School 21 Revives a Large-Scale Clay Tile Arts Integration Project

At School 21, Art Teacher Raquel Ford, with assistance from WP PIR Triada Samaras has revived a large-scale clay tile project started before the pandemic. The overall theme of this arts integration project is "Unity through Diversity" using the human hand as a symbol.  It features math, art, and social studies. Students will complete one tile each, using their own hands for this collaborative artwork.

This project will consist of numerous tiles created by School 21 students permanently installed at the school building.  The planned space is 48" x 132" featuring 176 tiles measuring 6" x 6". Ms Ford experimented in the Summer of 2022 with various art methods.

The new Taub School (formerly Don Bosco School) has generously assisted this project by giving Ms. Ford access to the kilns in their building so that all tiles can be fired after they are glazed by the students. Below are a few images of this year-long work in progress:

Dr. Hani School: Art and Science at the William Paterson STEM Expo

Recently, Dr Hani School participated in the Paterson School District Annual STEM Expo sponsored by William Paterson University.

Students traveled by bus to the university main campus to attend this fair.

In attendance were Mrs. Jennifer Crocker, Grade 4 Sceince and Social Studies Teacher, her students, and WP PIR Darlene Rankin.

Students used many visual arts tools to bring their science concepts alive for the STEAM fair.

 

Day of the Dead Arts Integration Project at Taub School

Ms. Kaminski's 7^th and 8^th grade students at Taub School created art work inspired by The Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) in a series of arts integration lessons in a variety of art media including etched copper plates, marker and paint on paper, and colored pencils on paper. These are lessons were combined with social studies.

For this lesson, students learned about the traditional Mexican themed celebration know as Dia de los Muertos. Students took an in-depth look at how art plays a key role in the celebration of Dia de los Muertos. They were introduced to the art of papel picado and sugar skulls. 7^th grade students took their knowledge and created a metal carving of a detailed sugar skull. 

8^th grade students created a line and color drawing of a skull adding details that represent Day of the Dead such as marigolds and repetitive patterns. Color was used in both projects as a way to link the great use of color used in the decor and art of Day of the Dead alters and decorations.

Highlights from the WP Arts Integration Institute 2022

The William Paterson University Arts Integration Institute 2022 funded by the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation was held in July of 2022 on a virtual platform in collaboration with the Institute for Arts Integration and STEAM whose mission includes "Supporting teachers, leaders and artists using arts integration and STEAM education." LINK 

Teachers from all WP PDS Schools were invited to attend.

The Padlet below was created during the conference and highlights many of the speakers, presentations and their ideas.  This pallet was also a collaborative and synchronous effort between the WP Art PIRS, Dr. Heejung An, Dodge Grant Director, and several teachers attending the conference.

https://padlet.com/anh21/k78toet7disb15pt

A Storybook Pumpkin Arts Integration Project at DHA/Dr. Hani Awadallah School

 

The Storybook Pumpkin project has been completed at DHA/Dr. Hani Awadallah School.

This arts integration project combines art with literacy and was created by DHA Library Media Specialist Mrs. Gina Bellow together with WP Dodge Art PIR Darlene Rankin in conjunction with DHA teachers.  Below is a lesson plan description. In addition are the video and pictures.

Video above by Mrs. Gina Bellow, DHA Library Media Specialist

https://youtu.be/i3_ZZhvzR2o

Above:  Lesson Plan by Mrs. Gina Bellow

UPDATE 10/31/2022

Here are the contest winners sent in by Mrs. Gina Bellow:

In addition Mrs. Bellow made a videotape of the event:

Arts Integration with Engineering and Music at School 21

At School 21 recently Mr. Jason Velante, with help from art teacher, Raquel Ford, and his 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade bilingual students studied different kinds of bridges and engineering concepts. Inspired by other arts integration projects at School 21, Mr. Velante wrote a song to help his students memorize different concepts. 

Above:  Teacher Jason Velante sings "What Kind of Bridge" to his students at School 21

They used a variety of materials to explore different techniques to solve a particular set of requirements. The students were asked to create a bridge strong enough to withstand the weight of a toy car. Then the different designs were tested and students would attempt to identify and fix issues to reinforce the structures. To close their unit, Mr. Velante had Vanessa Galvez, a Civil Engineer, speak with the class virtually.

Photos of School 21 Third Grade Engineers:

Photos of School 21 Fourth Grade Engineers:

Photos of School 21 Fifth Grade Engineers:

More Projects at School 21: