Art
Authentic Learning Experience: Mo Willems interacts with his viewers as if they were with him in his studio, including offering up silent moments do not seem strained because young children will be engaged in thoughtful reflection or doodling their perceptions of the questions Mo has posed. Not only do young children get to “interact” with a favorite author and illustrator, they get to participate in one-on-one drawing instruction with Mo. Through the use of easy to duplicate lines and shapes, young children just mastering the control of drawing implements can replicate characters from Mo’s books or create their own. Children involved in doodling along with Mo may become lost in the process of creation and their own imagination, or simply follow along imitating Mo. In both cases, they will be practicing fine motor skills as well as building confidence in their own abilities.
Developmentally Appropriate Practices (child development, interest based, culturally appropriate): Mo Willems designed these videos with young children in mind during the first weeks Covid lockdowns in the spring of 2020. To keep children engaged in developmentally appropriate activities while they were kept from attending school, these lessons help children (and their families) process their felings through drawing and creation. Using children’s interest in characters from his most popular books, Willems encourages and instructs children to draw what they love. Lunch Doodle with Mo Willems videos are available at The Kennedy Center website, as well as YouTube, for free; are equally accessible on desktop or mobile applications; and has Closed Captioning. Auto translation is available on YouTube.
Washington Early Learning Guidelines: Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems is appropriate for preschool children as they begin to draw representational figures; draw and paint; enjoy being read to; and use their own experiences to comment on stories. These developmental guidelines are:
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Begin to draw representational figures.
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Draw something familiar. Begin to draw representational figures
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Draw some shapes and lines using a crayon or pencil.
General Overview: Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems is presented by The Kennedy Center. Mo Willems, the author and illustrator of numerous child's books, began this series of videos in the spring of 2020 during the initial days of the Covid pandemic. He uses his skills as an artist to show kids how to draw some of his most beloved characters, but also how they can use art to process their feelings. Children and adults will love spending time with Mo!