January 27, 2020
I often walk the halls and am astounded by the artwork on the walls. Mrs. Burack’s has a gift of bringing out the artistry, imagination and creativity that is inside every child. Her bulletin boards include explanations of the goals of the project: experimentation with color mixing, creating landscapes, multi-media, understanding 5 line directions and grids, shapes and textures, just to name a few.
Art instruction may happen in the art room, but Mrs. Burack’s lessons are integrated into other subjects as well. In Judaics class, your child often creates artistic representations of a text, leading to further analysis and connection. Students create biomes in a box, illustrate science observations and create game boards. A Middle School Math in Art elective challenges students to create scale drawings incorporating area and perimeter on scale.
Morah Betti’s drama lessons build leadership, self-awareness and self-expression. Your children develop poise in front of an audience. They learn empathy as they portray characters in a play and patience as they wait for their cues. Her music classes teach skills that come to a crescendo when your children join Dr. Mark’s band in fourth grade. They learn to read, enhance their fine-motor skills and understand the true meaning of teamwork. (We are so grateful to Deborah Finland for donating to our music program.)
And just like art, music and drama extend into the classroom. Teachers use music to solidify content like the 50 states, presidents, the periodic table and multiplication facts. Students engage in bibliodrama, playing the role of biblical figures to understand them more deeply.
Yes, the arts are an important part of childhood, and Mirowitz’s arts teachers are outstanding. Research shows that the arts activate the brain and make academic learning even more effective.
We are committed to doing more than simply preparing students for success on standardized tests. In bringing out the artist, the musician and the actor in our students, we are preparing them for success in life.
Shabbat Shalom,
Cheryl
PS: We are so proud that Morah Betti will receive the JPro Educator Award next week.