As the art teacher at the Ella P. Burr Elementary School I worked with the students throughout the residency on the backdrops for their final performance. I enjoyed watching the dances develop and the students themselves transform and gain confidence through movement. Students of all abilities were engaged and even the very quiet and introverted blossomed into beautiful plants and animals through dance. I feel the positive educational benefits to students far outweigh the scheduling adjustments and planning the classroom teachers gladly did to accommodate the residency. It was a wonderful experience for all involved.
The backdrops were awesome. I noticed that when the students were discussing the performance space with Helena that they talked about what they did on the murals and how they would fit right in to the dance. All those connections make the learning so much more important. Thank you Holly for the work you did in organizing and paying close attention to the important details of the residency. The role of teachers like you are so very important and the residency’s success only happens because of support from you!
Argy Nestor
Arts Educator, Blogger, Artist, Connector meartsed@gmail.com
https://sites.google.com/view/anestor/
Argy’s Blog
The purpose of this blog is to share stories about people and places; and to celebrate the amazing work (and play) that students, educators, and organizations are doing in and for arts education. In addition, the blog has a plethora of resources and innovative ideas. This forum gives blog readers the opportunity to learn from each other. It is essential that we listen, learn, and collaborate in order to build on teaching practices for the benefit of every learner in Maine and beyond.
As the art teacher at the Ella P. Burr Elementary School I worked with the students throughout the residency on the backdrops for their final performance. I enjoyed watching the dances develop and the students themselves transform and gain confidence through movement. Students of all abilities were engaged and even the very quiet and introverted blossomed into beautiful plants and animals through dance. I feel the positive educational benefits to students far outweigh the scheduling adjustments and planning the classroom teachers gladly did to accommodate the residency. It was a wonderful experience for all involved.
The backdrops were awesome. I noticed that when the students were discussing the performance space with Helena that they talked about what they did on the murals and how they would fit right in to the dance. All those connections make the learning so much more important. Thank you Holly for the work you did in organizing and paying close attention to the important details of the residency. The role of teachers like you are so very important and the residency’s success only happens because of support from you!