Here's the latest about NWK summer programs at the Aldrich Contemporary Museum in Connecticut. Co-author Susan Marcus will be on hand to lead the new program for 'tweens-- Think Like a Planet -- with help the second week from Susie Monday. Aldrich staff, trained by Marcus, Monday and colleague Dr. Cynthia Herbert will produce the third-year of New World Kids summer program for 5 and 6 year olds.

Here's what the Aldrich has to say:

The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum: Calendar of Events: Think Like a Planet

Monday, August 3
Monday to Friday, August 3 to 14. 1 to 5 pm
Non-member registration begins March 15.

Ages 11 and 12
Plus three special events for parents
(Program fee: $690 Family member; $750 non-members, including a half-price Family
membership)
Think Like a Planet 2009 yearbook: $35 (optional)

Exclusive offer for Aldrich members—New World Kids and the new Think Like a Planet are being offered to members only until March 15. These innovative summer programs promote creative thinking—New World Kids for five and six year olds, and Think Like a Planet for eleven-and twelve-year-olds. There are only twelve spots available in each program, and last year’s places went quickly,
so sign up before this program is opened to the public!

The Museum believes in the importance of developing programs that prepare young minds
to learn and grow in a future that will require new kinds of literacies. Think Like a Planet
builds on the foundation of the New World Kids program, proven to engage children with
the creative thinking processes, the capacity to invent with many media, the ability to
think across disciplines, and the reliance on (and joy in) the imagination.

These skills are taught through what Susan Marcus calls The Sensory Alphabet: the
building blocks of creative literacy. The Sensory Alphabet is the basis of our sensory
connection to the world—line, color, texture, movement, sound, rhythm, space, light, and
shape. Experimenting with these elements will multiply a student’s repertoire of ways to
symbolize, understand, and communicate ideas. For even in a digital age, external
information comes into the human mind through the senses. The first week will
concentrate on gaining the fundamentals of The Sensory Alphabet.

During the second week, TLAP students will try out the thinking skills that are the
foundation for the digital media that resonates with their individual strengths. We will
work with sound and music, motion and video, graphics and photography, and social
networking media. Guided by experts, they will practice the creative process within the
medium, collecting ideas, playing and creating a project that will ultimately add up to an
original group presentation. Along the way, we will be collecting ideas and information
from children around the world to add to the work.

As with New World Kids, the involvement of parents is a key aspect. Prior to its start,
Susan Marcus and Aldrich educators will meet with parents to discuss the cognitive
research that went into the design of the program and to learn about some of the
individual characteristics of each child. At the end of the first week, the educators will
organize an informal exhibition, which will include the students’ work and documentation
of both the students’ and teachers’ reflections on their creative strengths. The final
collaborative presentation at the end of the second week is an opportunity for friends and
family to witness the creative potential of the group in action.

For more information, or to register for the program, contact Nina Carlson at The Aldrich,
203.438.4519 ex. 19; ncarlson@aldrichart.org
See the full calendar


The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum
258 Main Street, Ridgefield, CT 06877
Tel 203.438.4519, Fax 203.438.0198, www.aldrichart.org