Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Impressionism

Here are a few photos from our first two days. The theme of the week is Impressionist Art and through stories, music, theater, and art they are taking a journey back to the 19th century in France.


Looking at portraits with Ben our visual teaching artist.

The YPT ensemble!

Warming up!

Singing La Vie En Rose with Scott.

Tableau vivant!

Where's France?

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Fairy Tales

Check out what we have been up to this week...

Introductions and Warm-Ups with Ellen


Creating Images from Fairy Tales (Peter Pan)


Goldilocks and the Three Bears


Little Red Riding Hood (Final Scene)

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Summertime

Beach, vacation, swimming, friends, Six Flags, Disney World, traveling, sunshine, camp, no school. When brainstorming our theme on Monday these were some of the responses. Once up on their feet, the children created frozen and moving images of the beach. This developed into a story. I will not reveal the story yet because I don't want to spoil Friday's sharing. I will say this...imaginations are running wild! It has been really interesting working with two groups this week. We have children in K/1st in one group and 2nd through 4th in another group. Quite naturally both groups have blended together seamlessly and are working collaboratively to create one performance piece. It is a very passionate group with lots of creative energy. Ellen and I have been working with them to create an ensemble. They are learning how to listen and share. They are being supportive and learning to understand each other in rehearsals and in free play.
Each week it is amazing to see the group coming together. Wednesday is usually a magical day. Things start to happen. Trust builds. Friendships form. Disagreements occur too. People reveal emotion more freely. Excitement about the sharing begins to brew. That magic happened today. It culminated in a tie dye and sprinkler extravaganza in the park. Can't wait for tomorrow!


Thursday, August 5, 2010

Flying Carpet

If you had a flying carpet and could go anywhere, where would you go?
Treasure Island
Monster Land
France for Kids Only
India
Over the Rainbow
A Place Where There Was No Money and No Homework
The Caribbean

This week we have been playing with visiting and exploring these places with our 5 senses and our imagination.

Yesterday, Murat Ozcan, came in and shared the art of Shadow Theater with the children. It was magical. The children learned about how to make their shadows larger and smaller and how their gestures and movements could tell magnificent stories with shadows.



Sunday, August 1, 2010

Community

We followed up our week on Friendship with a week of Community. At the Friendship Parade, children gave gifts to the Tree. They presented the Tree with flowers and plants which we then planted during our Community week. Carolynn came by on Tuesday morning and the children worked hard to prepare the tree bed for the planting. The soil was very hard and had lots of trash in it. We cut the weeds, cleaned the bed, and tilled the soil. It was tough work but it was done with great hope and enthusiasm. We even sang as we worked. We sang Friendship and Together Wherever We Go of course! Our Tree loves show tunes. And then we planted... petunias, thyme, a ba-da-bing rose (yes, that is its REAL name), and black-eyed Susans. We put down compost and mulch to give these young flowers and herbs healthy soil to grow in. Each day the children water the tree bed. When asked how planting around the tree bed builds community the responses were:
"It makes people happy because it is beautiful."
"Our garden inspired other people to go home and plant their own gardens."
"It reminds people to take care of trees and not litter or let dogs pee on them."
That's community!