District 34 Performances!
Thank you for the terrific concerts & shows in December!
Happy New Year!
I cannot tell you how lucky I feel that I was able to see several of your December performances before break. The quality of the performances were wonderful, and the variety of experiences that we offer our students are tremendous. I wish I was able to see them all, but we do seem to have all of our assemblies scheduled at the same time on the same days, so that part was tricky. I did attend the Glen Grove holiday sing, Henking Fine Arts show, Lyon Fine Arts show, Pleasant Ridge holiday band & orchestra assembly, Springman holiday assembly, Attea Bella Voce Park Center preschool performance, the Hoffman drama monologues, and the Hoffman Hoops for Hearts event. It was the highlight of my holiday season!
As I departed each show and spoke with you I often was greeted with "Oh I wish we could go see their show also." So with that in mind I am sharing some videos from the shows that I attended, and some artwork from our K-8 visual art websites. We spend so much time collaborating on curriculum and assessments, that we often don't have time to simply share how our skills and concepts are translating into these elaborate final performances for our community. You take ideas and turn them into works of art that come across so beautifully to a room full of people, it is magical.
When I watch our students play their instruments I always stop and think how you are literally teaching children to make "inanimate objects sing" and that in itself is where so much of the joy of being a teacher of the arts comes from. You take children on exotic journeys through their dramatic performances; invite them to express themselves on paper and clay or through a mosaic; they play and sing the music of Thomas Morley and The Beatles or Mozart; or perform a musical that they have seen on TV a hundred times and cannot wait to be apart of. It is clear how much you love what you do, because these kids are filled with talent and a passion for the arts that comes from you. Thank you for all you do for them and for our community.
Please enjoy these clips and have a very Happy New Year!
All the best,
Elena