Kindergarten students held their third annual fashion show in the Trustey Family Theatre during the Lower School Meeting on Friday, February 2, 2024. In its third year, the fashion show models the learning and creativity happening inside Shore’s kindergarten homeroom classrooms and in
S.A.I.L. (Science and Art Integrated Learning).
The fashion show started three years ago when students were learning about simple machines in S.A.I.L. Student Lincoln B., who is now in second grade, asked S.A.I.L. instructor and Arts Department Chair Betsey Holland if he and his classmates could turn themselves into cyborgs. Shore’s program is supportive of, and flexible to, including student ideas and interests in its curriculum, so with some planning and collaboration the answer was yes! Students built simple machines to add to their bodies using cardboard, paper, recycled materials, paint, bubble wrap, and more.
This year, the Kindergarten team, including Emily Castoldi, Alex Rosati, and Sasha Valliere
decided to switch things up and incorporate the fashion show into the students’ studies of animal adaptations. After learning about animals in class through books, lessons, activities, and even a visit from the Center for Wildlife, Kindergarteners selected an animal and an adaption they wanted to build for themselves. Before students got to building, they had to research their chosen animal’s adaptations and sketch out their ideas.A few examples of students' animal adaptations and why they chose them are:
“So… I made a fly that's pretending to look like a bee so it camouflages into the world. My wings flap, so fun!”
- Harris M.
“I made a cute wolf! I made some ears and a head and some blue eyes. The ears kinda move.”
- Juliette B.
“I’m a shark. It’s very scary and it has laser eyes and arms. It can see different colors and I can change the colors. If you think it’s weird, that's fine!”
- Tucker P.
After a few weeks of hard work, the student’s costumes were finished and it was time to get ready for the big event.
Kindergarten student Jack S. said that this was the very first fashion show he had ever been in and that it was “very, very fun because I got to see my parents.” He added that his favorite part about making his leaf-tailed gecko animal adaptation was painting it because he loves painting, and that he liked being on stage.
“It was very, very fun and everyone should do a fashion show,” said Jack S.
Brynlee B. said that her favorite part of the fashion show was at the end when the Shore Beaver made a special appearance, summoning cheers from the audience.
One of those cheering audience members was Lincoln B., who said enthusiastically “it makes me feel happy that something is going on from one year to the other.
Click here to learn more about Shore’s programming that helps bring ideas like Lincoln’s to life.