catamount times april 2016 Final online edition

3rd Grade Classrooms Get Creative to Make Learning Fun
Three 3rd-grade classes participated
in a new “Creative Schools Initiative”
in Vermont, which is designed to
integrate the arts into all aspects of
school curriculum. The St. Johnsbury
School was one of eight schools that
participated in the program.
Three of the five 3rd-grade teachers
- Mrs. Taylor, Mrs. Ross and Mrs.
Redmon – partnered with visual artist
Gowri Savoor for an arts integration
unit, which was designed to make
learning both engaging and also fun
by integrating visual arts and science.
Students in the three classes made
connections between the engineering
design process and the art process,
as they explored weather hazard solutions
while designing and creating a
model village from scratch.
The unit spanned the entire month
of March, and the students’ work was
celebrated at a concert on April 9 at
the school, which featured a performance
by world-renowned Scottish
percussionist Evelyn Glennie and a
professional orchestra.
The three St. Johnsbury School
teachers participated in a year-long
graduate course in cross-curricular
integration, which culminated in last
Participating in this has been incredible, and has
already had an impact on how I teach. It also
helps make learning fun again for students.
- Mrs. Taylor
Last month, an artist named Gowri
Savoor worked with Mrs. Taylor, Mrs.
Ross and Mrs. Redmon’s 3rd grade
classes on building a town and trying
to keep it safe from floods, storms and
things like that. By using solar panels,
water wheels and windmills, it’s less
likely to lose power. And the homes
were built higher off the ground to prevent
floods.
Gowri was
very fun and
creative. She let
us use shaving
cream for one
project – she
took a plastic bin and covered the bottom
with shaving cream.
Using dropper
bottles, she took
different colored
oils that complemented
each other,
and dripped oil
all over the shaving
cream.
Next, we took a piece of card stock
month’s classroom project with
Savoor.
“Participating in this graduate
course has been incredible, and has
already had an impact on how I
teach,” said Mrs. Taylor, who was the
team leader.
“I wouldn’t describe myself as an
artsy person, but I have participated in
a number of simple activities that I
can incorporate into my lessons to
help students to truly experience
learning in a whole new way,” she
said. “It also helps make learning fun
again for students.”
This sentiment was echoed by her
students during a classroom visit last
month. “It’s pretty cool,” said Tristan
M. while searching online for images
of a water wheel. “We do special projects.”
“I like making things for the village,”
said Trevor H. while making
solar panels. “We’ve done a lot of cool
things.”
“I like art,” added Phyler H. “This is
artsy and science. I don’t like sitting
and listening. This makes the tie-ins
interesting. This is way more fun.”
By Tom Huntington
Catamount Times Editor
Visual Artist Gowri Savoor Works with 3rd Grade Students
This is artsy and science.
I don’t like sitting and listening.
This makes the tie-ins interesting.
This is way more fun.
- Phyler H.
and skimmed it flat across the shaving
cream off the card stock. We then
used those as roofs on the houses
and buildings in our village.
I hope I can do more things like this
in the future, and that you can do
something like that, too.
By Phyler H.
3rd Grade
Visual artist Gowri Savoor, who is
from the United Kingdom and lives
in Barre, works with 3rd grade students
to create a model village.
Click images to view a slideshow.
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