[...] ..read more

One of the coolest things to happen in the last two years is a group of teachers (Mrs. Grow and Mrs. Straffin, among many more interested helpers!) cultivated a wonderful garden space in and around our walker door area. I have been lucky to watch it grow over the years and provide a welcoming space for all staff and students to enjoy on their way to and from school.  We have so many flowers and plants to look at every day that have continued to flourish in the sunlight and continue to provide inspiration for future farmers and artists alike!  One staple First grade project in part ..read more

Festival of the Arts this year was a total blast, putting together a food-themed show with Enfield artists! What a great motivator as well, as I tried to have the students sample some of the food they were making… blood oranges, pickles, and as they won’t let me forget, gummy bears and watermelon. A good portion of the work was sculptural or ceramic, as 3-D lended itself to food-inspired projects. Take a look at some of these happy artworks! My favorite, a last minute collaborative “mini neighborhood” with food trucks driving by and our Enfield kindness monster wearing a chef ..read more

Teaching is one of those magical professions that every year we get to close the book on a very interesting and unique chapter. It is wonderful chance to recognize an end, reflect, and have time to rebuild and renew again. And year after year, the book opens again and again.  This year was no different, and in many ways, harder than ever. Yesterday, we had an end of the year faculty meeting and I had a chance to read a letter that I wrote to myself in the beginning of the school year. Before I read my own letter, I looked around. Some teachers laughed as they read their letter, others be ..read more

The past two weeks since the new year has started have been a roller coaster. We had a bumpy re-entry school starting, fraught with uncertainty, staffing shortages, and a resurgence of Covid-19. We are also saying goodbye to our old building pre-demolition, which brought back such vivid and happy memories for me; during a time in my life where I was finding my stride as an Art teacher.  Yesterday, I went and toured the my Art room that was my previous home for ten years. It looked very different... abandoned, small, and surprising. Amidst the mess and rumble, I found some things. A fif ..read more

I feel like this summer I held on a little longer than usual. My family and I had the chance to go on our first "solo" family vacation with just the four of us. We decided on a New England road trip of sorts, with Acadia National Park being our farthest point from our home in Ambler. This place is like a dream for landscape artists, canners/preservers, and hiking enthusiasts! We had the most thrilling time exploring, and I was able to even squeeze in some painting time.  As the school year approached, I felt like I was ready to return with a fresh perspective... this is the first ..read more

As I start to see signs of spring and the first week of sunny and warm weather in Pennsylvania in a long while, I can’t help but think back a year ago to what was happening during this time. I had put together a show of student artwork at State Representative McCarter’s office. I was planning for the school Art show in May. I accepted a full-time position teaching Art (I had wished on for twelve years!) I was focused on the move, the new school, and the excitement of impending change. I went bowling with family and friends. I saw my niece perform in her first high school ..read more

The first day of school is finally here! After all the planning, emotions, fears, and I overwhelming feelings of uncertainty, I am so proud and excited for this new chapter with the students. It is not how I ever imagined it would be in a “normal world”, but even still, we are all doing the same things we always do as teachers in the beginning of the school year. The new school and art space are well beyond my wildest dreams and expectations. It is truly a work of art and these architects have created a true masterpiece! I feel honored to get to come to this space every day and one day, welc ..read more

March 12th.. it started like most days. We were finishing up a whimsical Dr. Seuss project. I was thinking about creating an Earth Day bulletin board. Thoughts of the art show projects were swirling in my head. Ceramic and sculpture projects to plan. Trying to keep organized. There had been this sense of uncertainty that had been building for weeks. Events were starting to get cancelled. I think everyone was becoming increasingly nervous and fearful of the future. When the news hit at the end of the day that our school was closing, I had a rush of emotion, energy, and a strong desire to capt ..read more

Time continues to move at such a fast pace that I find myself relishing the few and far between opportunities to reflect on what I am doing, take a breather and start the process of renewal. It has been a busy few months in the art room as I continue to feel out some new projects here and there, and decide whether to fine tune or discard the tried and true projects. Lately, I have given a lot of thought to adjusting the art curriculum to less DBAE (project-based) and more TAB (choice-based) curriculum. I find that more and more, my students crave the freedom to create without such stringent ..read more