Livingston Elementary School Earns Grant From Crayola

LIVINGSTON, NJ — The following article comes courtesy of the Livingston Public School District. Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site here.

Hillside Elementary School is one of 20 elementary and middle schools from across the nation that has been selected by Crayola and the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) to receive a “Champion Creatively Alive Children” school grant. Crayola and NAESP together selected 20 schools to receive the grants, which will fund innovative programs aimed at building creative capacity school-wide.

The Champion Creatively Alive Children grants are intended to help schools nurture children’s creativity and inspire other schools to do the same. Hillside School will receive a $2,500 monetary grant and $1,000 worth of Crayola products. Principal Carlos Gramata will share outcomes from the school’s initiative via NAESP’s website and a special Principal magazine supplement to help other principals develop promising practices related to arts in education.

Hillside School plans on using art-integration to build growth mindset within its Caring Communities program. Teachers will create units that challenge students’ attitudes. Pre- and post-assessments will document changes in growth mindset and willingness to persevere and learn from mistakes. Students will explore how adopting artistic practices and studio habits fosters a growth mindset, which impacts all learning and aspects of life. “Our goal is to develop in students a greater sense of confidence and perseverance so that they can overcome challenges and achieve goals across curricula and in their lives,” explained Principal Gramata. He noted that media specialist Colleen Donnelly wrote the grant.

“Crayola believes that for students to reach their full potential and grow into self-motivated learners, their creativity and critical thinking skills must be nurtured. We believe children develop these 21st century skills when educators ignite their imaginations through art infused education,” said Smith Holland, Crayola president and chief executive officer.

The Champion Creatively Alive Children grant program asks principals to explore a “what if…” learning opportunity. For example, what if schools adopted the arts-infused teaching approach to help students deepen understanding? What if schools relied more on project-based authentic assessment rather than standardized tests? What if parents and schools found ways to document and articulate the value of creative experiences? The entries were judged on innovation, collaboration, and sustainability.

“Principals understand the value of using arts-infused education to ignite deep learning for all students,” said NAESP Executive Director L. Earl Franks. “We’re proud to work with Crayola and the Champion Creatively Alive Children grant program to provide schools with this unique opportunity for resources to enhance students' creativity and success, providing them the type of complete and well-rounded education that they deserve.”

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Photo: Livingston Public School District