Teacher uses arts to bringstudents and families together

Production debuting Friday at Larson Heights Elementary

MOSES LAKE — Watching parents play with their kids in her classroom at Larson Heights Elementary makes teacher Tara Childs smile from ear to ear.

Last school year she invited the parents of her students to come in and participate in various activities relating to the arts during part of the school day.

"The arts really changed my life," Childs said. "Kids were changing, parents were changing; I saw it change people's lives."

From that experience, Childs decided she wanted to expand opportunities for parents to get involved and started an after-school program on Thursdays for students in second through fourth grades called the "Crazy Nuts."

Initially the group was intended for students, but with their upcoming play this Friday, entitled "Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock," the after-school gatherings have turned into a community-oriented activity that has gained much involvement from parents.

It has become the perfect opportunity for Childs to pursue one of her passions as a teacher: Bringing kids and families closer together.

"As a parent I kind of forget how to play with my kids," Childs said. "I want everyone to remember the child in them and I think the arts bring out the child in us."

The students Childs most wants to reach is those who come from low income homes or whose parents are not often involved in activities with their children.

During a set design meeting Friday, several parents and families came to support their students and volunteer their help.

Recently, Childs has had even more

students, those she said she would not have expected to show an interest, say they want to be part of the "Crazy Nuts."

It is exactly the kind of response Childs wants to see more of from parents and students.

The Friday event is another way of reaching students and their parents through an evening when families will be invited to participate in art-related activities following the play.

Stone passing games, painting and dancing are all planned for the evening.

The setting for the play is the jungles of Africa. A spider, one of the main characters, plays the part of a trickster who attempts to get the food of other animals.

Fortunately, the spider's trickery does not pay off in the end.

"African tales work good for groups as they are about building community and people working together," Childs said.

One of Childs's students, third-grader Kirsten Ketchum, plays the part of a zebra in Friday's production.

"There are lots of creative things that are fun and it would be good to teach a lot of other kids," Ketchum said of why she thinks the arts are important.

The play is Childs's first with her after-school group.

Not considering herself to be an expert at set design, she says the experience has also taught her how to be more creative.

Members of the community such as Mike King, a friend of Childs and a carpenter with Hittco Construction out of Moses Lake, have gotten involved by donating set design supplies for the play.

"Anything to help kids is a good thing," King said. "We were ready to help."

The play is Friday at 6:30 p.m. in the Larson Heights Elementary gym. There is no charge for admission. For more information call Tara Childs at 766-2655 x1510.