Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Monday, November 07, 2011

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Dozens of professionals in various fields participated in Cassidy's annual Art & Science Extravaganza. Among them were St. Joseph radiologists.

Christina DuBravak’s third-grader was fairly giddy before Cassidy Elementary’s annual “Art & Science Extravaganza” and spent the whole morning describing it to her little brother.

“This is the type of event that, as a parent, makes me excited to send my kids to school,” said DuBravak, who pushed a cart full of muffins around the building as she peeked in on the special activities.

About 60 community volunteers and parents pitched in to make Friday memorable for all the children at Cassidy. With a wire sculptor, geologist and songwriter upstairs and a jewelry maker, plastic surgeon, quilter and forest ranger set up nearby, the kids had no shortage of memorable experiences.

“The presenters are professionals who bring real-life art and real-life science into our classrooms, and it allows every student to be involved throughout the day,” Principal Rhonda Fister explained.

Each class rotated through six half-hour sessions, where the students got a taste of different careers and also saw how art and science are connected.

Art teacher Renee Jung-Kennedy, who coordinates the extravaganza with science lab teacher Patti Works, noted such overlapping concepts as patterns, contrast and textures. Take fall leaves, for example, with their varied shapes and colors.

“There really is a lot of similar general content that we cover,” Kennedy said. “You could actually teach all the elements and principles of art just by using examples from nature.”

Works said it’s neat helping the children see those ties. Other cool examples are the symmetry of color in monarch butterflies and the movement of planetary systems. “It’s the same thing as when we’re talking about how your position affects your perspective in art,” she said.

Both teachers also see the value in students’ meeting professionals in myriad fields – oftentimes in areas they might never have really thought about. For instance, the children can watch how a flower arranger chooses certain stems and artfully places them in a vase.

“It increases their awareness of the world around them,” Kennedy noted.

Works agreed.

“They really get a glimpse of how what they’re studying in class is going to be used in the outside world,” she said. “Plus, they get to see equipment and materials that we don’t have readily available to us.”

Other teachers also make the most of the annual extravaganza, which gives them fodder for their own lessons.

Teresa Hancock’s fourth-graders happened to be studying myths lately, and she found several ways to relate the topic to the experts’ demonstrations. Whether investigating earthquake tremors, the change of seasons or the properties of water, “everything carries forward,” Hancock said.

Works hopes that sentiment resonates with the students, too.

“The more exposure we can give kids to lifelong hobbies or interests or careers, the bigger favor we’re doing them in seeing the broad scope of things,” she said.

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