Reflections

Are you familiar with the PTA Reflections program?  I remember participating in it when I was a kid, so it's not a new thing.  It's a nation-wide arts contest where kids are asked to interpret a new theme each year in one or more of the following categories: Dance Choreography, Film Production, Literature, Music Composition, Photography, and Visual Arts.  Anywho, I made our kids enter stuff this year.

The theme was "Let your imagination fly"; perfect for our kids.  AJ did a visual art and a photography entry.

The artistic statement is where they tell the judges how they interpreted the theme in their art work.  It counts almost as heavily on the score as their artistic abilities.  Like I said this years theme was practically MADE for our kids.  His artistic statements are hilarious!!!

Now J might be our most imaginative kid and a super artist as you well know.  He drew quite possibly the LEAST imaginative drawing I've ever seen him do.  I asked him what was up and he said he just didn't want to have to get any awards in front of people.  Stinker.  He wouldn't even let me post it on the blog!

S was excited that they changed the visual art rules this year.  Before all the entries had to be flat, even regular canvases were too thick to meet their restrictions.  I suppose it was an issue of being able to mail the entries that won on the state and national levels.  This year they said 3D stuff was fine and if it was too bulky to mail, digital photos would be fine.

So S did some string art, plus some of her favorite characters that she doodles and she made some sparkly little dream catchers and put them all together to create this!

Both S & AJ won best in their divisions on the school level and their pieces went on to the district level and were judged against all the winners from all the other local schools.  Believe it or not they both won top honors there too!!! Here they are getting their medals & certificates while J sat in the stands and thanked his lucky stars I didn't make him enter something better.

That meant that their entries went on to be judged against the other district winners from across the state!  We were surprised to find out that S won at the state level too and hers will be judged next month at nationals!!  (There are advantages to living a state that is barely populated after all. *wink) Here she is accepting her state trophy!!

But seriously we are proud of her and really glad that there is such a thing as the Reflections program to recognize creative academic abilities.