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Guest Post – Then vs. Now

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Kiene is one of our Middlesex Community College interns this semester and we asked him to share some of his experience with us. It has been great watching him learn more about working kids and learn more about himself. Here is his first guest post.

Then vs. Now

Prior to getting involved with the Green Street Discovery AfterSchool Program, I knew that I liked kids but I had no idea how much I’d enjoy working with them. I did a lot of second guessing toward the beginning of this internship experience. I second guessed myself and what I was capable of when it came to effectively working with the kids. As time went on however, I began to realize that I had sold myself very short. It only took a few days at Green Street for me to come to the realization that working with kids is not only something that I enjoyed but it is also definitely something I could handle.

What has played such a major part in that realization is my ability to connect with the kids and that I’ve made it a point to really get to know and talk with them. I vividly remember being around the age of the kids in the program. I guess you can say that somewhere deep inside me still lies that little kid that wanted nothing more than to be taken seriously by anyone older than me. Although that might sound a little cliche, I honestly think it has a lot to do with my success this semester.

I didn’t come into this internship with thoughts of ruling with an iron fist. I really wanted to go in,  get to know the kids I was working with, and makes strides in truly making a difference in at least one life if not more. Even through all the occasional attitude and misbehaving, I can see that the kids of Green Street appreciate that I’ve taken the time to see them as individuals.

My experience at Green Street has shown me all the great potential that kids possess and that it is important to make sure that they are just as aware of it as everyone else around them. It has been a great pleasure to watch all the kids in the program progress over these past couple months and be welcomed into their world with open arms. Its been great to get hands on experience with this particular community  and learn some things about myself in the process. I wouldn’t change a single thing about my time at Green Street.

Thank You Liberty Bank

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Green Street accepted a $5,000 award today from Liberty Bank. Liberty Bank has been a long time supporter of our Discovery AfterSchool Program. Their funds help provide scholarships for students who need financial assistance to attend our program.

Our kids thank you, Liberty Bank!

Sound Production Class at Green Street

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Green Street Sound Production Class “Shaping Sounds”

Instructor: John Bergeron

Location: Green Street Arts Center, 51 Green Street, Middletown CT

Thursdays from 1:30-4:30pm for 10 weeks

Start date: September 25, 2014

Class fee: $550 per student

Registration deadline: September 22, 2014

Class size: 4-6 students, 4 minimum enrollment

Class Description: Learn how to record a song from start to finish at the Green Street Arts Center Sound Studio. Our professional sound engineer, John Bergeron has recorded many albums of his own and has worked as a session player for keyboards, an arranger of strings and horns, a producer, and a recording engineer over the years. He’s recorded in Los Angeles, New York, Nashville, London, and more.

This 10 week class will teach you the techniques of sound production using ProTools software and plug ins. You’ll also learn nuanced parts of the of the process like how to get the best work out of musicians in the studio.

The class will start with learning the tools and etiquette of the studio. Once students are acclimated to the equipment, John will demo the process of recording a song step by step. Students in the class will identify singer songwriters or guitarists at Wesleyan to serve as guest artists for the class. Guest artists will receive a free recording session and a copy of the final song.

Once the demo is complete, the class becomes very hands on. Each student gets to go through the process of recording a guest artist with guidance from John. You’ll get to pick the artist, set up the studio, record, edit, mix, and master the song.

If interested, call today! 860-685-7871 or gsac@wesleyan.edu. Open to all majors.

Green Street Communications and Marketing Intern

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We are looking for a student intern who can help us better promote our fantastic programs and events. We want to make sure everyone on campus and downtown knows about the cool stuff we’re up to at Green Street and we need some help to do that. Applicants must be strong communicators in person and in writing, self-motivated, and outgoing.

Students are welcome to use our computer labs to work as long as they are available. It would be best to have a student who is able to work from his or her own laptop either at Green Street or off-site.

