In February of 1983, Green Hill's Education Coordinator, Peter Berry, partnered with Guilford County Schools to bring professional artists into schools. The focus of the program was a personal, informal contact with the artist to stimulate the students' curiosity and enthusiasm not only in art but other school subjects as well. According to Berry, "art activities help children learn creative problem-solving, which is a skill they can use in their math classes and their science classes. It's an educational program, and it's fun. And because it's fun, the educational value increases."
The three part program began with a presentation by one of the eleven docents in the program. The docents found that the children were eager to add their own questions and comments to the presentation. Within the week, the docent returned to the school with one of the five artists in the program and they brought with them raw materials, works in progress, and finished works to communicate what they do and how they work. The artists demonstrated an idea and technique which the children would work on by themselves the following week. This approach was effective because it offered children the opportunity to learn more by seeing the demonstrations and realizing the possibility of creating something similar themselves than they would by being lectured to.
To see other notable milestones from the past 40 years, check out our special 40th anniversary page: Click Here
0 Comments