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8 Hazelwood Schools Get Picturing America Awards
Eight Hazelwood School District schools received Picturing America Awards from the National Endowment for the Humanities, in cooperation with the American Library Association.
Picturing America is an innovative program that helps teach American history and sets up a gateway for students to learn about and relate to all school humanities courses.
The Hazelwood schools that received the grants are: Hazelwood Central Middle School, Hazelwood East Middle School, Garrett Elementary School, Grannemann Elementary School, Jamestown Elementary School, Keeven Elementary School, Hazelwood West High School and Hazelwood West Middle School.
“Picturing America gets the kids to see America through art. It gives you a lot of information in a quick, easy way. It’s user-friendly and based on American history,” said Mary Kay Powers, a Special School District teacher who teaches at Hazelwood West Middle School and who applied for one of the grants.
She said the packages include 40 double-sided large sheets of laminated artwork, a teachers’ resource book filled with ideas and background information. At Hazelwood West Middle, the entire ensemble will spend two weeks in each grade level team. That way, all students will get to use the materials.
The program appealed to one elementary school teacher on multiple levels.
“I applied for this program because I feel that powerful visual aids can promote learning,” said Margaret Arne, the librarian at Jamestown Elementary. “I loved the idea of coupling the concepts, of introducing my students to great works of art and developing a deeper understanding of our history through visual inspirations.”
Mary Marchant, the librarian at Keeven Elementary, agrees. “I love them. The posters are beautiful. They have done so well. I was really excited when I heard I was getting them. The kids at our school don’t usually get to go to the art museum so we get to bring the art to them.
“I have some of the artwork above the books about related subjects, like Native Americans or Civil Rights,” she added.
On the room’s south wall, she put images up of Presidents Washington and Lincoln as well as Paul Revere and Migrant Mother, an image from the Depression-era of the 20th Century.
“I hope to use them as story starters in the writing area. The older students keep journals and these posters would fit into their writings.”
Marchant said the lessons have already begun.
“One little boy, a third grader, saw the image of the Indian and he said, “You got Indians? That looks like one of my ancestors.”
The Hazelwood schools that received the grants are: Hazelwood Central Middle School, Hazelwood East Middle School, Garrett Elementary School, Grannemann Elementary School, Jamestown Elementary School, Keeven Elementary School, Hazelwood West High School and Hazelwood West Middle School.
