In June, Wrightwood Elementary School hosted a summer art and nature camp. This was the second year the program was offered to children by the local non-profit Drawing Together, which was made possible by a grant funded by the California Arts Program.
The Drawing Together organization is dedicated to furthering arts education in schools and focusing on community-based creative art projects. Drawing Together president Jamie Crooke Powell mentioned that this summer program is essential for students so they may continue to engage in their learning skills and not fall behind, a concern for educators that researchers call Summer Learning Loss.
This program was opened to children attending Snowline Schools, local homeschool students, and even international students visiting as part of an exchange program. This year, the Summer Art & Nature Camp program included three daily classes for two weeks, where students rotated between curriculums focused on visual arts, drama, and ecology.
A drama class was added to the program for the first time. It was led by Wrightwood local Stephanie Robles, who guided students through storytelling techniques and entertaining puppet-making projects. Local biologist Sarah Berryman from Transition Habitat Conservancy led the ecology class and taught kids hands-on observation skills to investigate our natural world through a scientific lens. The visual arts class was led by Chelsea Burnet, who taught art at last year’s summer art camp and focused on drawing skills, making assemblages with natural materials, and creating sculptures from recycled plastics.
The Summer Art & Nature Camp students, ages 5-12, will showcase their creative projects and artwork to the community with a Kids’ Art exhibit featured at the Community Arts Center & Gallery in Wrightwood for the month of July. A big art show opening will take place on Saturday, July 6, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., so be sure to view the wonderful student artwork while you’re at the biggest Mountaineer Days celebration yet!
If you missed this amazing summer program, don’t worry—plenty of creative kids’ classes are still being offered at the Wrightwood Arts Center. A Family Paint Night event will take place on Saturday, July 27, from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. It costs $35 for an adult and one child, with $10 for each additional child. Registration can be done online through Eventbrite. An early childhood development class is offered for ages 2-5 every Wednesday at 2:00 p.m., and the cost is $10. Weekly elementary and teen classes will also be offered again starting in August. You can learn more about these class offerings, pricing, and registration info on the Drawing Together website at www.drawingtogether.city/wrightwood-programs/.
