Plaxton hosts art show and open house

By Alejandra Pulido-Guzman on May 21, 2022.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDapulido@lethbridgeherald.com

Students and staff at Dr. Robert Plaxton Elementary School were able to welcome family and friends into their school on Thursday for the first time since opening their doors for their inaugural 2021-2022 school year.
Those in attendance had the opportunity to take in an art gallery walk and take part in an open house and later in the evening enjoy performances from every grade.
Fine Arts teacher Sarah Harmon organized and directed the performances and she said when designing a vision for the music in the concert, spring, celebrating, unity, nature and empowerment all came to mind.
She said the program weaves together a narrative of the human experience in a new school as they develop their identity and culture.
“The music highlights our joy, creativity and the ebb and flow of our moments together,” said Harmon.
On Thursday afternoon students had the opportunity to run through their performances as if it was the real deal, with sound, lights, stage changes and all.
“The experience for the kids is as true to performance opportunities we possibly can.
“We’ve got a crew working backstage learning the ropes of quick changes, set changes and in lots of ways is like we are putting on a show in the evening, but this afternoon our dress rehearsal very much is process driven,” said Harmon.
Each grade from Kindergarten to grade 5 had a performance piece. Grade three performed the song The Bicycle by Andy Beck.
“It’s a beautiful two-part singing arrangement and the students were really drawn to the lyrics because I think riding a bike in the springtime, actually all times of the year, can be such a magical experience,” said Harmon.
She said they did some visualizing around experiencing the wind in their hair and what they can see when they are on the bike and spending time in nature.
Harmon said there is a part where they are talking about a hill ahead but they are not going to stop, they are going to keep peddling. 
“I think that speaks to some of the experiences that kids have had in the last couple years with challenges and maybe things not going exactly the way they had hoped, but they’re so resilient and I think this song is about that,” said Harmon. Follow

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