New classes and record enrollment are highlights of the Massapequa School District’s annual Summer Fine Arts program. Five weeks of art, music and theater camps are taking place at Massapequa High School from July 6 to Aug. 7.
The program is presented in partnership with Nassau BOCES. Coordinator Jessica Wyman said there are 452 students enrolled this year, filling a total of 601 seats.
“We have a lot of students doing multiple camps, many for the whole five weeks,” she said. “The program continues to grow and we see more kids every year that spend the entire summer with us.”
Music camps include beginner band and orchestra lessons for students entering fourth grade or switching to a different instrument. Summer band and orchestra classes support musicians who want to further their abilities on instruments they have been playing at least one year. These camps run for two weeks. Several specialty one-week music camps include acoustic guitar, music theory, rock orchestra and songwriting. A Rhythm Rockers camp provides an engaging music experience for the district’s younger elementary students.
The arts camps feature many of the staples of the past with classes that focus on drawing, painting, sculpture and digital art. Several new art classes debuted this summer such as the Virtual Easel, in which students make digital creations on iPads with an emphasis on modern industry standards and professional tools. Pulp and Paper allowed students to use raw fibers and recycled materials to make their own paper and turn out products like lanterns and notepads. In 3D Collage Arts, students created three-dimensional mixed media pieces. Participants learned basic hand-building techniques such as their coil, pinch and slab methods in Air Dry Clay Creations.
Ms. Wyman noted that almost half of the visual arts camps now are digital, reflecting the interests of students.
A pair of two-week musical theater camps teaches students basic acting, vocal and dance techniques while working on a musical theater production. Participants work with a choreographer each day on both solo and ensemble pieces.
Each session ends with an exhibition for art classes and a performance for the music and theater camps, to which families are invited. The Summer Fine Arts program is supported by 28 teachers, 41 students assistants and two college assistants. Ms. Wyman noted that most of the high school students assistants were once participants themselves in the art and music camps.