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Participant Details
- Community Arts Partner Name
- Jennifer Bennett
- Partner Type
- Individual
- Profile Photo
- Individual Bio or
Organizational Statement
- Jennifer Bennett is a Seattle-based studio artist who designs and makes jewelry and sculpture. She runs her own small business and teaches youth at Coyote Central. She holds an MA in Education and has lived and studied in Nepal. She taught 4th/5th grade for Seattle Public Schools before devoting herself to making and teaching art. Jennifer lives in South Seattle and has a studio in the International District. She has served on many boards that support higher education and housing for children in Nepal, and maintains her long-established relationships there.
Jennifer has received 3 Art in the Park grants (2015-2018) from the Office of Art and Culture and Seattle Parks to create site-specific sculptures with youth in South Seattle parks. These include a fence installation of over 300 native plant “flowers” made from collected PET bottles in Beer Sheva Park; a sheltered wooden phone-booth in the woods and embossed copper-leaves installation for a “Call Your Ancestors” in Pritchard Beach, and a collection of mini fish traps and a 5-foot salmon made from aluminum cans for “Salmon People Teach Us.” Each project was created in collaboration with South Shore middle school students. These public events have included a performance piece of Native story-telling and drumming.
Jennifer was one of the selected artists for the Duwamish Revealed Project and jointly created an 18-foot tall fish trap along the banks river at T-107 Park with students from Pathfinder School. Her desire is to continue working on meaningful, long-term art projects that connect students to US history and have a place in the public domain.
She has worked as an artist at the following Seattle Public schools: West Woodlawn, Concord, South Shore K-8, and Pathfinder.
Grade Levels Preferred
- Grade Levels Preferred
- K-2, 3rd - 5th, 6th - 8th
Artistic Disciplines
- Discipline
- 5, 6
- Type
- Sculpture
Site-specific art
installation
jewelry, wearable art
repurposed material, natural material,
Experience
- Previous School Partnerships
- WA State TAT Lab Graduate
- Other Trainings or Certifications
- Sample Lesson Description: Student / Classroom Residencies
- Sample Workshop Description: Teacher Professional Development
Areas of Experience and Expertise
- Approved Professional Development Provider
- 1
- Approved Classroom Residency Provider
- Yes
Lesson Plan
- Integrated Art
- Cultural Art
Teaching Approach
- Teaching Philosophy + Approach
- I want to collaborate with you so that we can transform student learning into something extraordinary. Art can have the power of magic-- as it lives on in our visual memory long after it has been created. Hands-on, in-depth projects can engage students in ways our assessment-based culture cannot begin to measure. I will conscientiously find meaningful ways to integrate learning outcomes into our project. As a former classroom teacher, I will respect your time, I will come to you for your insight about your students' needs, and I will communicate with you. Together we will set the tone and tenor of the project. The research and planning phase of a project energize me, ultimately driving me to create something meaningful in which all students can take part. I highly value reflection for myself and students, so we will make time to do that along the way. I find projects that involve engaging the general public and/or publishing work that can be seen outside the classroom most compelling. Providing platforms for student voices to be heard and their work honored is important to me.
- Curriculum Integration Possibilities
- WA State History
US History
Math
Literacy
Science
- Special Skills and Areas of Expertise
- I have led professional development for teachers, namely the Canoe Curriculum.
I am a member of the race and equity committee at Coyote Central; and, I am a mentor teacher there.
One of my first teaching jobs was in a developmental pre-school. I later worked in a group home for adults with disabilities.
I have experience working with the Native population in the Northwest. I also served as the education chair on the Board for the Ama Foundation for ten years (International NGO servicing Nepal), and have worked directly with children in Nepal. As a classroom teacher, I served a diverse population in Seattle Public Schools.
- Testimonials from Schools
- Marybeth Satterlee, director/founder Coyote Central (206) 817-7276
marybeth@coyotecentral.org
David Dockendorf, principal Pathfinder School Seattle (206) 252-9710
ddockendorf@seattleschools.org
Andy Darring teacher, Pathfinder School (206) 252-9710 afdarring@seattlepublicschools.org
Ami Pendley teacher, Pathfinder School (206) 252-9710
alpendley@seattleschools.org
Laura Tyler teacher, South Shore K-8 School (206) 851-6157 lmtyler@seattleschools.org
Fees
- Fees
- Minimum hourly rate $50.00
Images
- Image
- Image Description
- Student’s embossed copper leaves depicting Native artifacts
- Image
- Image Description
- Working with Pathfinder students at T-107 Park in Seattle on Fish Trap
- Image
- Image Description
- Students Giving Tour of traps and recycled salmon in Pritchard Beach
- Image
- Image Description
- Student jewelry (aged 11)
- Image
- Image Description
- Phone Booth in the woods “Call Your Ancestors"