Self Portraits

As I explored early childhood education online, I noticed many children create self-portraits to begin the new school year. The images introduce members of the learning community to others, decorate walls in the school, and support community building.

Children use paint, mirrors, markers, clay, or loose parts to create a self-portrait. A small biography about the child often accompanies the self-portraits so classmates and families can get to know each other. This type of work is also a deeper examination of self. Creating a self-portrait invites children to see a reflection of who they are at a given age.

Seeing children creating self-portraits gave me an idea. The start of the school year is a good time for us, as educators, to develop our self-portraits. Instead of re-creating our faces, we could use this time of new beginnings to look deeper into ourselves. We could examine our journey in the learning community and take time to imagine where we want to travel this coming school year.

The examination method should reflect the way we like to express ourselves. Our examination could be the start of a regular practice of self-reflection. Like the children, who are looking deeper into growing up through creating, we could look deeper into our practice and be creative in the process. 

What will we discover? 

Can we embrace what we see in our reflection?

This type of work can be uncomfortable when we are honest about who we are, where we are, and where we want to go. We all have dreams and desires for how our work and life will proceed in the coming year. A self-examination practice could be the catalyst for a great school year filled with limitless possibilities.