Minds in Motion

From Jennifer Hadley:


Last Saturday, March 21st, Snow School hosted the first ever Middletown “Minds in Motion” program, an afternoon of fun, hands on enrichment workshops for children in grades K-8. About two hundred students, some coming from as far away as Trumbull, Torrington, West Hartford, and Mansfield Center to join their Middletown peers, participated in 23 children's workshops including yoga, science, fencing, art, dance, karate, pottery, theater, circus, and DNA analysis. Meanwhile their parents attended a keynote address by author and educator Nathan Levy on helping children reach their potential and had a choice of three other parent workshops. The goal of Minds in Motion events, which the Connecticut Association for the Gifted (CAG) co-sponsors throughout the state, is to give children a chance to stretch their brains and bodies by trying new learning experiences, and to also give parents and teachers a chance to learn more about parenting and educational topics. A frequently heard comment at the end of the day was, “Can we do this every Saturday?”

Another exciting element of the program was the collaboration it took to pull it off. The Snow School PTO, Farm Hill and Macdonough parents, PROBE, Independent Day School, and CAG worked together with many volunteers, including students from Middletown and Mercy H.S. and the Independent Day school. The event committee would also like to thank local organizations which volunteered their time to be presenters: American Red Cross, ARTFARM, Boy Scouts of America, Computer Explorers, Cromwell Martial Arts, ICONN Fencing Club, Independent Day School, Middlesex County Parent Leadership Programs, Middletown Family Resource Center, Oddfellows Playhouse Youth Theater, Stage Left Dance Studio, Stepping Stones Museum, Talcott Mountain Science Center, Vinnie’s Jump & Jive, Wesleyan Potters. Wesleyan University, www.arteatery.com, and Yoga in Middletown. Many local businesses also contributed to the program: Illiano's, It's Only Natural, Karen’s Kreations. Middletown Pizza, Public Market, Sammy's Pizza, and Stop & Shop. Organizers have already begun planning for next year, so be on the look out for more information.