Tall Tales

Today marked the beginning of our final Express Yourself camp for the summer. We had seven kids show up for the first day of Performing Arts Camp. 

A couple of Know No Stranger members are helping teach our kids the techniques of performing arts. Today we learned the elements of putting together a story and who all is involved in a production. And the kids got to try their hand at script writing as we put together our fairy tale of the neighborhood. Before that we practiced by together telling a rather ridiculous tall tale of Sammy with long ears and squirrels and flamingos and security guards after him. Tomorrow we will see what its like to make some props.

Performing Arts Camp

July 5^th – 9^th 1 – 4:30

Using music and story students will learn to imagine a positive future and reality for his or her neighborhood.

Performing arts group Know No Stranger will work with students to create a story, write a song and use puppets to perform a fairy tale of the Near Eastside.  Students will be encouraged to imagine a postivie future for our neighborhood, and to examine the ways in which God has already been at work.

Spaghetti!

Today the kids learned about Kenya and tried samosas [which they preferred to call Mufasas {they think they're funny}]. All of them seemed to enjoy those a lot more than the seaweed last week.

This afternoon we made homemade ranch for our salad from the garden and homemade sauce for the spaghetti. With our blind taste-testing contest we learned that sometimes it actually tastes better to use canned whole tomatoes rather than peeling your own.

They thought something was really funny....

Another camp has come and gone

Step One: Paint your tiles

Step Two: Take a hammer to 'em

Step Three: Glue

Step Four: Grout [if you have ever done grout work, you will know to be glad that you aren't a part of this step]

Step Five: Beautiful Mosaic. [this is the example, you'll have to join us on July 11th to see the beautiful masterpieces the kids put together today {and they really are incredible} :]

See you then!

Its hard to believe we only have one more day of Mosaic Art Camp! It's been a little chaotic at times with fifteen kids, but with this bigger group, we have had a lot of fun. This afternoon it will be awesome to see what the kids come up with together in their groups to make a mosaic of the future of the community...

Journey to the Past...

After learning a little bit about paintings from different time periods in art history, these kids painted ceramic tiles of some event in their past. These are the first of those tiles that will make up our mosaic artwork together. More painting this afternoon and tomorrow we will work together in our groups piecing together something beautiful. Join us at the LYN House on the 11th of July to see their finished product!

a blank canvas...

There's nothing like giving a kid a blank canvas and seeing what they do with it. This first day of camp we learned the color wheel and how to mix our primary colors to make the rest. We painted on some cardboard sheets to experiment, and then set them loose on their canvases. And we got some interesting and colorful masterpieces.

The kids seemed to enjoy themselves getting to be creative and mix and paint...

Pretty Pizzas

This cooking class today got a little competitive. As you can tell, we have four beautiful pizzas which came about as a result of four teams of two working hard to make the most creatively presented and delicious pizza. The great thing was, to vote we got to try all of them, and everyone's pizza tasted pretty great.

These are the kids' pizzas, it may be a little hard to tell from this angle, but they made some funny faces with the toppings.

We also learned about Japan and tried nori [dried seaweed], which none of the kids seemed to appreciate very much, but at least they tried it!

Mosaic Art Camp

June 21^st – 24^th 1 – 4:00

Objective: Using art to remember the past well, looking at the reality of the present and seeing the hope of the future together.

Employing the art of painting and breaking tiles, students will have a chance to express their beliefs, explore the value of the past, present and future, and examine the roles they play in their community.  Students will have the opportunity to beautify our neighborhood, as the stepping stones they create will become permanent fixtures in the community garden across the street.

Vegetarian Chili

In our second Monday cooking class we learned how to make some hearty and delicious vegetarian chili. And we're learning to have an open mind about trying new and possibly unusual foods. One student said "I thought I wouldn't like the chili, but I was wrong. I really liked the chili...it had a spicy kick that I liked." And another thought the platanos we tried when we learned about the Dominican Republic were "very very good." The students have all been great about being willing to try everything and sharing their opinions with respect.

The End

Friday was the end of the View Finder Project camp. Not this coming week, but the next, we will start up again with the Mosaic Art camp.

Everyone's projects turned out really well and the kids worked hard. Come join us at the LYN House a month from today on July 11th and see their finished photo stories!

Rollin Right Along

Courtney continued her work with library photos today, telling some of the story behind her photos. She thought this photo was cool because she is holding the book as if it is sacred.

Lauren continued the story of Pogue's Run today and highlighted the healthy options it offers. This colorful photo is one of hers.

Mayson started a new story today at Lazy Daze Coffee Shop. She liked this mural because it gives the customer a taste of what's in store for them.

Tatiana brought back some great pictures from 10th Street. This one fits well with the shapes and patterns theme she practiced the day before.

VFP Day Two

Alisha started off our storytelling of the local grocer with a set of some great photos. She and Lauren will be telling the story of what Pogue's Run offers to the community through photos.

Courtney and Mayson are working together to demonstrate the importance of the Spades Park Library to the people in this community through their artistic photo storytelling.

Remembering the rules of photography they learned yesterday, Nick and Tatiana went on another photo walk on day two in search of beauty. Even as beginners, they are getting to be pretty talented photographers.

VFP Day One

Courtney likes this sideways shot that starts unfocused in the front and then gets clearer.

To Lauren, this picture shows that you can get through any obstacle, just like climbing through the playground.

Mayson liked this lily by itself and that you can see bud that haven't bloomed yet.

These three girls who have already completed the first class of the View Finder Project, starting learning about storytelling through photos. 

Two students just starting the View Finder Project learned about what is ugly, and through photographing, they found what is interesting in what might usually be perceived as ugly.

Nick liked the artistic angle of this photo and that it made it look like it goes on forever.

Tatiana liked that you can just barely see the barn in the back because it is surrounded by greenness of nature.

Let's start at the very beginning...

Helping out in the garden

The ladies preparing hummus and tzatziki

The guys making white bean dip and salsa fresca

Taste-testing together

We even got willing helpers with the dishes

Yesterday we kicked off our Kid's Kitchen classes and they went extremely well! The kids made some delicious dips for fresh veggies and even tried some falafel to experience a little bit of Middle Eastern culture. Planting in the garden and sitting down at the table to eat together made it a pretty well rounded day. Look for more from the Kid's Kitchen next Monday!!