May 17, 2000
Sabin students immerse themselves in project
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
For months leading up to last Wednesday's Student River Congress, fourth-grade students at Sabin Elementary were immersed in a project that combined art, music, graphic design and poetry.
The results of their collaborative efforts with three local artists were unveiled Wednesday to kick off the congress, which drew more than 300 students from 22 area schools to the Northwestern Michigan College Milliken Auditorium for the day. The Sabin students recited poems they wrote about a watershed animal or fish to the group. They then watched raptly as local artist Glenn Wolff unveiled the huge mural they created together, entitled "A River's Tale." Later, they sang the song they wrote, accompanying themselves on the recorder.
In all, the past three months have been a heady experience for the 38 students, but they took it all in stride.
"I liked reading our poems to everyone," said Jacob Schaub, a fourth-grade student at Sabin who wrote a poem on the northern pike. "I liked writing the poems the best because we got to do them separately."
Collectively known as the Watershed Suite Project, work began in mid-February when teachers from Sabin, including the classroom, music and art teachers, met with Wolff, Wunsch and poet Terry Wooten. The students and the artists met a few times in the next few months and corresponded regularly via e-mail about the project's components to keep everything on track.
"It was a very ambitious project at the beginning," said Wolff. "I could have seen that the students might have been very intimidated. But they were there through every step of the way, being art directors and designers and involved in many different aspects of the project."
Project coordinator Jon Becker, an arts and education consultant from Madison, Wisc., enrolled the artists in the idea and brought them together with the school. He also wrote grants for the project, which was funded by the MichCon Foundation, the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, the Grand Traverse Regional Community Foundation and the Traverse Area District Library. The Traverse Area District Library will be the permanent host for "A River's Tale," with a formal unveiling ceremony scheduled for this Tuesday.
The purpose of the Watershed Suite Project was to allow students to explore watersheds using numerous learning styles. Instead of just reading a book or listening to a lecture, they stomped through the mud along the Boardman River, practiced sketching with Wolff and writing poetry with Wooten. The school's art teacher, Diane Rolinski, also coached them on sketching techniques, taught the history of artists in nature and showed samples of different naturalist drawing techniques.
Each student then chose an animal or fish from the watershed and researched its lifestyle, habits and diet, which they used to create their sketch and poem.
"This was fun because we went on a field trip and hiked outdoors to sketch," said Nick Cummer, a fourth-grade student who participated in the project. "I love fishing and the outdoors and know a lot about it."
Cummer became the resident expert for students as they explored the watershed, sharing his extensive knowledge of the outdoors with them. Other students even interviewed him as an expert for their papers.
"The purpose was not just to hit the kids' strengths but to give them a chance to develop in other areas," said Judy Ross, one of two fourth-grade teachers participating. "Some children might have difficulty with language, for example, but with something like this they just shine."