In addition to our toy drive, we are also having a food drive for the Westside Food Bank. We have some barrels in our office for canned food donations.
In addition to the academic excellence provided from Roosevelt School, I am excited to share with you the many wonderful programs that are offered here on campus. All of the outstanding art enrichment programs mentioned in this letter are made possible by the hard work, leadership and dedication of our PTA. We are extremely appreciative of the support and generosity of the Roosevelt parents for funding these very valuable programs! Let's take a look…
I can't think of a finer example of giving back to the Roosevelt community and enriching the education for all Roosevelt students than what is happening in Room 15, our Fine Arts Studio. Our outstanding retired teacher, Christie Savage, is volunteering her artistic teaching expertise every Wednesday and Thursday at Roosevelt all year long! Each grade level is scheduled for four weeks during the year and children come once a week. The classes focus on the California Content Standards for each grade level and children experience a wide variety of art materials as they work with Fine Art Element and Principles (color, line, value, shape/form, texture, space, balance, repetition, unity, rhythm, harmony, etc.). Students' artwork is displayed in the Art Studio and in two hallway display cases. For those who are interested, Ms. Savage keeps a blog directed primarily at classroom teachers so they can see the specifics of the lessons that their students are receiving. (http://kids-finelines.blogspot.com/). It also has other art resources for lessons that parents might find interesting if they would like to do art projects with their children at home. We are greatly appreciative of Ms. Savage and the amazing impact she is having on our Roosevelt artists!
Also, for a second year in a row, we are ecstatic to be offering ballroom dancing to all of our fifth graders. Ballroom MADNESS is a not-for-profit organization that provides an incredible arts-in-education program, designed for 5th grade students. Six ballroom dances of various styles and cultures are taught. This transformative program fosters respect and teamwork in classmates by working together to build a solid foundation of trust and focus. The program provides students a creative and expressive artistic outlet. I have to say that it is quite magical to see them in action. We are very proud that Roosevelt students took 1st place in the Ballroom Madness Dance off at Santa Monica High School's Barnum Hall!
For our fourth graders, we have an art-making and visual literacy program. Artist Lynn Robb will be working with our 4th graders on an arts program entitled; "Seeing/Drawing/Building.” The program offers a sequential, standard-based set of lessons in exploring and creating art. The program is designed to help students acquire visual literacy through investigations and selected art works and gain art-making skills through a range of materials and media. Each lesson includes an encounter with a work by a master artist. Students practice observing, questioning and describing what they see. Students explore various two and three-dimensional media and build a fluency of skills that can be used to express their knowledge and impressions of art and the world.
Of course, we are thrilled to have our ceramics program continuing this year with ceramicist Davida Leal for all of our 1st and 2nd grade students. The focus for 2nd grade is ancestors and family trees. The components are a sculptural relief self portrait, ceramic leaves and sculpted images found in nature. The 1st graders will be integrating their science curriculum of life cycles and the parts of a plant into their artwork. They will be creating a relief tile incorporating the components of a flower.
We are happy to bring back Kathryn Cass and the Chance to Dance movement program for our kindergarten students. Learning outcomes from creative dance include increased knowledge of elements of dance, vocabulary, culture, choreography, and improvisation. Dancers increase their self-esteem through self-expression and gain an appreciation for other cultures. They learn body awareness, control, balance, and coordination through positive physical activity. Through Chance to Dance, our students will develop their social, cognitive, and leadership skills through dance and movement.
Our Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade classes will begin vocal music with Elyse Merchant from SOL-LA Music. The SOL-LA Music Academy program is based on the belief that vibrant cultural education positively affects other areas of learning, and that music education can create bridges across diverse cultures and communities.
All Roosevelt students in 3rd through 5th grades participate in our district-wide Music program. Third graders have General Music once a week. Fourth and fifth graders are all enrolled in Choir, Wind or Strings and meet twice a week. All classes are taught by credentialed teachers. Roosevelt has a long history of sending many of our students to the Stairway to the Stars concert as members of the Honor Orchestra, Band and Choir. We are very proud of our Roosevelt musicians and the exemplary music program provided by SMMUSD.
Our continuing 3rd grade dance program is truly one of a kind and we are so lucky to have this be such a highlight for our students. Using guided techniques of ballet, modern dance and improvisation, Francisco Martinez brings to students a strong awareness of individual movement. Students are exposed to dance techniques, improvisation, cooperation, problem-solving, and the creation of movement for a selected topic or project. Multiple session workshops culminate in a remarkable student-choreographed performance.
All of the outstanding art enrichment programs that I have mentioned are made possible by the hard work, leadership and dedication of our PTA. We are extremely appreciative of the support and generosity of the Roosevelt parents for funding these very valuable programs!
Our last day of school before the winter break is Tuesday, December 20th. Have a wonderful holiday vacation, and we will see you back at Roosevelt in the New Year on Wednesday, January 4th!
Sincerely,
Natalie R. Burton
Principal
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