Residency – Silverwood Park – 6 hrs
This week I spent two days working with Silverwood Park. On Monday I helped with one of the Library Programs in Wayzata. Even though we had heavy snowfall, the class till had about 13 students show up. For all library programs, we start by making origami kits to keep kids engaged while they wait for the program to begin. Most of the students were elementary school age. We talked about all things weather related for class mostly focusing on stormy weather. After the lecture portion ended, we did a little static shock experiment and then began our art project. The kids were instructed to draw things related to weather such as clouds, lighting, tornados, and umbrellas. After they drew them on their paper, we traced the shapes onto transparency paper and created little lanterns with them. I’m not sure if I’m getting used to be around 4 year olds, but the class felt much quieter than what I was used to.
In Doodblebugs this week we talked about maple syrup! Many of the same kids were there with a few new students this week. I’m beginning to feel a lot more comfortable in my role at Doodblebugs and learning the balance of having fun with the kids and also getting kids to listen to me. We colored maple trees this week and glued red and orange tissue paper on as leaves. Watching the way these kids work is really interesting! Some kids slap everything together as fast as possible with little attention to what they are making while other students are meticulously trying to fit each leaf where it belongs on the page. We went for a hike through the snow to go see where sap is collected in the park. I learned that if you let one kid push you into the snow, they’re all going to want to push you in the snow! I started a snowball fight that I was not prepared for. It’s been a lot of fun to spend one morning a week hanging out with these kids and getting a break from my own school and responsibilities.