After assessing the first project, I knew that skill levels and prior art-knowledge vastly varied so all art projects needed to have the flexibility for beginners and advanced artists alike.
This next project was initially intended to create a community totem pole consisting of each community member's animal spirit. However seeing how the youth jumped on the chance to decorate their rooms with the list of positive qualities they made the week prior and knowing that their common area was already filled with different sorts of decorations, I explained the project to them but gave them the option to hang it in their rooms instead. The decision was unanimous!
Prior to starting the project I asked if they had ever thought about the question, "If you were an animal, what animal would you be?" The discussion started as everyone had a reason why they thought they would be a certain animal. I pulled out books on animals I obtained from the library and we spent a chunk of time exploring different animals and trying to match animal qualities to the individual personalities of each youth.
They then started work on their spirit animals as I talked about the history of the Native American totem pole (regardless of us creating one or not, I wanted them to take away the knowledge). They worked an hour past the allotted time we were scheduled to be together and the youth who finished early brought out their homework to the community work table so we could all still sit together.
I used this class to push each individual past what they thought they could accomplish and the results were so rewarding. Youth were parading their work around to all staff on duty and helping each other decide where to hang it in their rooms. I couldn't have been prouder!
