Kindergarten students at Mary Morgan Elementary are experiencing literacy and learning in meaningful, hands-on ways thanks to the Art & Story Connections grant funded by the Byron Foundation. The grant provided materials that support early reading, storytelling, and creative expression through play-based, developmentally appropriate learning.
These activities were thoughtfully connected to a classroom animal unit that coincided with a field trip to Summerfield Zoo in Belvidere. During the visit, students explored indoor animal habitats featuring kangaroos, capybaras, and lemurs, as well as outdoor habitats including reindeer, arctic foxes, wolves, and lynx. The real-life experiences from the zoo helped bring classroom stories and activities to life.
In the classroom, students used felt board pieces to retell animal stories and nursery rhymes, practicing oral language skills, sequencing, and comprehension as they recreated stories using characters and settings. These retelling activities helped students strengthen their understanding of story structure while building confidence in speaking and listening.
The grant also supported a variety of art experiences connected to the animal theme. Students used watercolor paints to create arctic animal illustrations, focusing on observation, fine motor development, and expressive detail. Using playdough and sculpting tools, students designed and built reindeer, encouraging creativity, problem-solving, and hands-on exploration.
In addition, students used magnetic tiles to design and build animal habitats inspired by the zoo. These open-ended building activities promoted collaboration, communication, and early engineering skills as students worked together to plan and construct environments for animals.
Through these experiences, students were able to connect real-world observations, stories, and art in meaningful and memorable ways. The Art & Story Connections grant has had a positive impact by fostering creativity, early literacy development, and joyful learning experiences for kindergarten students at Mary Morgan Elementary.
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