Grethel Jones, an Early Childhood instructor at the Jackson Independent School District in Breathitt County, has developed a creative learning project that involves using art indoors and outdoors. She was able to fund her idea by applying for and receiving an “Innovation Grant” award from the Kentucky Valley Educational Cooperative (KVEC).
She framed the learning experience around the questions, “Will having a unique variety of art materials inside and outside increase students’ creativity and encourage participation? Will these materials cause all students to engage in some form of artistic expression?”
Kentucky schools reported the need for more art instruction in the “Status of art Education in KY Public Schools (2005).” Ninety percent of Kentucky schools reported the need for art material and supplies. Additionally, students in primary through middle school receive only an average of 31 to 60 minutes per week of instruction in visual arts.
Wising to build on the art areas she had in her classroom Grethel constructed a plan to create an outdoor art area that will be available and accessible to students every day so that student who enjoys outdoor activities would gain art appreciation.
“There will be the usual art supplies such as markers, paper, paint, and glue along with some nontraditional art supplies such as pine cones, tree blocks, seashells, clay, tape, spray bottles, bubbles, recycled items and waterproof notepads,” she explained. “We will also be making a mud kitchen and chalkboards for our outdoor area. Our art projects will include things to take home, projects to work on for extended days, and art that is for the moment or temporary. We will also be looking at art within the block center as students plan, draw and then build structures. We will be incorporating drama into our activities with the mud kitchen.”
Grethel believes that art is so much more than a finished product. “It is a process of thinking about what to create, creating something, and observing how it affects others,” Grethel says. “Art can incorporate many areas including science, math, literacy, and drama. I would like for my students to experience art in many different forms. Their art projects won’t be just a product like a piece of paper to take home, to hang on the bulletin board, or to beautify the classroom. Instead, the art they create will be a process of realizing how creative they can be with many different resources. They will be planning, creating and using art forms. They will be creating something one day then using that creativity to make something new another day. They will be building social cooperation skills and communication skills as they work together on art projects.”
Grethel loves teaching early childhood, however, it was not her original planned career. “I majored in business administration starting out. I hadn’t really considered early childhood or even being a teacher, although both my grandparents and my mom are teachers. I applied at Jackson Independent as an instructional assistant, because I really needed a job. I was hired as the assistant for preschool and kindergarten. My daughter was three at the time, so she ended up getting to come to preschool with me. I so enjoyed working with the children, that I decided to take some early childhood classes and earned a Child Development Credential. Almost immediately a classroom teaching position became available, and I got my own classroom.”
Grethel has been in early childhood 23 years now. Her outdoor art project developed naturally since she grew up on a farm and always enjoyed being outside. “I feel that nature is a great teacher for everyone. This is why I wanted an outdoor classroom. The KVEC “Appalachian Renaissance Initiative” grant has enabled me to add three different components to the outside play area. I started with a garden project and then last year I added a water sluiceway. This year I am adding art.”
Grethel’s project was funded through the KVEC “Race to the Top” federal funding by the U.S. Department of Education. She was one of over 100 instructors who presented at the Forging Innovation in Rural Education (FIRE) Summit, a multi-district K-12 educational professional learning event October 25 in Pikeville, KY. More than 17,000 viewers, from 15 countries and 42 states, tuned in to the live stream provided by KVEC’s digital platform the Holler to watch Grethel’s and the other presentations.
Grethel’s and the other presentations can be found on the www.theholler.org.
