Primary school receives grant

PLUMSTED - The New Egypt Primary School has been awarded an $8,000 school grant by the New Jersey Education Association Frederick L. Hipp Foundation for Excellence in Education and was awarded the Edithe Fulton Grant for the Arts, which was named in honor of NJEA past president Edithe Fulton, who is a musician and advocate for the arts.

Through "Global Visions and Voices," arts teachers Rita R. Williams and Sarah Wismer seek to establish a core curriculum at New Egypt Primary School combining visual art with music and movement to provoke an awareness that prepares students for life in an intercultural world. The benchmarks of art and music instruction will be included, as well as district, state and national goals.

According to a press release, the project will include the creation of curriculum kits about specific countries on the continents of Africa, Asia and South America. Using the kits, pupils will create artwork based on a world culture and be able to identify artwork from visuals and artifacts while learning the basic elements of art and design.

Pupils will identify various musical instruments and have opportunities to play them. Two performance evenings are planned to showcase student artwork and music endeavors. Families will be invited to participate in evening events to learn about world cultures.

The entire year will be documented in photos and videos. The program will be the basis for the curriculum that will be completed by the end of the school year.

New Egypt Primary School opened in September 2004 to more than 300 students in grades prekindergarten through first.