Trust in the classroom and building community in the Art room

I loved Kelly's post so much...written so well and great ideas! I like to build trust by encouraging an air of openness in the art room. If a child is creatively "stuck" he/she is encouraged to put their artwork up on the wall/door/board (with magnets), step back to look at it and ask for other classmates to give input. This option is just that, an option. I model how this is done so they understand it is constructive critique we are looking for.
If I have displayed an entire classroom's work in the hall on a board or wall, the class will go out for a critique taking turns commenting on work until all have had someone say something about their work. We of course keep it mostly positive but do give gentle suggestions, if needed, on how the art piece could have been worked differently.
Art critiques can also be the artist talking about his or her own work explaining why a subject matter was chosen or why certain colors were used. It gives students a chance to practice speaking in front of others and use their "art words". Mara