What a wonderful book. We follow an art teacher on her incredible journey. I have learned techniques for Parked that I can use in my own teaching.

Full review to be posted soonish. I'll update review with links to socials.
I would like to thank the publisher and netgalley for providing me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I appreciate the warning at the beginning of the book of this book's style. Even having said that, this book was not for me. I found it difficult to read (text). The panels were pretty and artfully done. However, it read more as a textbook of art. I was looking for more of the personal author's touch and I didn't see it and therefore I felt distant. Many of the beginning of the book and especially near the middle was chaotic to me. The ending was a little more pulled together.

I love the artwork of Parker’s master’s thesis turned comic book. Obviously it spoke fo me because every few pages I was bothering my friend with “Look at this.”Her graphic representations of educational and sociological contexts are insightful and do exactly what good art can do: they help us see something familiar in a new and memorable way.

There is a lot on a page, and the text can be strenuous to read, My main question is one of target audience. It is a bit long and academic for mainstream readers, and its cartoon style and organic structure make it a difficult sell as a text in an art education class, even though the contents seem appropriate for beginning art ed. majors.

Parker’s conclusion indicates that she has modeled a process that could be used across the curriculum:“The unique qualities of this form have tremendous potential for inquiries of all kinds. Within your own inquiries, I invite you to value and create space for flexible approaches to form in scholarship and beyond.” It is a motivating premise for educators and beyond.

Thank you to Meghan Parker, Clover Press, and NetGalley for an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

As an ELA teacher, I heavily support the arts and wish to consistently remind administrators and parents the benefits of incorporating creative expression into curriculum. The whimsical artwork and chosen passages combine quotes from various artists and scholars, providing for a creative use of citation for a master’s thesis, but the graphic novel doesn’t add too much new information to this school of thought.

I do appreciate the inclusion of mindfulness and artistic expression in this thesis, showcasing a make writing version of the candidate’s self-expression, but I feel the audience might be limited to those who would think this is a text geared towards educators, while it should be celebrated by a broad audience.

Thank you to Net Galley and Diamond Book Distributors for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was not what I was expecting, and ended up being away more in-depth look at the concepts of art (Color, line, etc) than I have initially expected. I did find it to be an interesting read,

This is an important read for all teachers and educators. Reflecting on how to mindfully teach is essential, and allowing for more creativity to reach non-traditional learners. Parker's self-reflection of what an artist is was so inspiring, and made more important by the inclusion of thought-provoking illustrations that depict deep growth. I'll be recommending this one to all the educators in my life.

My Thoughts:
This comic/graphic/textbook/MEd thesis is not necessarily a YA book, nor is it a middle grade book which is what this blog is for. HOWEVER, this book fits in on this blog because it is going to speak to someone in my class. The who and when is not important. In fact, it is inconsequential to purchasing and passing along this book.
It makes me want to go back to grad school and get another doctorate in curriculum studies, just so I can get my hands on creating and tinkering. This comic is a master's thesis done in comic form. Considering I wrote my dissertation as a multi genre, six chapter metaphor around the word moʻo, I loved, loved, loved this book. I have already passed it on or passed it forward to some of my own English teacher alum with a little note to do curriculum more artfully.
It truly is so inspiring that I just want to get back into the classroom and weave joy into every unit. This is definitely going to be a part of my language arts methods class in the fall. Yay!

From the Publisher:
A groundbreaking sensation: a Master's thesis done in comics form! Now Teaching Artfully, is a compelling graphic novel! If you loved Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud or Unflattening by Nick Sousanis you will fall in love with this revolutionary and delightful book. In fact Sousanis provides a fascinating introduction!
Teaching Artfully draws the reader in as it presents the growth and explorations of an early-career art teacher, the author Meghan Parker. Parker comes to understand both her teaching and art-making practices through making insightful comics. The reader, too will find themselves illuminated and inspired and entertained! Teaching Artfully looks at daily teaching practices, visual literacy, the teacher's experience, relationships, and engagement with life inside and outside of schools. It uses a unique visual form to emphasize the importance of learning to understand and communicate using images.
First created as a Masters thesis in the Faculty of Education at Simon Fraser University, Teaching Artfully playfully and earnestly encourages us to see the arts as a way to connect with one another and find our common humanity. Creative people, educators and the general public are sure to connect with the call for meaningful engagement with the arts.

