"Peace for Paterson" STEAM project has been launched!

A new STEAM art project originally conceived by NRC 3D art teacher Lauren Mandal, in conjunction with STEAM Art PIR/Professor in Residence Triada Samaras and technology teacher Janette Selino, has now been launched at NRC featuring color, sculpture, engineering, math, and language arts. 

Ms. Mandal, who is the new 3D art teacher at NRC, began brainstorming this project by thinking about the possibility of creating a large scale sculpture/installation piece made up of a thousand origami paper cranes folded by the students. She was inspired by the book: Sadoko and the Thousand Paper Cranes.

Sadoko and the Thousand Paper cranes is a "fictional retelling of the story of Sadako Sasaki, who lived in Hiroshima at the time of the atomic bombing by the United States, Sadako was 2 years old when the atomic bomb was dropped on August 6, 1945, near her home by Misasa Bridge in Hiroshima, Japan. She was at home when the explosion occurred, about one mile from Ground Zero......" (edit) See LINK for rest.

Ms. Mandal researched this idea with her students and found several paper crane installation projects on-line.  These exciting findings moved her project forward as students viewed exciting possibilities like these:

  

Above: Some images from the internet research into large scale origami artworks

Next Ms. Mandal starting folding some trial paper cranes together with students as they thought of a theme for the artwork.  The idea for a "Peace for Paterson" installation grew as students imagined people from all over Paterson being able to view an artwork based on the Idea of PEACE in Paterson.  Students imagined community members walking by the school, and viewing an artwork based on  "P E A C E" in this community, which is often beset with violence.   Ms. Anderson, the NRC Student Assistance Counselor, joined the STEAM team last week with additional ideas on how to encourage students to use peaceful talk and actions; and how to teach students about respect for others and equal and dignified treatment for all people regardless of race, culture, gender, language, etc.

Above: Some paper cranes already created in Ms. Mandal's classroom

Ms. Selino chimed in saying that all teachers could potentially participate in this piece by having students first write about their own feelings about "Peace for Paterson" on their pieces of origami paper, which they could then fold into cranes. As excitement for the writing aspect of this piece grew, Ms. Selino, Ms. Mandal, and Ms. Samaras realized that busy classroom teachers could even have the students incorporate content area work on the origami paper, and then fold it into paper cranes.

Above: More paper cranes created in Ms. Mandal's classroom

Such an approach would be similar to that taken at NRC last year when a large sculpture was made out of paper strips with content area facts written on them by students in all subject areas. This work, called "Racimo of Reflection," was exhibited at the Paterson Museum during the "All Paterson Student Art Show" last March.  In the meantime, technology teacher Mr. Baldwin figured out how to "print" a crane using the 3D printer in his classroom.  These, too, will be featured in the final artwork!

.                      Above:  'Origami' (Folded) Paper Crane printed out by a three-d printer in Mr. Baldwin's room.

Ms. Mandal and Mr. Baldwin are creating a very short video that will explain to teachers exactly how to make the paper crane with their students.  This video will be distributed throughout the school.  Additionally, in Mr. Baldwin's after school program, students will create a documentary video on the development of the "Peace for Paterson".  This longer video will develop over a period of months.

This "Peace for Paterson"  installation work is still in the early stages and there will be much more to come so STAY TUNED!