Instead of just sending student artwork home to display on parents’ refrigerators, Dana Elementary recently displayed its young artists’ work for the whole community to enjoy at an Arts Night.
Principal Kim Morgan said it was the first Arts Night at the school in several years, and the event is something the school wants to bring back.
“We were trying to get the family involved and art is one of our school improvement goals,” she said.
“I think it’s cool how art can be used in the classroom” said Fourth Grade Teacher Annah Lord, who had her class create posters representing the several stages of the moon.
“Estes mio,” (“This one’s mine”), Luis said with a proud smile on his face, pointing to his poster for his family.
Families and community members could give student artists a compliment directly, using “Art Fan Letters.” At the several tables throughout the school, visitors could fill out slips of paper complementing specific artists on their work, indicating what caught the person’s eye, how it made them feel, and any additional comments. The letters would later be checked and passed out to the students.
Students also had the option to actively create art during Arts Night, at various craft stations around the school.
“We are making seed bombs for (children) to plant at home,” said Agriculture Engineering Teacher Deborah Clark. She instructed the students to grab some dirt, form it into a small ball and press a hole into its center. Then, the students would put a pinch of seeds into the soil ball and close it back up, allowing them to take it home and grow flowers.
Clark said the school has a butterfly garden from which they harvested the seeds last fall, and the seed bombs allow the students to spread the beautiful flowers throughout their community.
At another station, children were making tie dye art, or more specifically, “tile” dye art. On a small tile, students could draw whatever they wanted – from pictures, to rainbows, to huge swirls. Once they were finished, they sprayed alcohol on the tile to allow all the colors to blend and create a tie-dye masterpiece. The tiles dried while students and their families checked out the rest of the art around the school.
Thanks to Arts Night, students at Dana Elementary were able to show their hard work and creativity to the larger Dana community – spreading some color (and flowers) throughout their neighborhoods.
(Written by Alex Ramirez, Early College, Public Information Office Intern, HCPS.)