A Beautiful Mural Emerges
Our school's esthetic environment has been significantly enhanced by the fantastic mural that has emerged and flourished over the past few months in our middle hallway. The mural was painted by a host of volunteers that included CPSC staff, parents, and a number of community volunteers all under the amazing direction and encouragement of Mary French of Simple Solutions (contact her at mtfrench@pacbell.net.)
Under the sea Mary was assisted by our very own Nobie Williams, one of our teachers. Nobie is a talented muralist who did the initial drawings for the mural. The theme is flora and fauna in different habitats. And there is really no way to describe in words how beautiful this mural is. The pictures do a much better job of that.
The process of the creation of the mural was just as amazing as the finished product. We started with Nobie's sketches of many animals. We asked parents who wanted to participate to choose an animal they wanted to paint. A few brave souls committed to an animal with reassurance that there would be help available. Other parents had a favorite animal they wanted to paint. Others simply showed up on painting days, chose an animal from Nobie's sketches or from a picture they brought. A place was found for each animal anyone wanted to paint. Those parents, who were not confident of their own ability, soon found that Mary could give them hints that enabled them to produce a lovely animal, palm tree, bush, or flower. Many, me included, were amazed at what we could produce with Mary's support and encouragement.
Camels in the Desert
Over the months, the hallway mural emerged. Two weekends ago the final finishing touches of some gorgeous butterflies and some smaller animals like frogs and insects were added. A clear coat to protect the masterpiece was applied and the mural was complete!
A Cool OasisNow, when you enter the hallway you enter a magical world of intriguing animals, providing lots of fuel for children's fertile imaginations, lots of animals to talk about, colors to name, and feelings about the different animals to explore. For many children talking about the mural has become part of their entering and leaving routines.
We have heard several stories from parents about their children's interactions with the mural that are touching. There's Simon who came to CPSC with very little English. Simon is in the Robin Room which has a lovely robin painted on the classroom door. One of Simon's first English words was "Robin!" which he said as he pointed to the bird when he came in the morning. This little animal helped Simon feel at home in his new school.
Giraffe on the SavannahThen there's Paul whose mom, Katrin, painted a brown bear and her baby. Every morning Paul ran to the little bear family to touch it with great pride! When Katrin added a dolphin, Paul needed to make two stops every morning and evening. Irene and Anna reported much the same reaction from their two children once they learned that their moms had painted an elephant and her baby and an emu family. Even for the children whose parents didn't participate in the painting, I'm sure they will find their own special meaning in some of the creatures on the school walls.
A Kookaburra, a Koala, and a KangarooI really can't say enough about the skillful creation and implementation of this project. Mary French planned, designed, purchased materials, helped non-artists produce beautiful paintings, recruited community volunteers, and cheered everyone on. She was amazing! If you want a designer to work with you inside or outside your home who will really get to know who you are, what you goal is, and help you realize your dream, Mary French is your woman! We can't thank her enough for our fantastic mural!