Being Creative – Exploring Art Techniques for PMLD and Sensory Learners

It's easy to do too much. You want the painting to look like the Hokusai wave on the board, so you guide the hand a bit further each time, and it ends up being your picture rather than theirs.

Stepping back is easier with the right techniques. There are practical ideas across painting, printing, sculpture, collage and textiles: pushing balls through paint, pressing leaves onto sticky tape, a switch-operated fan that blows paint-covered balls across the paper, printing with cut fruit. You'll learn to prop under an elbow instead of holding a hand, use contrasting backgrounds and coloured handles, and pick artists that suit a topic, such as Andy Goldsworthy for a nature project.

The approach comes from 27 years of teaching learners with PMLD. The process is where the learning happens, and the finished piece deserves a frame on the wall.