CA Pride - Donna Davenport

I love walking down the halls of CA because I feel as if I am in an art gallery. Thank you to Donna Davenport for helping our young students express themselves artistically. Most of you know that Mrs. Davenport has many roles at CA: Pre-K teacher, second grade science teacher, and co-sponsor of our CARES Club. You may even be aware of her commitment to community service through organizations outside her work here at CA. But today, I want to talk about Donna Davenport, the art teacher.

Mrs, Davenport teaches both Pre-K and Elementary ( first-fifth grades) art. As wonderful as it is to see all of this art so beautifully and proudly displayed, it is even more interesting to walk into one of her classes. I never know what to expect! Whether she is teaching Pre- K or Fifth grade, you may see a display of work by a great artist. Then you will see Mrs. Davenport explaining and demonstrating the techniques and style used by that great artist. Following that students are guided and encouraged to create their own O'Keefe or Monet.

Mrs. Davenport does not shy away from messy or multi-step projects. You may see fruit displayed one day to inspire still life style paintings. The next day you may see her pushing a wheelbarrow filled with concrete to make garden paving stones. I will never forget walking into her room and seeing four year old students lying on their backs painting paper taped underneath the tables. Of course, they were learning what it might have been like for Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel!

Field trips to area museums and galleries are another way Mrs. Davenport enriches the elementary art experience. She is always looking for new and interesting art exhibits and demonstrations appropriate for her students. She also brings artists and outreach programs to school to enhance her instruction. All around our building you can see Mrs. Davenport’s special touch in our displays and scenery for special events and programs. She brings such creative enthusiasm to all that she does. She inspires adults and students alike to appreciate art. Now that is what I call fostering a love of learning.

CA Pride - Annette Crandall

The halls of CA come alive to the sound of music every day thanks to Annette Crandall. There are many things I could tell you about Mrs. Crandall, but the first image that typically comes to me is "jump down" in the Big Room. And what a joyous time it is for K through 5th graders to gallop, fly, hop, skip, and occasionally slither as Mrs. Crandall plays away on the piano.

Music is a time for both discipline and expression. There are lessons to be learned and practiced (again and again ) to develop the skills that then become the vehicle for expression. It is interesting to watch Mrs. Crandall teach rhythm, phrasing, notes, pitch in such a variety of ways. She is quIte insistent that each student put forth the effort to master these skills. And when they do she is the first to celebrate their success and to share their love of music.

Yes, Mrs. Crandall has been teaching for many years and she uses tried and true ways of teaching skills. But did you know that Mrs. Crandall attends conferences in the summer and fall each year to learn about new resources and techniques? She comes back with fresh energy and ideas that she integrates into her instruction. Our students learn many of the classic elementary school songs, but she is always on the hunt for "worthy" new songs and musicals.

The other day when I stopped by her classroom, K students were practicing writing their numbers. She sang the description of how to draw the lines to make the number and the kids were singing along and correctly writing them. She finds many ways to incorporate music into her math instruction. For most children, music is a great way ( not to mention fun way) to learn, practice and retain skills.

CA is known for our elementary musical. Most alumni can recall their part in the musical when they come back to visit. Did you know that Mrs. Crandall and her husband, Allan, always write additional lines to the musicals so that every student in the designated grades have speaking parts? They do this so seamlessly that for many years I did not know the musicals did not already have all those parts!

The musicals are always fantastic. A great performance results from many rehearsals that are not nearly so fun as the actual show will be. We believe the students gain just as much from the process of rehearsing as they do from the performance. Learning lines, lyrics to a song, and choreography for the show takes time and practice. This discipline and effort helps students learn what it takes to achieve a goal. What about the child who just does not like music or have an aptitude for it? Mrs. Crandall always says that everyone will not become a musician, but everyone can learn to appreciate music in their lives. So even for the less musical child she strives to help him/her experience music.

Putting together a program such as the musical requires teamwork. Other teachers are involved in helping with rehearsals, making scenery and costumes. For the students,our musicals don't have "stars", they are ensemble productions. Certainly, there are solos or duets that move the story along, but Mrs. Crandall selects and develops musicals that are intended to showcase the collective talents of all of our students. The result is always worthy of a standing ovation for both Mrs. Crandall and CA students. Now that is what I call fostering a love of learning.

How do we help students feel safe?

A statement in the middle of our philosophy says "students thrive in a caring, nurturing and safe environment". The fourth and fifth grade students had many thoughts about the caring and nurturing part, but I found their comments about safety extremely interesting.

Providing a safe learning environment for our students is a top priority. There are two areas of concern: physical safety and emotional safety. When I asked "how do we make you feel safe?" I really did not know how they would respond.

The first statement that each group made was "we know the teachers are watching". I wondered exactly what they meant. They told me:  The teachers are watching what we are doing and they stop us when we do something that is unsafe or wrong. The teachers are watching all around us to be certain that there is nothing or no one around who can hurt us. Wow! I know that sometimes kids are trying to not let teachers see what they are doing!  Yet, at the same time, their awareness of teachers being vigilant gives them a sense of security.

Other things they mentioned were that the fences, flags, and shrubbery define their play areas. Also, they told me they like having security cameras in both buildings. They said they sometimes wave to the cameras and I told them that I wave back.

One comment that made me smile was that we always tell them where to stop when crossing back and forth from one building to another. I know that I feel like a broken record when I repeat every time "stop on the path, wait until we have the cars stopped". But apparently the kids count on those reminders.

They talked about the importance of our emergency drills. They mentioned lock down, fire and tornado drills. They clearly know why it is important that we practice these procedures. I am glad that our drills make them feel that we have plans to help keep them safe.

The students even mentioned that they were glad that the teachers take classes in CPR and first aid. I had no idea that they knew we have that training.

One final note, we talked about emotional safety and I always listen carefully to our students on this topic and I will share more about this in future blogs.