STEM plus Arts = Learning Full STEAM ahead!

At the time of year with the shortest days and longest nights, I wish you a moment of rest for your mind and soul. In the quiet darkness shines the light of hope, with the promise that the light will increase each day. Earlier this month, the Story Tapestries staff took time to meet, reflect, and envision our future. It was a peaceful moment, away from the day to day activities, to nurture our collective vision for what's to come.

What is your wish for 2023? What small thing can you do today to make that bigger dream a reality for tomorrow?

The end of a calendar year is a wonderful time to reflect and review. We've taken a moment to re-read some impact stories from 2022 on the Story Tapestries Blog and it truly has been an exciting and impactful year. While many families continue to struggle and face economic and mental health challenges, the tools of the arts have been able to provide a "silver lining" with experiences and resources that have boosted quality of life for residents across the DMV region.

Life Enrichment Director, Samantha Dubendorf, at a Montgomery County assisted living center recently sent a note to say, "Thank you so much. We at Brooke Grove are so thankful to Story Tapestries! You have opened new doors to our residents and have given them the opportunity to experience the arts in new and interesting ways. We are grateful for you all."

And an elementary school teacher shared these takeaways following an artist-in-residency, “I liked the creation of math problems. The process really helped them be creative and apply their math knowledge. They then mapped out the problem with a drawing, and then performed it. The students were able to understand what the problem needed them to do in order to solve it, which helped with the conceptualization of the math in the problem.”

We hope to continue to connect, to support individuals as they find their story, and to create spaces to elevate the voices and stories of those who have gone unheard. This is how we envision creating our bright and beautiful tapestry - one story at a time.

Each person is like a single strand of thread, and when we interact and share with one another, we weave our threads to create a vibrant fabric that makes us each stronger and also becomes something beautiful to behold.

Thank you for being part of our tapestry and for continuing this journey with us into 2023!

Sending you and your loved ones wishes for a happy and healthy holiday season as we say goodbye to 2022 and welcome in a new year!

With HUGS and smiles,

Links:

• Read more stories about the impact you've made
• Check out a short impact video
• Follow us on Facebook and listen to stories every Wednesday

It’s been a blast connecting with community members in person this fall.

Our network of Teaching Artists has started off the year strong, with in-school and after-school programs as well as family performance series and Professional Development workshops for educators. As we grow and expand, in addition to many new Teaching Artists, Story Tapestries has welcomed a new Operations Director, Kellie Butsack, Innovation and Partnerships Director, Danyett Tucker, and two Arts Administration and Teaching Artist Fellows, Bre Seals and Michael Jones.

Meet our newest team members!

The featured photo highlights a visual art activity led by Innovation and Partnerships Director, Danyett Tucker, at a community event hosted by the Latin American Youth Center.

Our school partners are really enjoying how the integration of an arts-based approach to learning is transforming their classrooms and inspiring creativity for students - this is what puts the 'A' in STEAM and takes STEM learning to new levels. The most recent reports on the impact of COVID have revealed that the greatest learning losses have occurred in Mathematics, and our teaching artists are jumping in to work to close the gap. Our classroom teacher partners are seeing how interaction with the arts opens the doors to new possibilities for academic achievement and perhaps most importantly - for a joyful approach to life and learning. Here’s some feedback we recently received:

“Students, primarily ESOL students, really were able to share their thoughts and ideas in a creative way. Students who were anxious about writing or getting up in front of the class came in with smiles and ideas and really flourished. One student with very little English didn't completely understand the objective but was given room to just be creative and produce a piece that he felt comfortable making. During the students’ time to share their work, so many students couldn't contain their excitement to share their words and voices with others.”

“Fantastic modeling, repetition, and allowing for individuality and voice...Students were highly engaged, were activated to create, think critically and express themselves through poetry or through prose.”

“I liked the creation of math problems. The process really helped them be creative and apply their math knowledge. They then mapped out the problem with a drawing and then performed it. The students were able to understand what the problem needed them to do in order to solve. Which helped with the conceptualization of the math in the problem.”

One of our community-based partners, Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless, is excited to see how engagement with Story Tapestries artists has provided unique and impactful experiences for their community. In particular, we had the opportunity to work with children at their Seneca Heights supportive housing site. Youth and parents had several opportunities to experience professional performances as well as to participate in interactive workshops that helped them discover new social and emotional learning tools, key to healing from the traumas of the experience of homelessness and the pandemic. The Community Engagement Manager, Lynn Rose, shared that, “The impact of Story Tapestries on our students and families was like introducing water to a desert - growth and blooming happened in beautiful and necessary ways.”

Don’t you love living this mission and watching the vision access to the arts for all unfold before your eyes? It’s pretty incredible and we are grateful you’re on this journey with us, offering support, encouragement, and essential funds so these programs can reach the communities who need them most.

We also held our annual fundraiser, Elevate Voices - Celebrate Community on Friday, October 7th at Tommy Joe’s in Bethesda, MD. Be sure to click the link below to enjoy a recap of our incredible evening of yummy food, drinks, and Hawaiian desserts prepared by celebrity chef, Kaimana Chee. 5-time Emmy award winning producer, director, and on-air sportscaster, Jumoke Davis, emceed the evening and Honorary Chair, Philanthropist and TV Personality, Charrisse Jackson, best known for her role on The Real Housewives of Potomac, helped us raise $76,709. Let’s not forget the amazing music by The Gem Fatales.

As part of the event, we presented our Community Voices Awards. Honorees included:

Philanthropists of the Year - Jamie & Jerry Truman of Truman Charities

Educator of the Year - Jessica Henwood

Community Partner of the Year - Latin American Youth Center

Business of the Year - United Therapeutics

As we enter the season of gratitude, we will be spotlighting and thanking our community-based partners and school partners throughout the months of November and December. We invite you to follow us on social media to join us in the celebration:

https://www.facebook.com/StoryTapestries/

https://www.instagram.com/storytapestriesengage/

https://twitter.com/StoryTapestries

https://www.linkedin.com/company/story-tapestries

https://www.youtube.com/user/Storytapestries

See you there!

Links:

• Meet our newest team members!
• Recap of Elevate Voices - Celebrate Community