Responsibilities include:

  • Design easy-to-edit flyers for program promotion
  • Post flyers around campus and downtown
  • Design monthly calendar for promotion
  • Share program and event information online
  • Assist in managing social media – Facebook and Twitter (familiarity with TweetDeck a plus)
  • Assist with website management, updates
  • Write regular stories about Green Street programs for our blog, interviews with students, artists, etc.
  • Photograph and record events as needed

Skills required:

  • Microsoft Office
  • WordPress
  • Cascade (preferred, can provide training)
  • Facebook, Twitter, TweetDeck (preferred)

Please email Green Street Director, Sara MacSorley at smacsorley@wesleyan.edu if you’re interested with a copy of your resume, a cover letter, and a writing sample. You can also send samples of event photographs and/or videos. This is an unpaid internship but students can receive .25 academic credits through CSPL493.

Responsible, Reliable Students Needed for Green Street Front Desk Coverage

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We are looking for several students who could cover our front desk this year for evening and weekend events. This would be a great job for a work-study student and could also be a paid position. The schedule varies week to week. For the fall, most Tuesdays we will need someone from 5:30pm-9:30pm.

We are looking for people who are professional, and organized. The first stop for all our visitors is the front desk so we need personable people representing us there. We work with a wide variety of audiences so a respect and understanding for diversity is a necessity.

Applicants should be skilled in Microsoft Office and Outlook. Spanish-speaking applicants are preferred. Students will have to get to and from Green Street on their own. During our Discovery AfterSchool Program, there are Wesleyan vans available for transport. For later evening coverage, we can also arrange for rides from Public Safety.

Responsibilities include:

  • Greeting visitors
  • Collecting event data
  • Answering the phone, forwarding calls, taking messages
  • Monitoring Green Street general email and social media
  • Assisting with Discovery AfterSchool Program dismissal
  • Checking in private lesson/class/workshop students and instructors
  • Event set up and clean up, preparing building for open/close

Please email Green Street Director, Sara MacSorley at smacsorley@wesleyan.edu if you’re interested with a copy of your resume. Rolling deadline but will review first applications for a September 1st start date.

 

 

 

Rainbow Music is Back! Preschool Music Classes at Green Street

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Our Rainbow Music Class with Miss Veronica Voorhies is back at Green Street this fall with a special river theme.

Based on feedback from parents we’re including more movement this time around to complement the music and also a playlist for parents to take home.

Please see attached flyer for details and call us today to sign up. Deadline to register is Monday, September 1 and space is limited! $60 for a 6 week class, sibling discount available.

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From the Director – Girls in Science Summer Camp

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This summer, I had the pleasure of spending a week with a group of incredible women – 10 young campers, 2 artists, 3 science college students, a biologist, a biochemist, and a physicist. That week was the first ever Green Street Girls in Science Summer Camp and ladies, it was a hit!

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Have you ever heard of oobleck? It’s a material that acts like a solid in some situations and a liquid in others (a physics phenomenon known as non-Newtonian liquids). Young girls made oobleck at Green Street last week and got to watch it liquify in their hands, harden to a solid when they dropped it on the table, and dance on a speaker when hit with just the right frequency.

One of them described the experience in her lab notebook – “I noticed that it melted in my hand. When it was in the cup it was hard but then when it was in my hand it melted! I had a great day and I want to be a scientist.”

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Green Street education staff, biology professor Ruth Johnson, chemistry professor Erika Taylor, and physics professor Christina Othon designed the program. It was important for us to have the girls do real science and to expose them to a variety of careers in science along the way. We also worked with two of our Green Street teaching artists Lindsay Behrens and Meredith Arcari to use art projects to reinforce science concepts – like the parts of a bacterial cell or the structures of insects.

We learned about insects, life cycles, bacteria, DNA mutations, states of matter, non-Newtonian solids, light, and more. Did you know spiders aren’t technically insects? They have too many legs!

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The girls learned how to use scientific tools like lab notebooks, pipets, and microscopes. The girls set up experiments involving fruit fly diets and bacterial transformation of DNA. We spent a day in the science laboratories on the Wesleyan campus and had lunch with visiting scientists and engineers.

We had 10 campers in Grades 4 – 6 join us, totally free of charge thanks to a generous grant from the Petit Family Foundation. Some of them came in already excited about science, others were a bit quiet at first. By the end of the week, all of them were ready to look into science jobs when they grew up.

