The students were doing lackadaisical work on cheap and flimsy paper. It was clear they were going to muddle on. So suddenly I said, "Get up, come on we are going to the book store. Bring money!"
They were a bit taken aback. I marched them to the front of the Canson Mi Teintes tower of colored charcoal paper and STRONGLY encouraged them to buy a sheet or go in together to buy a sheet to share. Everyone bought one or half a sheet.
Then we went back to drawing. Just look at the depth and the energy of these drawings. It was an amazing vitalization. I sincerely hope that my students will invest in good paper for the last few drawings of the semester.