Blanca Satander
Organization Details
| Name | Blanca Satander |
| URL | https://blancasantander.com/ |
Organization Description
| Mission statement | In general, when I start my work in the classroom I speak to the teachers and figure out what age group I'll be working with, what materials I'll be provided with, and then I prepare the class I'm going to teach. If the students are older, I prepare a PowerPoint to explain the lesson and the history of any cultural contents behind the project I'm teaching. Otherwise, for younger children I use other tools to engage them before the project like music, meditation, making a circle in the class, and getting them to engage with their senses--all of this pre-phase is based on gauging the energy of the kids in the classroom. The lessons and projects I give to them tend to be simpler and faster, but never reduce the cultural elements I try to maintain in the projects. Younger kids are very spontaneous, so I'm always prepared to make adjustments on the spot. The most important thing I want to show my students is that they have freedom and the ability to express themselves however they want. |
| Service(s) description | I am a Peruvian-American artist from Seattle. Since moving here from Perú in 1996 I have been a working artist. Before coming here I majored in Art at the Pontifical Catholic University of Lima and over the next decade worked as an illustrator for educational materials and later in the National Theater in set and costume design. I also worked in Peru as an illustrator for children’s books, textbooks, and educational materials produced by NGOs like UNICEF. My activities in the Seattle area have focused on visual arts and teaching children. While I have spent a large part of my career presenting artwork and doing commissions, I find that children are a huge focus of where art can have the greatest positive impact on their lives and their communities. My first experience teaching in Washington was in The Little School in Bellevue, where I taught young students how to create mosaics. This was volunteer work, but soon thereafter I began working as an artist in residence in various schools around Seattle. I taught and led a number of art projects at schools such as Mercer Island Middle School, Whitman Middle School, Seattle Amistad School, University Prep, and Broadview Thompson. In all of my projects, I strive to teach students that they are free to express themselves, use their imaginations, and learn the many possibilities that materials can provide for us in art. All of my projects leave room for students to have their own input, with students free to choose colors, shapes, or placement of components. I have also taught art as part of certain events, festivals, and programs, such as Washington Hall, Seattle Center, Everett Children’s Museum, Parks & Recreation, and Seattle Office of Arts & Culture. One program I led with sponsorship from Parks & Recreation was called “Park in the Heart,” where I gave free art lessons to kids in Ballard Commons Park. This had great community feedback and helped activate the park. During the pandemic, I won a grant from Parks & Recreation to create video art lessons for kids online, teaching very similar projects to what I teach in classrooms but in a video format. |
| Program impact | not provided |
Community programs are organized into categories known as Community School Elements. All community programs associated with Blanca Satander are listed below and each program may be provided at 1 or more schools. You can use the 'Show Details' buttons to learn more about each program.
Academic Learning (1 program)
Programs that support and reinforce school-day academic instruction within any subject area - language arts, career and technical education, math, science/technology, visual and performing arts, physical education, health education, ethnic studies, social studies, and world languages - in alignment to the curriculum and academic goals for students and the district.