Endangered Wildlife
~ story and photos by Bob Gustin
Art instruction in Laurette Roales’ s junior high classroom is about more than drawing lines. Sometimes without even knowing it, her students are growing in English, science, math, and other disciplines. More importantly, perhaps, they are learning about problem solving, collaboration, organization, work ethics, and life skills in general. And they are feeding their creativity, their sense of both individualism and togetherness, their independence, and the meaning of community.
A graduate of Kent State University in Ohio, Mrs. Roales held a variety of jobs before taking a stint as elementary art teacher for Helmsburg and Spurnica in 2011 through 2013, then was hired at Brown County Junior High beginning in the current school year. She also teaches a ceramics class at Brown County High School.
A recent project with her advanced junior high students involved making posters identifying endangered or threatened animals. Fueled with a grant secured by retired junior high art teacher Patricia Bartels, the class used interdisciplinary skills for the inclass contest which had cash prizes for winning students.
Before beginning the posters, students researched threatened and endangered species, learning about the animals and interpreting the facts. Then, they designed a poster and wrote text, utilizing grammar, spelling, and language skills. Only then came
First Place contest winner Freya Baldwin.
the actual art, and the entire project took about three weeks. Students had to research ten facts about their chosen animal, then narrow those down and focus on what was most important and design it like an artsy magazine page.
Birds, insects, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians were all represented.
48 Our Brown County Jan./ Feb. 2017