Bing called the exhibit “one of the most exceptional educational and inspired experiences” he’d ever witnessed, and I’d have to agree. Two kindergarten teachers at the school came up with a comprehensive arts education project called “The Museum of Beauty.” It not only involved a lot of research and art-making but it also transformed a school hallway into a museum, complete with kindergarten docents who explained famous artists including Van Gogh, Seurat and others.
The kindergarten co-teachers — Nikki Rogers and Traci West — have worked together for the past 10 years. They are general education teachers but have adopted a Reggio Emilia philosophy which means that they use their environment as the third teacher, allowing students to be an integral part of designing the classroom and choosing topics to investigate that pique their interest.
“We believe that our students are capable creators and are able to show what they know when given the chance to demonstrate their learning in unique ways,” Rogers says. “Our students work cooperatively together throughout the day. They are essentially one big community of kindergarten learners.”
Last year the students studied buses, pumpkins, bakeries and art/artists. “Each investigation concludes with students displaying their knowledge in some way,” Rogers explains. “Our art investigation last year concluded with an art museum created by the students who were ‘docents’ as they showed other students and parents around the museum to see their art pieces. We also had a special visit from local artist Bing Davis!”
This year the class has done a study of pets — where students made large scale pet shelters — and they’ve just finished a mini-study on the underground railroad for Black History month where they created a story map to teach others what they learned about the escape from slavery.
Because they are a Reggio-inspired classroom and do inquiry and play based learning, this classroom uses a lot of materials — some typical classroom materials and some not. “We are always looking for unique pieces and parts to utilize in our room and of course we are always in need of school supplies — especially art supplies,” Rogers says.
Here’s what they can use:
- Weaving loom
- Yarn or ribbon
- Beads
- Gems or flat stones
- Paint (acrylic, watercolors, washable, tempra)
- Paint brushes with wooden handles
- Wooden or wicker baskets/bins/trays
- Paper (construction, copy, white, Manila, drawing)
- Hand-held mirrors
- Clay or play dough
- Black markers (washable or permanent)
- Glue sticks
- Canvas boards
- An old overhead projector (the kind used with transparency sheets)
- Any Montessori resources for students to use (items used in a Montessori classroom for math/language arts.
Donations can be dropped off at Louise Troy Elementary, 1630 Miami Chapel Road. The school office is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.. The teachers can also be reached at rogersandwestkindergarten@gmail.com.
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Meredith Moss writes about nonprofit organizations in our area and their specific wish lists. If your group would like to share its list, please contact Meredith: MMoss@coxohio.com
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