THANK YOU
to the Ohio Arts Council!
West Side Montessori (WSM) wishes to express our enormous thanks to the Ohio Arts Council (OAC) for funding Risa Cohen's 86-day teaching artist residency during the 2024-2025 school year. The teachers of the Children's House (ages 3-6) created the video below to show their appreciation for the work Risa did in the 2024-2025 school year.
An arts-integrated curriculum
During her 86-day teaching artist residency at West Side Montessori, Risa facilitated an arts-integrated curriculum, teaching early literacy skills through music and movement. Many reading programs teach the cognitive skills necessary for reading. Risa also teaches the physical and social-emotional skills needed to learn literacy. Her teaching is wrapped in music and love.
Risa worked with all the Children's House (3-6 years old) students (5 classes of 22-24 students each), as well as the Little House students (5 classes of students 13 months - 3 years old). Each Children's House class met with Risa biweekly. When visiting a Children's House class, Risa would teach the whole class and then, after whole group instruction with live musical accompaniment, she led small group lessons during "work time." Risa met with Little House students weekly to sing, dance, move, and groove. Her residency at West Side Montessori was made possible by a TeachArtsOhio Grant from the Ohio Arts Council.
Fine Motor Skills
Children prepare their hands for writing and develop hand-eye coordination with finger plays and specially designed work, like the singing bowls and the Montessori Bells.
Gross Motor Skills
Handwriting requires many gross motor skills like crossing the midline, developing shoulder girdle stability, and visual tracking. Children move to songs, readying their bodies for the big work of reading and writing.
Social-Emotional Skills
Children cannot learn in a state of dysregulation. In order to learn, they need to learn self-regulation, motivation, and perseverance. Risa teaches these skills both explicitly and implicitly.
Kindergarten and Spring Sing
Every Wednesday afternoon, Risa met with three groups of kindergarten students (27 total kindergartners). She taught the Ohio State Standards for Music Education and prepared the students for their end-of-the-year performance: "Spring Sing: We Love the Earth," which was presented to an audience of about 160 people on May 8, 2025.
The kindergarteners were accompanied by recorded music, Risa's guitar, and ukulele accompaniment from Amy Wagner, a WSM teacher. Amy learned ukulele from Risa. Since taking a workshop from Risa, Amy and other WSM teachers now play ukulele regularly in their classrooms.
Risa created a songbook for each kindergarten student using WSM school funds. Please read the songbook and see the program, pictures, and videos of the performance below.
An Intergenerational
Sing-Along
Like other schools in the United States, West Side Montessori was closed on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Many of our families enjoy celebraitng MLK Day as "National Day of Service." We like to "make it a day on - not a day off."
Joining people of different backgrounds or ages in community seems fitting for MLK Day, and singing builds community and makes people happy. So, some families from WSM went to Oakleaf Village, a senior living facility, to sing songs of justice and freedom.
The invitation
This flyer was posted on WSM's social media platforms and shared in our newsletter.
Super for seniors
Fun for families
The seniors living at Oakleaf Village loved seeing the children and hearing them sing. The children had a great time singing and dancing. And parents appreciated the sense of community and connection created. The sing-along was fun and meaningful for all.
In the video above, one brave youngster sings into the microphone. Many other children enjoyed singing into the microphone at the intergenerational sing-along, and some played piano and danced.
Thank you!
Risa Cohen's teaching artist residency at West Side Montessori was made possible by the Ohio Arts Council.
