Creativity in the classroom and beyond

The connection between Innovative Resources and creator/illustrator Katie Jardine began with a moment of serendipity and has grown to be a most enduring collaboration.

It was almost 20 years ago that the Innovative Resources editorial team happened to be visiting their printer in Maryborough on the same day that greeting cards featuring Katie’s illustrations were coming off the press.

The attraction to Katie’s illustrative style was immediate, and two years later the card set Wonderful You was born. It was a set of 26 alphabetised cards that used alliteration, affirming language and fun illustrations as a way for children (of ALL ages) to notice strengths and say ‘well done’!

‘I’d never heard of Innovative Resources,’ Katie remembers. ‘I was a freelance illustrator and designer, working from home and caring for our young son Ben. He’s 18 now!

‘I remember feeling drawn to the cards and books that IR were publishing … and the philosophy behind the strengths approach.’

The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. A new edition of the iconic Strength Cards was in the pipeline and Katie’s style was a natural fit. Sixteen years on, her playful sheep, resourceful duck, peaceful elephant (in a bathtub!), and other delightful creatures, are still helping people around the world focus on strengths and abilities rather than problems or deficits.

‘After all these years I still feel such joy when I look at the Strength Cards,’ Katie says. ‘I have my own favourites—the happy echidna and the humorous meerkats. They’re such a simple, yet powerful tool.’

Now a primary school teacher, Katie has a special insight into the power of Strength Cards in the classroom.

‘I’m always finding new ways to use them,‘ she says. ‘I might take out a single card and we’ll simply look at it as a class and consider the strength. Courage, for example. What is it? When do we need courage? How does it make us feel? What do we do when we’re courageous?

‘It can work across all year levels—drawing and writing about strengths. Making children aware of their strengths empowers them.’

Nine years after Strength Cards came Anxiety Solutions for Kids; Katies fun yet soulful illustrations proving the perfect expression for Selina Byrne’s 50 practical strategies for kids struggling with anxiety.

‘Many of the illustrations in that set still provoke my own emotions and memories of the time,’ Katie says.

‘The ”Funniest Thing” card, for example, reminds me of a time when I had lots of medical appointments and was dealing with my own roller coaster of emotions.

‘Thinking about how funny it would be to get up and dance in front of all the people in the waiting room at the medical clinic still gives me a little twinkle in my eye!

‘The image for the “My Special Place” card is my son Jack sitting under the plants in our garden … exploring … being present. It’s a card that allows children to stop and ponder—away from devices—and think about how they feel and why they feel that way. Anxiety Solutions for Kids is my go-to for supportive conversations within the classroom.’

Creativity is at the heart of Katie’s teaching practice, but also permeates every other part of her life, from parenting to her own art practice.

‘I love to be creative and make something out of nothing,’ she says. ‘It isn’t always drawings, but sometimes creating with clay, sticks, string or wire. I enjoy the process—not knowing what might appear.’

The characters for Strength Cards and Anxiety Solutions for Kids grew from this same practice; Katie sitting down and scribbling with pencil and paper to ‘see what happens’.

‘It’s where my ideas feel free and unconstricted,’ she explains. ‘All my designs start with pencil on paper before I recreate them in Adobe illustrator.

‘I love the sharpness of colours and the ability to change them at the click of a button. I do love painting with a brush too, but it can be limiting. I worry about making a mistake on a nearly finished piece!’

When I ask Katie if she has a favourite out of the card sets she’s created for Innovative Resources, it’s like I’ve asked her if she can pick a favourite of her three sons.

‘They are all my favourites, for different reasons [I do sound like a mother]’, she laughs. ‘While creating each set of cards I was on my own little life journey, so they are like my creative children. I love how they’ve evolved over the years and continue to inspire.’

by John Holton