Creativity has been defined as “a phenomenon whereby something new and somehow valuable is formed. The created item may be intangible (such as an idea, a scientific theory, a musical composition or a joke) or a physical object (such as an invention, a literary work or a painting)” (Wikipedia).
Think about the people whom you feel are creative…whether it be a personal friend, an actor, artist, writer, poet, comedian, singer, scientist…in addition to having wonderful ideas and wonderful ways of delivering these ideas, each of these creative people is an extremely hard worker. Part of being creative is carrying out the idea that has been developed.
At Elysian we value and encourage these two aspects of creativity. We have created an environment that fosters thinking and problem-solving, which supports the creation of new ideas and encourages our children to think through solutions. We also expect that our students will be able to carry out the solutions in a disciplined and thoughtful way. I was recently in the art room where the children were making pictures modeled on the work of James Rizzi, an artist who paints skylines of New York City. A few days later I was in the classroom of these same second graders where they were having their “Skyscraper Museum.” They had been studying skyscrapers, written about “their” skyscraper, providing statistics, uses, etc. and built models of their buildings. This interdisciplinary approach provides for a variety of learning styles, taps into individual strengths and helps the children to relate to the content of the material.
On KUUMBA Day we see the result of the third grade study of African culture. Not only is the dance a creative expression of the culture, it also reflects the hard work and discipline it takes for thirty-two children to perform in unison. The dance is a culmination of many weeks of rehearsals that continually spiral to more complicated dance steps. During the performance individuals, small groups and the large group as a whole perform together.
KUUMBA Day has evolved into a school-wide celebration, with games and festivities surrounding the event. At the 8th grade graduation, many of the student speakers often refer to KUUMBA day as one of the highlights of their time at Elysian.
