Our Preschoolers’ embarked on a big mission to understand, learn and create stories of their moana and expressed them through illustration on a whale tail that has been kindly donated by one of our students Millie Prior and her parents Hannah and Paul.
Our 4-and 5 -year-old’s creative work was one of a pod of 200 uniquely designed and painted whale tail sculptures that was exhibited as part of an immersive public art trail of ‘Whale Tales 2022’ by WWF-New Zealand which took place between 24 January to 18 April 2022.
These Tails, which are inspired by the endangered Bryde’s whale, tells different tales of our moana and how we all have a part to play for a healthy ocean. Each tail was created by artists, community groups and schools.
At the Preschool, it presents an opportunity for our children to learn about environmental issues, impact of their daily activities and actions towards mother earth and translate what they have learnt into an art form.
Our Preschool Assistant Supervisor, Ms Devon Rand, explained that this exercise helped create interest on a topical issue that impacts our future generation and inspire a passion for the arts. “Our children began working together to plan and design the tail and explored the concept of ‘concentric circles’ by the artist Kandinsky and discussed colours they to use. The design process of combining the concentric circles using their chosen Saint Kentigern House colours allowed us to relay the message of sharing a common centre, connection, faith and values here at Saint Kentigern.”
“Aligning well with our New Zealand Curriculum, Te Whariki, this experience enabled our children to play, imagine, invent and experiment with different artistic processes and used a range of strategies and skills to play and learn with and alongside others. During the design process we included ways to enrich our children’s pre-literacy and pre-numeracy skills, and helped them recognise print symbols and concepts and using them with enjoyment, meaning and purpose,” added Ms Rand.
