It’s not just play-doh and finger painting for nursery schoolchildren at the Columbus Preschool. The students’ creative imagination is boundless, as they make artwork inspired by the masters and worthy of exhibition. After studying great works of art—masterpieces by Van Gogh, Seurat, Kandinsky and Pollack—the children, as young as two and no older than five, create original pieces reflecting the masterworks. At the school’s recent annual art exhibit, teachers and parents reveled in the children’s interpretation of impressionist, pointillist, abstract, and expressionist art.
The student artwork is also inspired by their own interests and through the engaging curriculum. Transportation is a popular theme with preschoolers, made famous by the timeless favorite “Wheels on the Bus” song and books. The kids illustrated this theme through the cars, buses, taxicabs, and airplanes that they created out of cardboard, and creatively displayed in the classroom “galleries.”
Columbus Preschool’s director Julie Kandall describes the school’s emerging curriculum as being “responsive to the children’s interests and ideas.” Through rich and explorative classroom discussion, the curriculum is “always developing and expanding.”
Another topic of study is planet earth and environmentalism. The children learned about Earth Day and incorporated it into their artwork by using recycled materials in their projects.
The students highlighted their interest in dramatic play through life-size cut-out figures of themselves dressed in their favorite outfit or costume, and made paper bag hand puppets and a puppet theater.
The children’s classroom discussion led to a shared fascination and love of dogs. They created paper-mache dogs—several different breeds and a flower-covered dog house–then held a bake sale, donating the proceeds to the ASPCA. Community service and “giving back” is discussed and encouraged in the school and beyond. After studying safari animals, the students made their own striped zebra and bright orange giraffe (and even raised money to “adopt” a class giraffe in Africa). The children’s group projects were bid upon by the parents in auction, with all money raised going to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Opened in 1988 by the Gluck family and still family-run, the Columbus Preschool, on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, is a fully licensed and accredited nursery school. The school’s mission continues, dedicated to providing an inspired and creative early childhood program. The school is bright and inviting, and the classrooms are cheerful and spacious. The caring teachers and close-knit community of families create a cohesive and nurturing learning environment. They also operate the popular Columbus Gym in their modern 10,000-square-ft facility.
To learn more, visit columbuspre-school.com.
