Artasia at HWCCCC St. David

EarlyON

đź“Ť St. David Catholic Elementary School, Hamilton
🖌️ Artist Educator: Katie Favell

Experiences at St. David

The classroom at St. David’s EarlyOn was very welcoming. They had a sign with “Welcome Katie from Artasia” as well as the poster we had created with the weekly programming. I had access to 2 small tables where the children were able to come and go as they felt like. Some older children were present with their younger siblings. One older girl around 6 wanted to make a bow for her badge. She had never tied a bow before and asked me to make one. I suggested we make one together. Together, we practiced more than a dozen bows, but she eventually was able to do it on her own and show her mom. I told her this bow is the same one you use on your shoes! She was so happy that she was now able to tie her own laces! Using art as a catalyst, we were abe to move from decorating a badge to learning an important life skill. Artasia was able to impart knowledge that would last her the rest of her life. I was so blessed to be a part of her journey. The ECE Elizabeth Han was able to take a picture of Hanna and I learning to tie her bow. I did encounter one issue with the fabric markers. A very young boy was unable to hold the markers in his grip and kept dropping the matker on my dress. Because the markers are fabric, the marks are now permanent. We should stick to washable markers for future projects.
The St. David’s location was very welcoming again to me and Artasia. I was asked to arrive at 9 am. as there was a firetruck arriving at 10 am. that had been booked months ago. 
 
I was able to set up my supplies on 2 tables at the back of the venue, where I had previously set up.
I strung a piece of yarn along the wall and hung my example flag on it. Using the introduction of the Canadian flag, the pride flag, and other flags they may recognize, I introduced our theme of why we have flags. I encouraged the children to create their own flag of anything they liked or felt was important to them. Some drew pictures, and others used cut-out designs from patterned fabric.
When the child was finished with their flag, I would take the child to the string and help them hang their flag next to everyone else’s. I would then say, “This is your flag, because this is what you made. Do you see anything similar on any other flag?. I would point out similar colours or designs that were used on multiple flags. Showing how we are all similar but unique. Some patterns that I noticed across flags were rainbows, written names, the use of markers, especially the colour red, and cut-out hearts and maple leaves from a pattern fabric. I left the flags hung up on the wall for the children to see when they returned from the firetruck show and tell outside. The ECE Elizabeth said she would make sure to remind the children of why we have flags later in the week using their work as examples.
 

Experiences at St. David Continued

St. David’s has a paved outdoor area with a raised tasting garden with some herbs and vegetables.
Learning from Green Venture I made sure to include the caregivers in the activity. It was very hot in the outside are and the children had a limited tolerance for the flower pounding. By including the parents, I made sure that the children learned a bit more about the colour transfer by using the parents’ squares as an example. I had picked a bunch of flowers from my garden, and brought some walnuts from Green Venture. Even with my flowers, we quickly ran out of flowers. Elizabeth Han, the ECE from St. David’s has been amazing. She ran to the school’s green space and picked dandelions and smaller plants that were growing along the fence line. She was very helpful in making sure we had enough variety to give the children a choice of flowers. The parents sometimes wanted to stay longer than the children. I was thanked by a caregiver for including them in the programming. She said sometimes she feels left out and is happy to be able to participate!
 
The St. David’s center was very busy this week. There were a lot of new families visiting for the first time. I was able to introduce Artasia and the programming. The children were very receptive to creating. The beads were a big hit! One child wanted to sort the beads. I used an egg carton to put the beads out, and she sorted them by colour and size. We learned about shapes and colours. The child was young enough that learning new shapes and colours was an excellent lesson in itself! Two older children accompanied a younger sibling and used the materials to create “whisper tubes.” They used the tops off plastic water bottles, a cardboard tube, and ribbon and fabric as decoration. They created the tubes to be able to whisper to each other like a game of telephone. They realized that the plastic bottles were a little sharp, so we brainstormed ways to protect their skin. They settled on masking tape to cover the sharp edges. The program was to create wearable art, but I laid out all the materials for the children, allowing them the freedom to create whatever they chose. It was interesting that 2 sisters chose something that allowed them private communication over fashion. I wondered if it had something to do with their priorities due to their family. They told me it was because they liked talking to each other without their mom knowing. Secrets were important to them!
 
This week, the main theme was food. I had precut shapes of different foods and allowed the children to place them on their construction paper plate that we cut together. Many of the children wanted to make their favourite foods into one meal. One girl recreated her breakfast from that morning. Another child created a very detailed scene of a rainbow and rain falling onto flowers and plants to show where our food comes from. Another child and her mother created a McDonald’s fries pack by layering felt into the packaging shape! One thing I learned is that bananas are very popular foods amongst all the children. They are most commonly eaten for breakfast! We cut out so many bananas for everyone! from that morning. Another child created a very detailed scene of a rainbow and rain falling onto flowers and plants to show where our food comes from. Another child and her mother created a McDonald’s fries pack by layering felt into the packaging shape! One thing I learned is that bananas are very popular foods amongst all the children. They are most commonly eaten for breakfast! We cut out so many bananas for everyone!
Â