Pictured: Students in the Draw, Paint and Explore class at the Massapequa Summer Fine Arts Camp, joined by Superintendent Dr. William Brennan, showed off their completed artwork.
Photos courtesy of the Massapequa School District
It may be summer vacation but a walk through Massapequa High School suggests otherwise. That’s because the Summer Fine Arts Camp is in full force, a five-week program offered in partnership with Nassau BOCES that features dozens of classes in visual art, music and theater.
Children as young as first grade to rising seniors are enrolled in classes that are taught by certified teachers, with support from high school and college assistants. Jessica Wyman, coordinator of the program, said that more than 330 students are enrolled in at least one camp, with many signing up for multiple weeks.
Music teacher Nicole Boyle leads an intermediate level band class at Massapequa High School.
In music, there are beginner and intermediate level band and orchestra classes, along with acoustic guitar, ukulele, songwriting and sound recording technology camps. New music classes included Ukulele Jam Band and Irish Music on the Tin Whistle.
Eleni Diakoumakis, who is entering seventh grade, is attending the intermediate band class to get better on the trumpet, an instrument she has been playing for three years. She has enjoyed learning songs from different movies this summer, which has helped her increase her range.
Student assistant Noah Weber, a rising junior, helps out participants in one of the visual arts camps.
“It’s a good way to spend my summer and I can practice my instrument so I’m not rusty for the school year,” she said.
Tim Hassell, a rising seventh grader, was recently given a guitar from his grandfather, so he is taking acoustic guitar. After each class, he goes home and practices what he learned.
“It’s a good way to learn the guitar,” he said. “You learn all of the chords, notes and how to strum.”
He may be learning the guitar in the summer, but the song he most enjoyed playing in class was “Jingle Bells.”
Ms. Wyman said there are 38 student assistants, who are working at least one camp this summer. They support the teachers by working one-on-one with students to reinforce the lessons and also help set up and clean up.
In the musical theater class, students learned songs for a culminating performance.
5: Thomas Tucker instructs students in the acoustic guitar class.
Noah Weber, a rising junior, is working in the Decorative Arts and Collage classes. It is his first year as a student assistant and said he developed a passion for the visual arts from his classes in school.
“I love working with the kids and helping them discover new interests within the art fields,” he said. “It’s very rewarding to see the kids grow as artists throughout the week.”
Senior Phoebe Elliott is working her third summer camp, and this year is assisting in Draw, Paint and Explore, More Draw, Paint and Explore, and 3D Sculpture classes.
“It gets very messy,” she said, “but that’s the fun.”
Phoebe added that because the courses are open to students from a wide range of grades, it is interesting to see their varying skill levels as well as the different creative processes.
Thomas Tucker instructs students in the acoustic guitar class.
In the Fiber Arts class, students created several projects under the direction of teacher Antoinette Kearney. They sewed and decorated custom tote bags and made tapestry weavings, among other projects. Ms. Kearney said the goal of the class is to give students a new experience in working with different materials and techniques.
“It’s very hands on and very experimental,” she said. “It’s different projects they normally wouldn’t have in their art classroom.”
Each camp ends with a performance or art show for families.
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