The calling canvas, weaving together words and images: a narrative inquiry into the creative voice of students with autism participating in a creative lunchtime program

This narrative chronicles the story of the Lunch Bunch, a group of 4 students with autism, 1 student with a specific learning disability and their art educator/researcher as they ate lunch together and discussed creativity and at times made art. A chronological story of the Lunch Bunch was crafted utilizing narrative inquiry as the overarching methodology and methods borrowed from arts-based educational research, portraiture, and arts-based self-study research. An eclectic blend of methods was decided as the best fit to promote the students visual strengths and support their needs mainly in the areas of communication. This study was viewed and conceptualized through the lens' of social constructivist and disability theories from a strengths perspective in order to co-construct the experience through the voices of the participants. Through data analysis the major themes that emerged were space, creative expression, socialization, carting/time and trust. The stories shared provide a more holistic understanding of the benefits of arts based instruction from the perspectives of the students. Who better to provide such insights than the students themselves? Educational agencies, policy makers, and educators can build upon this knowledge in improving programs and services for students in special education through imagining creative educational opportunities that build upon strengths in innovative ways