Ms Melissa Kehr, art teacher, has taught high school for 5 years at Shadow Ridge and teaches a variety of classes with different objectives due to her intense passion for art.
Throughout the year Ms. Kehr teaches 3 separate classes. Painting I, Painting II, and Advanced Art Study. Each class is different and requires different skills to effectively teach.

Painting I, is a beginning art class where students learn the very basics of painting and art. Over the school year students learn different techniques and skills they can later apply to their future art projects. Painting I focuses on the bare basics of working with paint and how to do things like color mixing and the use of paintbrushes, all skills a future artist should have.

“I enjoy painting class because it has helped me strengthen my skills, making me confident in my artwork,” states Kenzie Dennis sophomore at Shadow Ridge and Painting I student.

Painting II, is a similar class to Painting I but students are more advanced in their skills. Rather than learning the basics of painting students are able to apply what they learned in Painting I to other projects practicing and perfecting their skills. In order to take this class most students have successfully completed Painting I to ensure that all students are on a similar skill level. This class does not teach students beginning skills.

After taking Painting II, many students take Ms. Kehr’s 3rd class, Advanced Art Study. Advanced Art Study works with many different art mediums separate from painting, although painting remains the base of the class. In this class students utilize their already perfected techniques to create more complex pieces of art while studying the history of different types of art. Students learn to understand the emotion behind the pieces they are creating. Students in this class are highly advanced and skilled.

A core part of all these classes includes work in something called a visual journal. At the start of each year, students are given a blank sketchbook. Each week a new sketch prompt is given to be turned in before the weekend. Students will then use the start of each class that week to draw the given prompt. These assignments encourage students to think outside the box and think creatively to portray an idea or thought without using words. At the end of the year the sketchbook will be filled with the students’ drawing journey and will act as a physical portfolio of the students’ school year.

“Visual journals are my favorite part of the week,” states Dennis, “I now have a decent sized portfolio of my drawing progress.”

Ms. Kehr’s passion for the subject allows the class to flow seamlessly and orderly while still giving students creative space.

“I’ve always known I wanted to do art,” Ms Kehr stated, “Teaching art has always been an extremely fulfilling part of my life.”

Ms. Kehr has always been passionate about art. She has received over a decade of education on many art mediums and subjects including cultural art history, sculpting, and of course, painting. Ms Kehr is fervent about many art mediums including jewelry making, sculpting, and music. Her intense passion for the subject makes each class unique and enjoyable for each student.