A Sampson County Grassroots subgrant has brought education and delight to Union Elementary students, thanks to a visit from Alan Page, who came to the school for an assembly to share his love of nature with the youngsters.
Angie Waller, visual arts teacher at Union and the recipient of the Sampson County Grassroots Subgrant given through the Sampson County Arts Council, offered praise for the program and Page’s visit.
Her grant is titled “The Art of Nature.”
Waller said in late February Page, along with his wife Beth, shared his love for nature, being a steward of the land, and brought his peregrine falcon named Dakota. He gave a wealth of information about birds of prey, their environment and what is takes to be a licensed falconer. The students were completely enchanted during his presentation, Waller said.
“After the school wide assembly, Mr. Page came into my room and did a hands-on demonstration with our third grade classes of Gyotaku (Japanese from gyo “fish” + taku “slapping”) which is a traditional form of Japanese fish rubbing, dating from the mid 1800s, this is a form of nature printing used by fishermen to record their catches. The students had a great day making their gyotaku fish prints and have been filled with questions about falcons, bird of prey and artistically recording the nature around them.”
As an added bonus, Dakota the falcon was in Waller’s room for the children to get a close-up view of this magnificent creature.
Waller praised the generosity of the Sampson County Arts Council in allowing programs like this to enrich student learning.
This project received support from the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources, with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.
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