Pottery Workshop
Written surveys were distributed to all attendees on the final workshop day. It was expected that a majority of respondents would:
• learn at least one new technique in creating pottery.
• be interested in checking out pottery and/or other art-related books from the library.
• be encouraged to express themselves in the creative arts.
• want to tell a friend or family member about the library and its programs.
In addition, library staff would observe a majority of attendees actively engaging in the program by listening attentively and asking questions. Anecdotal responses from attendees would confirm their enjoyment of the program.
Written surveys were given to those teens attending the last workshop day. See attached compilation of these written evaluations. Overall, survey respondents provided positive reviews for the pottery workshop. They
indicated the workshop encouraged them to express themselves in the creative arts and it taught them at least
one new pottery technique. While all but one teen indicated they would attend a future teen program at the
library, it was rewarding to see that all teens indicated they enjoyed the pottery workshop and would
recommend the library’s programs to others.
From this librarian’s perspective, the teen pottery workshop was a great success! The teens who attended the pottery classes were focused and committed. They were eager to learn and responded well to the art instructor’s directions. Paula was an especially encouraging teacher. She gave guidance while providing teens with a lot of opportunities for creative expression. What was especially neat was to see that the teens were committed to
staying at each class for the full two hours. With extra time, teens took the opportunity to make smaller
hand-built figurines.
Attendance at each class varied. Originally, we had 10 participants sign up to attend all four sessions. On the
first day of class, a parent called and advised that her son would not be attending. We notified the teen listed
on our waiting list, and she was able to attend the second class and all subsequent classes. Due to illness and
prior commitments, three students were not able to attend every class. Luckily Paula was a flexible instructor,
and all 10 participants created at least two projects. While the publicity stated that participants must attend all
four sessions, and every participant completed an application form, it was impossible to enforce this “rule.” Despite the varied class sizes, the teens attending the pottery classes made the most of their time spent in the pottery studio, and appeared pleased with their completed projects.
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