Supporting Future Artists with Colossal

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These cameras have become an exciting addition to my lessons during this school year. Nothing grabs the attention of students like something new and "tech-ey", and that is just what these cameras provide to my class. The kids can't wait to get their hands on them, and the energy and total engagement are a perfect springboard for any of my lessons. When students WANT to learn, then everything falls into place. If I want to teach a lesson on local ecology, all I have to do is take the class outside and have them take pictures of what they find around the school grounds. Then, they compose a soundtrack in teams of what images they have captured, and each team creates a slide show of what they have discovered. Sharing with the class only magnifies the learning that is taking place, and boy is it fun for all of us!

When a student gets behind a camera, everything is equalized, and all of a sudden, that student who can't write or speak on a level that is aligned with the others is now on an equal playing field with all of the other kids. It is a very powerful feeling, and as a teacher, I love seeing this transformation take place each and every time it happens. Kids who have never felt as if they have achieved are now teaching the class what they know, and are on top of the world because of it. Kids who can't communicate well with others now have a brand new way to reach out and share. The mutual respect students learn to show for the creations of others is also a great side benefit of using cameras, always making positive comments about what each other has captured on "film". One other great part of using digital cameras, as opposed to film cameras, is that we have instant images that we can change (or delete) at pretty much no cost to us. What freedom! Students are more apt to take a chance at trying out something new with these digital cameras since they know they can change or simply delete what they don't like.

Thank you so much to all of our donors! You have made so many wonderful ideas possible in my classroom.”

With gratitude,

Ms. White

Thank you so much for your donations. The students were able to create a variety of different art projects as well as the Romare Bearden inspired art pieces. Your support has been invaluable.

When the boxes with the materials arrived at our school, my students were unbelievably excited. For the first time in many years, we were able to buy professional canvas boards and brilliantly colorful acrylic paints.

Currently, we are finishing the school year doing ceramic projects. The students are always excited to work with different art media. May God bless you all and thank you supporting our art program.

Many blessings and thank you so much!!!!

Tony Goldston”

With gratitude,

Mr. Goldston

Because of your kind donations we have been working diligently on a new show that is happening in just a couple of weeks. We now have a wonderful portable backstage area funded by you. We have been working with some of our new materials and have been casting hands and creating soft, durable, foam hand positives for our hybrid puppets. We have been using lots of glue, tape, Velcro and foam to create 7 new bodies this semester.

Our students really enjoyed the process of casting one of our student's hands. He lost quite a bit of arm hair during the process but managed to survive. The students were very intrigued and excited about mixing these new, professional quality make-up products and blown away by the result afterwords. It really created a better look into all the possibilities this puppet making can bring.

We are continuing to build and make. Each day is a new experience that combines fine art, performance, movement, engineering, teamwork and quite a bit of experimentation. Our next steps are to expand on what we have been doing and continue to improve our style, structures and functionality. Thanks to you we are closer to our goals. We have improved this year. Our puppet heads are lighter, our bodies are smoother and better engineered, our painting is higher quality and dramatic.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. You have helped make the puppet making and performance process smoother, more interesting, more professional and presentable, more challenging (in a good way) and more fun.”

With gratitude,

Mr. Osmon

Thank you so much for your incredible donation. No group of students are more deserving than the kids at Utah International. They have loved the clay and ceramic handbuilding we have done so far, and we can't wait to start throwing on the wheel. Many students have exclaimed, "We did this in my country too!" and it has been so interesting to see the different techniques that they have seen or already know from around the world. It's so good for students to work with their hands and make something practical that they can use, and ceramics is an amazing way to tie science into art.

The students were so excited when the GIANT pallet of supplies delivered into the art room - there was so much clay! Unpacking it was like opening presents on our giant collective birthday. They had many questions about what each tool did, and asked, "Why did you order a garbage can for our ceramics program?" (it's for recycling clay). Some had done pottery before but most have never experienced clay in a classroom before.

We are working on many fun projects at Utah International, I'm hoping to complete a mural this summer. We are also doing a fashion design residency that will conclude in a fashion show this spring! There's always something creative and amazing happened here. Thank you again for your generosity, the students and I appreciate you more than you know!”

With gratitude,

Teacher

My students come into the class every day eager to get to work on their ceramics projects. In the past two months they have made hundreds of pieces thanks to the supplies that we were able to obtain through your support.

Most of my students have mastered the basic hand-building techniques and several have become proficient at wheel throwing. Everyone was really excited when our materials finally arrived. They continue to be super excited every time we open the kiln, especially when we are taking out the finished products.

I anticipate that most of my students will continue to develop their skill over the next few months and will all be able to take home many successful works of art at the end of the school year.

As we close out the school year, our focus will be on creating small pieces of sculpture and honing the basic pottery making skills that they have already learned.

This was all made possible by your generosity for which my students and I are very grateful.

Thank You,

Shelton Meacham”

With gratitude,

Mr. Meacham

We at Scappoose High School Sewing want to thank you for your donation to our brand new sewing program. The scissors and sewing machines donated through donorschoose.org were reliable and indispensable. The direct donations were used to purchase thread, bobbins, elastic, and other sewing notions. We also had a lot of tools, machines, and fabric donated that we could not have lived without. We made a variety of projects, including cinch sacks, books marks, zipper pouches, electronic cord caddies, pot holders, and a variety of personal projects. I now have students coming to me during the normal semester asking if they can use a machine during lunch to fix their clothing or make another project!

As their teacher, I am excited to see so many students creating their own projects and learning new skills. I look forward to teaching sewing again in May-June term and next year!”

With gratitude,

Ms. Quinn

My 5th grade art students were so thrilled when they realized the Drawing books are theirs to keep during 5th grade! None of them had drawing books of their own before. The gift of the books really is giving them confidence that someone believes they can learn to draw!

The books are kept in their classrooms or at home so students can use them when they have time. Students also bring them to art class when specified so that we can do some of the activities together. Many of the students are using the books regularly and their practice with the book is paying dividends in the classroom with more confidence and better skills.

Thank you again for your generous support of these students!”

With gratitude,

Mrs. Lowe

Wow! You amazing Donors have done it again!

I hope the pictures speak volumes of how much your generosity has affected our classroom! The students were so excited when the supplies began showing up, and every time opening them up, their faces lit up in such excitement! The students have taken great responsibility and ownership of the supplies--taking great care for being organized and keeping everything in their rightful places. Their work has bee more detail oriented, and the artistic contributions have really expanded. The students have displayed greater pride in their work, and a lot of it has to do with them having the tools that help them be successful. Thanks again, for your time and generosity! We hope you continue helping out classrooms like ours, and reading the burden on teachers and students who greatly struggle!

You Rock!”

With gratitude,

Ms. N.