The Educational screen (c1922-c1956])

Page 222 The Educational Screen festive note to our evening-. Before and after the band concert, continuous motion pictures were shown in the auditorium. This year we used the film the "Eyes of Science," which shows the manu- facture and use of various optical instruments. In the Gymnasium, one of our teachers who is an expert in High Tension Electricity assisted by some of his students produced a display of interest- ing phenomena made possible by various induc- tion coils. Neon tubes, and electrical gadgets known more particularly to scientists. We were fortunate to secure from the Denver Fire Clay Company their expert glass blower. Glass blowing always attracts and we had a crowd of five hundred watching this exhibit for almost the entire evening. The use of the Oxygen flame and the making of small articles from glass by a skilled glass blower fascinated especially the younger boys and girls. Speakers are many times available for such occa- sions. We rather feel that in such an undertaking our patrons would rather spend their time with the examination of exhibits rather than sitting through a lecture, no matter how interesting. Hobby Show Another feature of our display was a hobby show in which any student who had a hobby was invited to participate. Many of our boys and girls are quite talented along lines which are foreign to their us- ual school work and which are almost unknown. So we had exhibits of poetry, stamps, outing equip- ment, Indian Craft, collections of Indian arrow heads, butterflies, and aeroplanes. An interesting dis])lay was furnished by the military groups—tar- gets, machine guns and various army ec|uipment. Many other departments in the high school lend themselves readily to such an evening. Classes in stagecraft, auto shop, machine shop, music, history, English, French, Spanish, physical education, in fact there is not a single department in the school which can not find expression on such a night. Our visitors were much impressed by the large number of displays as well as the aptitude displayed by the students in charge. If our Science night ac- complished nothing more it gave recognition to many boys and girls and an op]3ortunity to show what they were interested in. Therefore we be- lieve that such an evening is decidedly worth while. It rquires organization, co-operation, and a whole lot of hard work. It has a definite educational val- ue for the participants and it also has the value of "selling our SchooT' to the taxpayers who after all determine the policies of the school. With proper co-operation and determination any school can do likewise. Adaptation of Art to the Classroom PUBLIC school methods have changed rapidly during the past few years but public attitude toward newer methods remains more or less static. We are frequently encountering parents who are not in S3'mpathy with and, not infrequently, are opposed to change in method. While they submit, you feel instinctively they are not convinced that the way we teach is superior to methods used when they went to school. You often hear the remark. "Now, when I went to school we did it this way!" No subject in the modern curriculum has been harder to establish in public approval than "art education". The idea still lingers that the schools are trying to produce a few artisis at the expense of the taxpayers and the time of all the other chil- dren. You cannot explain to a father that the in- ward joy he feels when the garden he planted be- gins to show green, is the same ecstasy we want his son to experience when he builds a model Viking boat in the art room. The mother who puts a per- fect coat of icing on her cake for the Ladies' Aid experiences the same emotion that the daughter ex- By EDNA HELLSTERN Centra! Grade School, Pueblo, Colorado periences as she completes the finishing touches on her costume for the school pageant. The same parent, no doubt, will tell you, "There's no use in my child taking art. I don't think he'll ever learn to draw. I never could." Mention the word "art" to most people and they immediately call to mind "art galleries". To them an appreciation of art means a collection of pic- tures. The richer one is the more numerous and the more expensive are the original paintings he collects. The poor satisfy the same impulse by buying prints made from the originals the rich have collected. This is one of our European inheritances that we have failed to outgrow. "Art for art's sake" is the motto of the general public if the}' have any interest in art at all. The ideal for art in the public school has deviated a long way from "art for art's sake". Art educa- tion stresses the sheer joy of creation and apprecia- tion as an educational end. The art class aims tO' put into the hands of every child a tool for self- expression. It gives him a new vocabulary. Art is