The Regional Arts Center & Perot Theater, downtown Texarkana

A collaborative community history & art public tour project

Pictured with: Becky Black, Ph.D., Visual Arts & Community Programs Coordinator

Our 3rd Graders rocked this project last Friday!  

They received history instruction, specifically local history, as well as public speaking practice, preparation, and application; 

and they also received an understanding of public service in a manner that could not have been reached if they hadn’t performed this service themselves. 

The tour was given twice throughout the day. Combined, roughly 60 community members joined. 

TRAHC: Texarkana Regional Arts & Humanities Council 

Self-portraits that were created in Art class, with the help of Mrs. McCarley, 

were also on display during the tour! 

The Perot Theater

Pictured with: Tiffani Whitehead, Marketing Coordinator
The class was gifted an original light bulb of the theater as a token of appreciation for their public service. So cool!

We are rolling right along with the ball unit! Our topics the past couple of weeks involved people who use balls, and the materials that make up balls. Construction crews use balls for demolition, and people use balls for sports and entertainment.  I took the class on a virtual field trip to a construction site to watch a steel wrecking ball demolish a building! We learned that people use balls for work and for play. One of the highlights of this unit was watching Mr. McWilliams juggle tennis balls for the class. We watched him juggle two balls and then three. I love to have parents in the classroom to share their talents. After we watched and learned about juggling, Mr. McWilliams gave each child their very own ball. A special thank you to our special visitor.       

A few of our favorite balls were made of plastic, rubber, and bubbles.  I used this unit to increase our gross motor skills with a balance activity. Each child had to balance a plastic ball on a wand. Balance and coordination activities help each child to develop self-regulation for daily tasks.  Attention and concentration were maintained for a specific task during this game.

Mrs. Nicole let us borrow her reaction ball for a great class activity! Our reaction ball was made of rubber and it had knots all around it. As your child dropped the ball, it reacted differently every time. The reaction ball may bounce to the left or right. As we moved to catch the reaction ball we improved our eye-hand coordination and our reaction time.

Spring is a wonderful time of year for a science lesson!

I ordered caterpillars a few weeks ago and we have watched and waited for butterflies to emerge. We learned about the wonderful metamorphosis that occurs during the lifecycle of a butterfly. We learned that a metamorphosis takes place during the process from an immature form to an adult form in two or more distinct stages. It was wonderful to watch the miracle of nature.

Easter comes in the spring and we learned about the true meaning of Easter. I used Resurrection Eggs to help the children understand why we celebrate this special holiday.  Each child opened a egg as I told the story of Easter. As we celebrate the joys of spring we also had a special friend drop by. The Easter Bunny hopped right in our classroom! Eggs are a symbol of new life and our classroom was the place to be! Have a great Easter and join us next time as we move on to the recycling unit.

With the leftover rocks from a science project, students drew and painted the Easter Story! Each day after our devotion this week, a stone was painted as a reflection. They have these along with a story that they can share with others! 

We finished our 3rd novel study!! Surprisingly, Pippi won the majority of our hearts! I mean, really what's not the love about her?!

2019 Spring Musical 

"The Aristocats" 

St. James Day School students, along with our fabulous Music teacher, Mrs. Tipton, and many other helpers, brought the adorable story to life onstage. This was such an exciting event and we all are eager to hear of next years’ plans!!

~TRAHC Employees Visit St. James~

As students prepare for their Public History & Arts Tours, they gave a tour of our school, St. James! This gave them an opportunity to speak about a familiar setting while adding presentation tactics, skills, and tips learned during our research meetings. 

(Pictured below left to right) Emily Rankin - Community Programs Assistant, Brooke Hopkins - Artist in Residency Coordinator, Dr. Becky Black- Visual Arts & Community Programs Coordinator Texarkana Regional Arts & Humanities Council (TRAHC)

During a debrief session, students were able to ask any questions they had about being a tour guide, and the adults gave positive feedback to each student.

Thank you, ladies of TRAHC, for taking your personal time and visiting our school! 

Below is a promotional advertisement that Dr. Black created for our upcoming Community Public Tours Project. Please join us and spread to word!