As the exercises follow on from one another we recommend that you follow them as a course.

You can follow the instructions online or print them off to do wherever you choose.

What might these exercises offer?

• Learning to enjoy creative activities brings balance to our lives by giving us quality time for ourselves

• Looking at and reflecting on art gives us pause in a busy world

• Paper craft exercises increase our dexterity, making our fingers more nimble

• Creative writing develops our self-expressive skills. Self-expression is very important for our emotional wellbeing

The ‘Say it with’ course includes:

‘Gut feeling Part 1'

• Meet the artwork; a first look

• What is your gut feeling about the painting?

‘Look, think, say’

• Describe a painting exercise

• Make an art appreciation flower exercise

‘Hear the students’

• Listen to students sharing their opinions from the ‘Look, think, say’ exercise

‘Hear the expert’

• Listen to Manchester Art Gallery Curator’s talk

• How did I do?

'Gut feeling Part 2'

• Now what do you think?

‘Observe a flower’ Mindfulness exercise

‘Take a minute’ Thought Flower exercise

Creative writing

• Acrostic Flower Poems

• Sculpted Poems and Triolets

• Word Association

• Free Writing

• Poetry Appreciation

Paper crafting

How long will the exercises take?

Say it with has been split into small steps. Some steps take a little longer than others. To give you an overview of how the course works, click through all the steps briefly and gauge how much you might like to do today. You can choose to complete the course over a period of time, taking as long as you want. Don’t forget to take breaks from your creative activity on a regular basis, so you stay fresh and energised.