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Anna Swann traces Zyi Xisin¿s form on paper Tuesday during a class in the Danville High School auditorium. Both girls will be in the fifth grade at Hogsett Elementary School next school year. (Clay Jackson/cjackson@amnews.com / June 13, 2012) |
Monday, the group focused on gears, Tuesday on levers, today pulleys. On Thursday, the children will be given a problem, and they must create a simple machine that will solve the problem.
On Thursday night, there will be a celebration of learning, where the students and parents both attend, and the student teaches the parent about simple machines.
“I was a little nervous about this at first, but it’s going really well,” Ross said.
While most of the week’s programs are science and math-based, a theater class was held in the auditorium.
Jane Dewey, director of arts education for the Danville school system, is teaching the course “Saving the Earth One Character at a Time!”
The course invites students to learn about reducing, reusing and recycling by using theater techniques to create a superhero who fights for the Earth. The group consists of students in grades 3-5, and Dewey teaches a midddle and high school improv class earlier in the day.
On Monday the group watched videos about the three R’s to inform and inspire them, and the rest of the camp time was devoted to creating their character.
“Their entry point is: they’ve got a problem, they’ve got a power,” she said.
Zyi Xisin, a rising fifth-grader, created a superhero named “Zyi the incredible super prodigy.”
“I just want to have a superhero that can sing, and when it sings, all the plants come back to life and all the trash in the landfill disappears,” she said.
