Upcoming Events

February 2

•  BCMS Musical, Guys & Dolls

February 3

•  BCMS 2nd Quarter Report Cards on BC@Home

February 13

•  PTO Meeting, 7 p.m.

February 20-24

•  Winter Recess, No School

March 9

•  BCMS Grade 7/8 Social, 7-8:45 p.m.

 

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BCMS News

Middle School collaborates on art projects with students, teachers from Japan

From March 1-2, Bethlehem Central Middle School art teachers Peter Ruggiero, Traci Fortin and Marielle Martin hosted Japanese educators and students and conducted a joint art exhibition at the Middle School. The opening reception for the art exhibition was held on Monday, March 1.

The artwork is on display through the month of March. The show features pop-up books created by Japanese students under the director of Rieko Take; flag books created with Mrs. Martin; Japanese pottery created with Ms. Fortin; and Japanese prints created with Mr. Ruggiero. As part of this exchange, BCMS students’ artwork will be on display at Tokyo Gakugei University on March 20 and 21.

While in Bethlehem, the Japanese educators presented the Middle School's Helping Hands Club with art produced by their students for the club's international art auction to be held this spring. The BCMS Helping Hands Club is raising money to help build an orphanage in Uganda, and the auction is a major fundraiser for that effort.

Middle School art teacher Peter Ruggiero said that his students were enthralled with the pop-up books their Japanese counterparts created, and he hopes they will inspire them as they take on a similar assignment in the coming weeks. Art exchanges, he said, show students that certain things are universal, and that despite their different nationalities and backgrounds, they have so much in common.

"Seeing this art that students their age created shows them that we're not all that different, we're really not," he said. "Art has always played a role in bringing people together -- it doesn't need words. It just translates."

The traveling dignitaries were studying the art program at the middle school and exploring museum curriculum. The travel grant that Kenji Koike received from Japan focuses on ways that museums and schools connect curriculum. Middle school art teachers are currently working on artwork inspired by the Empire State Collection. Student artwork will be displayed at the Empire State Plaza concourse in celebration of Youth Art Month. The show will be on display from March 8th-12th.

On Tuesday, March 2, Melanie Painter, K-12 Art Supervisor escorted the visitors to the Capital to learn about this art collaboration and to meet with the education coordinator for the New York State Capital and the commissioner of the Empire State Collection.

The BCMS community was very pleased to welcome Rieko Take, Kenji Koike and Keiko Inui to Bethlehem Central School District and to the rich cultural resources of the capital region.