Introducing Craft Development to Youth

When was the last time your child was encouraged to utilize their brain AND their body in the classroom? With the increased emphasis on

standardized testing in schools, children face increasing pressure to only value learning that occurs from the head up, prioritize STEM above

all else, always get the perfect answer, and rely heavily on memorization rather than problem-solving (Washington Post). Critical thinking,

STEM skills, developing accurate answers, and knowledge retention are certainly important for our children to learn. But like any good thing,

too much of it becomes bad. Experts, entrepreneurs, economists, and educators agree: for our kids to be successful in their personal and

professional lives, they need exposure to a variety of subjects and experiences in their adolescence (PBS). But how are our kids going to have

these experiences when standardized testing becomes our highest standard for academic success?

Enter our approach: Craft Development. Our program uses pottery to activate students’ hand-eye coordinated critical thinking, which both

complements and supplements what children learn in the traditional classroom setting.

Complements by teaching:

• Hands-on math skills (ex. Measuring materials, resource allocation)

• Spatial skills (ex. Beneficial for math, engineering, problem-solving)

• Fine motor skills (ex. Such as those used to play instruments)

• History (ex. Learning about pottery evolution over time, learning about various cultures and their pottery, etc.)

• Science (ex. Composition of different clays, learning about clay recycling, how molecular structures change throughout firing stages)

• Grit

• Connection to the natural world (a break from technology)

Supplements by teaching:

• Project planning skills (ex. Resource allocation, executing an idea from start to finish, etc.)

• How to use tools (ex. Carving, shaping, cutting, foot pedal usage)

• Mindfulness

• Discipline

• Communication

• Project ownership

Craft education and training allows for students to unlock their curious mind through the original tool: the hand. And pottery craft is certainly

more than just attending a pottery class. We advocate for a longer view and dedicated weekly practices to consistently build critical thinking

habits and grit, as clay is certainly no walk in the park when you start digging deeper. But like anything, you get so much more out of it when

you regularly practice, and it is certainly fun and invigorating. Pottery teaches the physical control of a competitive sport, the mindfulness of

meditation, and the attention to detail of mathematics. From hand manipulation to throwing on the wheel to the firing process, we work with clay

through all of its forms and stages to give young minds a stronger framework with which to interpret the world.

Why Pottery?

Pottery has been deeply connected to our survival and evolution as a human species for over 30,000 years. Once humans harnessed fire, we

learned to fire clay into vessels that we could use to cook and eat in. The switch to eating cooked food improved our nutrition, which increased

brain development as a species. From there, pottery expanded to serve not only as a tool but also as decoration. Each great civilization has

had their own distinctive form of pottery, from the ancient Greek black figure pottery to Ming Dynasty porcelain to Aztec pottery. In fact, pottery

often helps us understand who we are and where we come from:

“Pottery can be used to date archaeological sites [and] reveal long-forgotten trade links... the decoration can show artistic evolution within

cultures and it often reveals details of everyday life from clothing to religious rituals, from eating habits to now-lost versions of otherwise well-

known myths” (World History).

Thus, to learn the craft of pottery is to return to our roots as human beings. This is a practice that has been passed down for over 1,500

generations. In an era where we are constantly trying to one-up ourselves, to create the next best technology, and to produce more and more,

it’s valuable to slow down and reconnect with the earth and our ancestors.