Dalton News

First Program Children and Families Gather At Sharing Stories to Celebrate the Theme Power of Us

The First Program’s popular Sharing Stories has historically been one of our first events each fall to gather as a Little Dalton community.
This year, the event was held on Zoom and it celebrated the theme, the Power of Us. After opening remarks from First Program Director Gillian Todd and First Program Assistant Director, Dean of Student Life Kelvina Butcher, Justin Greer, our First Program Dance/Theater Specialist led the children in an interactive and dramatic reading of a story.
 
 Then, First Program Art Teachers Jocelyn Russell, Terria Meyer, and Joachim Marx worked with the children on a project highlighting this year’s theme. The children independently worked on artwork focusing on issues they would change.  Some of the children’s artwork has been posted to the Sharing Stories Padlet Site. It is not too late for your children to post their artwork to the Padlet site too!
 
Lastly, in keeping with Sharing Stories tradition, parent volunteers read books aloud and discussed how the stories relate to this year’s theme with our children. It was heart-warming to see the community come together for an evening with over 120 children attending. 

“What a wonderful opportunity to come together to hear many different voices reading wonderful books! I was so happy to share a stunning book this year...We Are Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom and illustrated by Michaela Goade. It speaks about the value of water to Indigenous People and the need to protect sacred land from oil pipelines. We experienced this book interactively, dramatizing as we read along.” -First Program Dance/Theater Specialist Justin Greer 
 
“We all had such an amazing time at the FP Sharing Stories event. We had the students create art about making a change in the world, whether big or small. They made some wonderful pieces, even getting a bit sculptural! They covered a wide range of topics from picking up trash, saving endangered animals, ending racism, to helping the homeless. These art pieces should inspire anyone to go out and make a change in the world.” -First Program Art Head Teacher Jocelyn Russell
 
“I believe it is especially important this year to find ways to come together as a community and Sharing Stories was a fantastic opportunity to see the children across grade levels join forces to think about change in our world. As an art educator, it is powerful to see these young artists using their visual expression to work towards big and small changes alike.” - First Program Visual Arts Headteacher Terria Meyer

A heartfelt thanks to the many parents who enthusiastically volunteered to be readers and for our wonderful teacher volunteers.
 
Story submitted by The Sharing Stories Co-Chairs: Sneha Barmecha, Jennaye Brown, Saira Hotchandani, and Daphne Tong-Smith
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