This is a very insightful and educational treatise on the importance of art education organized in a manner that teaches the building blocks of art while showing why and how they're important for a child's development.
Originally Parker's Master's thesis project, it gets points for being both personal and professionals without ever getting too sentimental or too stodgy. It gives facts in an organic manner that flows within the narrative that Parker is creating while remaining true to the purpose and organization of art's building blocks.
Very creative and easy to understand. Although I had trouble with the handwriting on occasions, but that might just be me no longer being used to the longhand that is used.
Overall, I would 100% recommend this to teachers, even those who aren't teaching art. I feel like the insights that Parker presents would be valuable in approaching how to teach in general.

Happy thanks to NetGalley and Clover Press for the early read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Diamond Book Distributors/Clover Press for an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This book originated as a masters thesis told through comics, and now exists as a graphic novel reflecting on art practices, how they connect to teaching and teaching the arts, and benefits of the arts in general.

This title stuck out to me personally as a middle school music teacher because I find that I am always having to defend the importance of my subject and explain that the arts are more than "just" drawing a picture, singing a song, or copying a dance that you saw on TikTok. A lot of the images created by the author made me stop and smile because they resonated with me and my belief that the arts can be both a source of empowerment and expression, as well as a safe space, even if you aren't "good" at them. She also expressed a lot of the things I feel as an early-career arts teacher. I loved this, and I definitely think it is worth sharing with others!

This is an essential read for teachers or educators of all kinds, not just art teachers. Reflecting on how to mindfully teach is essential, and allowing for more creativity to reach non-traditional learners. Parker's self-relection of what an artist is is inspiring, and enhanced by thoughtful and whimsical images that illustrate deep growth. I'll be recommending this one to all the educators in my life.

“Do we. as teachers, love children enough so as to invite them into the world's renewal, not as we imagine it, but as they will come to embody the world they imagine into being?”--Hannah Arendt

Vancouver art teacher Meghan Parker created her MA thesis at Simon Fraser University about the virtues of visual thinking as her very first comics book, which is both a pretty conventional exploration of the importance of the elements of art, and a self study of her own teaching, It’s action research, self inquiry, using art as inquiry, as a way of exploring ideas, and the ideas here explored are about the purposes of art in making the world.

I say “conventional” because Parker organizes most of the thesis into these categories, such as line or form, defines them, then unconventionally shows us how art works to explore these elements. What stands out as attractive? The colors, very inviting. Active, engaging panels. Conceptually I like her peppering throughout key quotations from her primary influences such as Education/Art philosophers Eiliot Eisner and Maxine Greene, and philosopher of comics Scott McCloud. It's a thesis! The effect is still very much scholarly, and won’t maybe interest general readers so much, but it should appeal to teachers of all stripes, K-college, as it invites us to think of education as something other than taking scantron tests and making arguments, which is what school has become in too many places. Especially in a time when the arts have to make their case for inclusion in the schools, I'll encourage all readers to check it out.

So this is art as scholarship, art as not only being studied, but art to study ideas and things, learning as expl0ring. This is probably the first MA thesis-become-book AS comics, as she was inspired by the first comics dissertation-become-book, Unflattening, by Nick Sousanis. Visual thinking, and delight, what it means to be human are central as we get to know and be inspired by Parker as teacher and artist.

I received this book through Netgalley, and this is how I really feel about it.

I was interested in reading this because I'm an English teacher but I also have a background in the arts and hoped to find something relatable to my creative side and relevant to teaching as a whole.

While I loved the art style of this comic I felt like this book mainly utilized quotes from various artists and scholars and presented them in beautifully decorated pages without adding anything new to the conversation. It had several inspirational and informative sections but while it answers the question about why art is important and gives insight into the author's personal experience, it dances around what was presented as the essential question in the introduction: whether art can be considered scholarly.

I did relate to much of the thoughts about the importance of the arts and the struggles of public educators, however I think that the people who are most likely to pick this book up already know these things. Personally, I was hoping for new ideas and innovative ways to incorporate the arts. The font was attractive and fit with the illustration style but was very difficult (and sometimes impossible) to read.
Thank you to Net Galley and Diamond Book Distributors for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
#TeachingArtfully #NetGalley"

As an English teacher, I am always looking for ways to incorporate creativity and art into my lessons, so I was excited to see what this book had to offer; however, I was disappointed to see that the book focused more on the importance of incorporating art into teaching than how to actually do that. I felt like Parker was trying to sell me on this idea throughout the entire text, but I was already sold on it. I wholeheartedly agree that creativity and artist outlets should be incorporated into other disciplines; help me figure out how!

