u/AWL_cow

I am a novice mosaic artist to say the least...novice might even be higher than my current abilities and knowledge. But I've been lurking in this sub because I love the art form and want to give it a shot im the future.

That being said, I'm wondering about the variety of grout. It seems like I see the same (maybe most popular/effective?) Colors posted mostly - black, Grey, other flat colors.

Are there iridescent grouts? Glittery grouts? Color gradient grouts?

I understand that the limited and darker color choices are most likely the best background color to tie the piece together, which is ultimately the focus and not the grout itself, but I'm just wondering (or maybe waiting to see) if artists on here ever use less common grouts?

Imagine a mosaic of a flowing river with light reflecting grout or a beetle mosaic with an iridescent grout...does it even exist?

For reference, I teach K-6 and I've noticed in the last few years an uptick in students boldly telling me: "I'm done" when they present terribly unfinished work. Like, scribbles on paper. Not just from the younger grades but older students too.

I have taught and retaught craftmanship every quarter this year. I use examples for every media. I use easy scales from 1-4 to represent craftmanship ranging from unfinished to above and beyond. I have made it developmentally appropriate for students to understand and the problem isn't in understanding - it's in caring.

Students just don't care. They don't value their work...they don't care about what they turn in. They don't care if their parents see their work. Their parents look at me as if they want to say; 'what are you even teaching them?', but I feel like it's hard to explain to parents that their child isn't learning because they are personally choosing to do poorly - because they don't care.

I have maybe 2-3 students in each class who put effort, REAL effort, into their work and the rest want access to materials to scribble, crumple up paper, throw it away, and then quickly get another. A whole ream of paper could be gone in one class no matter how many times I teach them, show them, model to them to draw lightly, erase, etc.

At the beginning of the year I teach and re-teach how to fix 'mistakes' to students, how to move on from them, but they just don't care. It feels like every year there are more "I'm finished." "I don't care." "I don't want to work." "I don't want to do this." "I don't want to color more." I make projects that are engaging and aligned with students interests, more "classic" projects, nothing seems to make a difference.

I have 6th graders who draw and color worse than kindergarten students I've had in the past - not because they can't, because they won't choose to do better.

How do I get students to care and try when they don't care and don't want to try? In the past, I feel like the answer would have been to grade them appropriately. But nowadays, we are told to give students a passing grade no matter what they turn in - or even if they don't turn anything in. And when you give a student lower than a 70, their parents are ready to attack. Admin doesn't have our backs.

I feel like my job is turning into a motivator, counselor, babysitter instead of a teacher. I know these issues aren't new, but I'm really struggling to show up when the majority of class won't try no matter what. I guess all of this is coming to mind because it's the end of the year and I'm already prepping the beginning of year lessons for next year (I don't want to work over summer) and I'm dreading a whole new year of "I don't care."