News at St. Catherine's

Teacher Spotlight: LS Art Teacher Jacque Minarik

As part of National Teacher Appreciation Week, we are spotlighting teachers in all three divisions. Today we spotlight Lower School Art Teacher Jacque Minarik.
     Creativity is at the heart of art classes. And it's called on even more now during Distance Learning — from the students, teachers and families.
     Lower School Art Teacher Jacque Minarik found a unique way to deliver her art instruction each week by creating an Art Bingo sheet. This allows for Minarik to still highlight the lessons she would teach in the Lower School art studio on campus, but also allow for activities that can be done remotely with ease.
     “I did this to allow greater flexibility for families while trying to offer fun art activities and ways to be creative,” she said.
     Minarik and her fellow St. Catherine’s teachers are now in week eight of Distance Learning after the COVID-19 epidemic led to the closing of all Virginia schools for the remainder of the school year. 
     Each week Minarik connects with her students via video lessons that incorporate simple materials such as crayons, markers, colored pencils and papers — but also showing the girls new ways to use those simple materials to get exciting and different results. 
     “I also incorporated lots of found object art opportunities into the Art Bingo activities as well as opportunities to discuss art and talk about ideas for some of the art bingo activities,” Minarik said.
     She does this all from her sunroom turned into an art studio and her dining room — complete with the many plants that usually fill her large studio space on campus. Rescuing all her “plant babies” and then finding them a new home within her own home was actually her biggest challenge during Distance Learning.
     “Let's just say my house is very tropical and jungly right now,” Minarik said.
     It is an adventure each and every day and Minarik hopes the adventures in art will provide a creative outlet as well as stress relief for her students and others. 
     One of the first lessons she sent to her students was to create cards for residents at different assisted living homes around the Richmond area. The girls created cards filled with uplifting messages and mailed them to the addresses provided. 
     “Art is so important because it helps you process everything in your world and allows you to relax and ponder/process your ideas in your brain,” Minarik said. “It is also a time for reflection.  One of my favorite aspects of art is that you can spread hope and joy when you make art and share it.” 
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Located in the heart of Richmond, Virginia, St. Catherine’s School is a private, all-girls pre-K, kindergarten, elementary, middle and high school. We provide a well-rounded educational experience for girls from communities across Richmond, Chesterfield, Henrico and all of central Virginia. St.Catherine’s all-girls educational experience is rooted in more than a century of history and tradition. From our revolutionary past to our dynamic present, St. Catherine’s has always focused on preparing students for a boundless future.