Additionally, I thought that the graphics were captivating and whimsical. I could actually imagine incorporating some of them into my classroom if they were printed as posters. Unfortunately, on the other hand, I found the handwriting to be difficult to read at times.

There is so much to love about this book, starting with the fact that it is the author's Masters thesis...and it's a graphic novel (well, non-fiction). It is about teaching art and so may be more interesting to people who teach, but I enjoyed it immensely (and I can't even do art).

The writing was sometimes difficult to read, almost like it had been mimeographed too much. It's also hand-written, so that could make it a little tough, too. But I liked it - it felt a little like an 80's zine.

Ms. Parker has such a great way of getting the ideas across. The book was very accessible and I may have even learned something about art!

My thanks to Diamond Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Teaching Artfully
Meghan Parker
Clover Press
ISBN: 9781951038205
PRICE: $24.99 (USD)
**This is an ARC provided by NetGalley for book reviews.**

Meghan Parker created her MA thesis completed at Simon Fraser University as an autobiographical comics now published as the book Teaching Artfully. In the tradition of Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics and Nick Sousanis' Unflattening, Parker's work brings her quest to understand art, her teaching principles, and the philosophy of making art through drawn images and hand lettering. The book is vibrant and delightful. Somewhat non-linear in sequence, Parker's autobiography comes alive through jewel-coloured swashes and her playful narration. As any thesis would contain, she embeds quotations from various sources and inspirations. She blends the elements of line, colour, form, texture, shape, space, and value as symbols in the book to describe art and life itself. The non-linear structure of this book makes it very approachable to read. You can open any page and find a nugget of joy and wisdom altogether. Her watercolour treatment jumps off from every page and welcomes you to pick up your brush and tubes of colour and start exploring your own self through brushstrokes.

Art has an important role to play in the development of human character. This is the broad theme of this thesis. The compartmentalization of our disciplines as outlined in the majority of school curricula only lead to the creation of separate entities inside our minds. And since most subjects require analytical skills, art lags far behind on the learning curve, thus ruling out any connection between our bodily senses and nature. We forget that our sense of sight, smell, and touch are equally important in learning. All these senses are engaged when we combine art along with technical skills. Sure specialist technical skills are required to acquire steady job prospects and progress on a linear growth curve. But in the long run, a person misses out on the unexplored territories that render depth and meaning to our lives. This specialization makes it more challenging to grow meaningful connections in life altogether. We get more disenchanted from the beauty and meaning around us. I highly recommend this cheery book for anyone who needs a spark of joy and creativity daily.

Teaching Artfully is part graphic novel, part exploration of art, and part memoir.

I really enjoyed this piece! I felt it was very creative and filled with really insightful thoughts. I loved the combination of scholarship and art, it does feel rare that art gets its deserved space in this regard. The art was so delightful, and I really enjoyed Parker's thought process. The one comment I have (which I know the author kind of addressed already) was the writing style. I understand this was part of the work, and I could read it, but I could see some possible accessibility issues for those with sight issues. That being said, I do understand it was part of the work and I found it fine as an abled person.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for this book in exchange for an honest review, and thank you to the author for their work as an art educator in Canada! Art class was a happy place for me during my teen years, I appreciate the work that goes into working with youth.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read and review.

I am so thankful I came across this book. It puts art, and teaching and learning art, into a new format that is easy to digest and makes sense. Although I teach elementary, not high school, I think this will help me better serve the students in my class. I like how the chapters are broken down into different elements and there are many visuals that it is really easy to see what the author is talking about. I do wish the text was a little easier to read though.

Look, I really liked this book, both the concept and the art in it. As a teacher and artist myself, this should've been a book I loved and would purchase. Unfortunately, the text (cute as they are) is not readable at all, so I started skimming through the text half way through the book. I feel quite saddened that the text is such a dealbreaker for me, because I see so much potential and good content for educators.

This was a master’s thesis on the history and main concepts surrounding art and less of a manual. Drawings were cute and playful however I struggled to read the handwriting - a page of it was okay but the whole book, it became tiresome and frustrating with the thinness and inconsistencies of the font. The book was wordy and if you’re not familiar with art (like myself) easy to get lost in, nevertheless I did learn some new things about art and it was interesting to a point. A great idea to do a masters like this but may want to think about the accessibility and font used.