Wednesday, May 29, 2002
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Wednesday, May 29, 2002 |
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Students Give Gift of American Patriotism and Pride to Rising Starr Middle School
A tribute to America and American culture has been permanently etched on a wall at Rising Starr Middle School. In the wake of the events of Sept. 11 and the renewed spirit of patriotism that swept throughout the United States afterwards, 18 eighth-grade gifted geometry students in Lisa Fine's class spent the last several months of school designing and painting a patriotic mural that celebrates citizenship and national pride. The title of the work, E Pluribus Unum, one of many, not only describes the philosophy of America's foundation but also the creation of the mural. Fine's students worked diligently after school and on weekends to finish the project before the end of the academic year. The student-created mural is a mixture of symbols representing American patriotism and pride. The artwork showcases the famous Iwo Jima statue in muted tones of black and white and transitions to colorful representations of American heritage through the national crisis of 9-11 as illustrated in the celebrated picture of three firemen saving the American flag. The mural, which is located on a wall across from the school's cafeteria, was dedicated to all eighth-grade students and faculty during the eighth-grade awards ceremony May 20. Students conducted research using media materials and the Internet to locate prominent American landmarks and symbols for the mural. They applied various geometry concepts such as size change, perspective and area of irregular regions to determine the size of each of the elements and how they were to be drawn to create a balanced mural. "Painting this mural was an opportunity to bond with fellow classmates, be patriotic, have school pride and make math surprisingly fun," said student Shannon Smelley about the experience. Working on the project not only taught students how to apply geometry applications to a real life situation, but it also gave them an opportunity to demonstrate mastery of other curriculum skills such as social studies, language arts and fine arts. Karon Wilckens, artist and parent of one of Fine's students, helped with the artistic expression of the mural. She guided the students throughout the process and taught them art techniques to create a realistic representation. Fine says she is very pleased with her students' dedication to the mural and all of the extra work that they put into it which has given the entire school population an increased sense of patriotism, citizenship and national pride. "I have always been a dreamer, however, my dreams are only fulfilled through the help of the talented people with whom I surround myself," said Fine. "My students worked diligently and selflessly to produce a permanent tribute to Americans. It is an honor to be an American teacher."
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