guimaraes, is a form of therapy and a means of expressing affection. (She often makes artwork for her friends and family.) Ms. Guimaraes, who also works with other materials such as porcelain and wood, is particularly fond of the Sketchbook Project because it allows her to appreciate others’ work and approach art in a very playful manner. As a result, her illustrations have a spirited and lighthearted quality. 

 


The Sketchbook Project has also had a significant influence on Lower School Pre-primary Teacher Alex Hudson. Before coming to Graded, Ms. Hudson was an art aficionado, but she had never considered making any art herself. She joined the Sketchbook Project on a whim, not knowing what she was getting herself into. (She expected a kind of scrapbooking project.) Ms. Hudson was initially uncomfortable sharing her work with others and was concerned about whether she was doing the "right" thing, but she slowly overcame her anxiety and now loves everything about the project. Decorating the pages is a delightful way to escape reality for a while, and Ms. Hudson is amazed by the art produced by other participants.  

 


Kevin Maykut is very drawn to perspective in art. If he had not become an educator (he is currently a high school ELL teacher), he might have gone to architecture school. Mr. Maykut is an enthusiastic doodler and audacious artist who loves building fictional cities with his pencil. He likes the Sketchbook Project because there is no pressure on participants to draw well, allowing him to escape into a state of tranquility when sketching. 

 


Patricia Purdie, a grade 2 teaching assistant who has worked at Graded since 2003, is an artist with a passion for acrylic paints. She was introduced to art at a young age by family members who were enthusiastic painters or art collectors. Despite this early exposure, she only started painting in 2014. Since then, though, she has worked with watercolors, oil paints, collages, and acrylics, experimenting with many artistic styles. In 2015, she started painting textured tree trunks. In the following years, she continued painting trees but approached the backgrounds using different techniques, resulting in unique pieces. She has participated in many art exhibitions in Brazil and abroad. 

 


Marla Starr, a lower school OLC teacher, began studying Asian art ten years ago and has since received numerous awards for her work. Her fascination with this artistic style started when she was living in Japan, and it followed her to Egypt, India, and, eventually, Brazil. Ms. Starr is drawn to the simplicity of Asian art. She admires the extensive use of blank spaces, often filled up in Western art. Ms. Starr is equally fascinated by the expression of movement on the page, and many of her subjects are active animals.

 

 


Teachers who participate in the Sketchbook Project and those who pursue art independently set a great example by dedicating time to a passion or hobby. Their commitment persists despite time constraints, extensive to-do lists, and varying artistic abilities, and they reap the benefits of engaging in a highly enjoyable and calming activity. 

Many other leisure activities offer practitioners similar benefits. Joining a new sports team or participating in a book club, for instance, can also be great ways to unwind, have fun, and meet new people. This type of enjoyment is essential for human well-being, yet we are frequently so caught up in our crazy schedules, wholly consumed by the things we have to get done, that we push aside the things we want to do. 

Sometimes, people refrain from starting a hobby because they are afraid they will not be good at it. It’s understandable: In a culture that values excellence, allowing oneself to be mediocre (or even downright terrible) at something is unnerving. However, trying new activities is the only way to discover new passions and talents, and it is a great way to have fun while acquiring new skills. Who knows – someone might even turn out to have been a dormant Beethoven or a latent Van Gogh.