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The science-filled week was inspiring and reminded me of that first “spark” of science for myself as a child. I still remember seeing DNA for the first time. We did an extraction experiment in high school and I remember thinking how amazing it was that our whole blueprint existed in a blob of goop. We saw the science spark in the campers over and over throughout the week and we hope to do the same for more girls in future years.

The Middletown Press ran an article on the camp as well as a photo gallery.

Help bring science to life! You can contact Green Street if you’re interested in sponsoring a young girl for a future camp who may not be able to otherwise afford to attend.

Web Design + Blogging Class this September

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Does thinking about how to promote your artwork online make your head spin? Do you want to make sure your website gets the attention you want it to? Want to know what this Twitter thing is?

This class will help artists and community organizers create a powerful web presence in order to get noticed by employers, foundations, clients, and customers. Learn how to set reasonable goals, design an effective website, use social media, create a blog, sell your work, and more.

Bring your own laptop to work on your web presence during class, or simply follow along with the presentation.

The class will be twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursday in September from 6:30-8:00pm. The class fee is $180.

Call (860-685-7871) or email (gsac@wesleyan.edu) us today to reserve your space.

Math = Fun

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“Math = Fun” was one of the final comments as our teacher cohort from the PIMMS Intel Math Institute finished their summer class. We brought together a mathematician, Dr. Christopher Rasmussen, and a math education specialist, Sharon Heyman, to bring deep understanding of core K-8 math concepts to 30 Middletown and Meriden teachers. The intensive 10-day class had long days, working lunches, and homework but we had a great group of enthusiastic teachers who truly loved math. Their feedbackshows the value of the Intel Math class for increasing their understanding, improving their confidence in math, and also in preparation for Common Core implementation.

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Each session of the class starts with the Intel-trained instructors going over a core math concept at the front of the class. Then, the teachers work in small groups or partners to do problem sets on that concept. The whole idea is to find multiple ways to find solutions by pulling from other concept areas and working with other people. Each group shares their strategies and ideas with the cohort and everyone learns new ways to approach problems in their classrooms. The teachers also review examples of student work in each concept to address common student misconceptions around math.

“I have learned a lot about myself as a learner and about how others learn. I have also learned a lot about math as well – more than I have learned going through my formal education.” Teacher Feedback.

Math is Interconnected

The main idea behind the Intel Math course is to teach core math concepts from the most basic to the more complex while calling out the connections along the way. Many of us who are strong in math go along and find solutions without ever questioning why the answers make sense. Intel Math helps show the teachers WHY math concepts work and WHY the ways we solve them make sense.

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“This class indicated even more than I realized how interconnected math is.” Teacher Feedback.

“Today’s session is really building on interconnectivity of geometry, algebra, and arithmetic. It’s helping me find more way to keep manipulatives relevant to intermediate students.” Teacher Feedback.

“The breakdown of concepts can be confusing but they help me to have a better understanding of the concepts. I definitely need to do more of this to show my students WHY!” Teacher Feedback.

“I realized today that I have always just blindly followed the rules for math, never questioning why the work or are used.” Teacher Feedback.

“I’m starting to really tie together the abstract models of my formal math education and really see how interconnected it all is.” Teacher Feedback.

“Math is interconnected and should be taught with constant looping and connecting of topics.” Teacher Feedback.

In the Shoes of Students

Teachers go through the useful but sometimes uncomfortable experience of struggling through math problem sets in the class. They get to feel the way their students do in class and that helps them figure out new ways to approach students who may be struggling with a concept. By working in groups and reviewing student work, they can hear about multiple experiences with a concept and get ideas for new approaches beyond what they may have thought of themselves.

 

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“I enjoyed getting down to the basics in math because that is where most people’s problems originate.” Teacher Feedback.

“When working on the number systems, I realized how the frustration I felt was similar to the frustration my students felt when working on concepts new to them.” Teacher Feedback.

“Looking at student work helps to understand how common mistakes happen and student understanding behind their mistakes.” Teacher Feedback.

“Working through the problems was great to think about the “productive struggle” of problem solving. I really got the feeling of what my students feel.” Teacher Feedback.

“Analyzing student work as a group and the reporting back helped me to see a variety of new ways to aid us in fixing problems students had.” Teacher Feedback.

Building Math Confidence

Math anxiety is a real problem for students, as well as some teachers. By going through the connections and the WHY of math concepts, teachers build their own confidence in math. This translates into their classrooms and to their students.

“The quiz highlighted my weaknesses, the class highlighted my strengths.” Teacher Feedback.

“I completely understand the division of fractions J for the first time ever!” Teacher Feedback.

“Being successful with slope was a confidence booster. I was proud that I was able to remember so much.” Teacher Feedback.

“I felt successful today so my confidence is building.” Teacher Feedback.

“Because I am understanding most of the math, I feel mathematically much smarter.” Teacher Feedback.

“I was overwhelmed at first and now I have realized that I know more than I thought.” Teacher Feedback.

“My outlook on my ability to solve math problems has changed. I feel like I can make attempts at solving problems on my own.” Teacher Feedback.

“I will teach with more confidence knowing the whys and the hows.” Teacher Feedback.

Arts Integration

The Intel Math class provides the teachers with a variety of manipulatives that can be used to solve problems in visual ways. This Intel Math Institute is unique because PIMMS is developing follow up activities for the teachers using arts integration to reach students who may learn in different ways. We had a visual artist and a movement artist take the Intel Math class alongside the classroom teachers to deepen their own math content knowledge before developing their teacher workshops.

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“I learned that I am more of a visual learner and building, drawing, and discussing via these modes helped me understand.” Teacher Feedback.

“Showing math concepts visually first is so crucial for many learners.” Teacher Feedback.

“I learned new strategies to teach multiple concepts to help all students.” Teacher Feedback.

Taking it to the Classroom

Teachers left with a stronger understanding of math concepts and connections as well as a sense of better preparedness to implement the Common Core in their classrooms (Intel Math is a Common Core aligned class). The class is mostly about content but with the strong instructor team, there is also modeling of a successful math classroom going on at all times. Teachers noticed and picked up ideas on how to better bring math to their students.

“I have great ideas to bring to my teaching. I will use more team and partner work instead of constantly modeling.” Teacher Feedback.

“It was helpful to see the full scope and sequence for Common Core.” Teacher Feedback.

“Math is connected. You solve the problem how you see it…need to solve it multiple ways for multiple students so they can see it too.” Teacher Feedback.

“I feel more prepared to face the challenge of Common Core in my classroom.” Teacher Feedback.

“The course was great! I can’t wait to try some of the techniques and approaches in my classroom.” Teacher Feedback.

“The Creative Process” Exhibit by HOT Schools Artists, Opening July 3rd

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During the month of July, we will be exhibiting the work of three teaching artists from the Connecticut Office of the Arts and the Higher Order Thinking (HOT) Schools Program – Mark Patnode, Sanna Stanley and Roger Tremblay.  Since the Green Street Arts Center is now home to Connecticut’s renowned HOT Schools program and Wesleyan will be the host site of the HOT Schools Summer Institute, July 14-18, Green Street is pleased to simultaneously showcase some of Connecticut’s finest teaching artists.

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On Thursday, July 3rd, from 5-8:00 p.m. (in conjunction with Middletown’s Gallery Walk series) there will be an opening reception for The Creative Process.   Check out the Middletown fireworks after over the river. The work of Patnode, Stanley and Tremblay will remain on display at Green Street from July 3rd through July 25th during regular business hours (M-TH 9a.m.-5p.m.  Fridays during summer 9a.m.-noon).

As the show is titled The Creative Process, each of these artists (while working in vastly differing media) will present both works in-progress and finished artwork  as well.  Mark Patnode is a painter, Sanna Stanley an illustrator, and Roger Tremblay is an engineer-turned-artist with a passion for mathematical patterns and refers to his creations as “computational art”.   Tremblay will also display an in-progress light sculpture.  This trio’s diverse assortment of specialties are aptly representative of the Office of the Arts’ and HOT Schools’ extensive roster of teaching artists with endlessly varied styles and approaches to art-making.  Certainly, each of these three exhibiting artists brings a unique vision to their creative process and to their teaching practice.