Date: Fri 17-Oct-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: SHANNO

Quick Words:

scarecrow-NMS-Clancy-Vouros

Full Text:

(preview of 2nd Annual Sculpted Scarecrow Contest, 10/17/97)

The Scarecrows Are Returning!

Crows Of Newtown Beware: Fright Will Lead To Flight

(with cuts)

BY SHANNON HICKS

They're baaack .

Well, they aren't back yet, but they're on their way. The "they" in question

are scarecrows, about 30 of them, which will be taking over the front lawn at

Newtown Middle School for at least a week at the end of the month.

For the second consecutive Halloween, students in the eighth grade Gifted Art

and Discovery classes at Newtown Middle School are working on a unit

concerning scarecrows. The unit, and its ensuing contest, is the result of a

collaborative effort between Discovery teacher John Vouros and art teachers

Claudia Clancy and Sue Ward that was held for the first time last fall.

After researching scarecrows -- how and when they originated, what they are

used for, and how they are constructed -- students have begun creating

larger-than-life creations to be entered into the Second Annual Newtown

Scarecrow Sculpture Contest. Last year's inaugural contest resulted in the

appearance of nearly 30 scarecrows, all created solely by students working in

groups of two or three, without teacher or parental supervision or input.

The results were wonderful, creative and very varied. There were scary

scarecrows, whimsical scarecrows, and scarecrows strung from trees. There were

scarecrows made to resemble traditional scarecrows, contemporary and very

artistic scarecrows, and scarecrows that defied description.

The first place scarecrow was based on the headless horseman character in

Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow . It was the creation of Dan

Anderheggen and Mike Williams, and it was a huge hit.

With this year's contest underway, initial drawings of what each scarecrow

would basically look like are being turned in to teachers by each group.

Construction of the scarecrows themselves will be done at home.

The drawings have to include not only what the figures will look like upon

completion, but also what materials will go into the construction. Materials

may change during the course of building a scarecrow, but students are not

allowed to spend more than $10.

Students are working cooperatively again this year. One of the ideas of the

contest, in addition to being artistically creative, is to teach children how

to work cooperatively with a partner or partners in order to achieve intended

goals. With most of the work being done outside school hours, students are

also learning time management skills.

With a very successful first year of the contest under their collective belt,

this time the teachers coordinating the contest are not as concerned with what

the results will bring in.

"We haven't done anything, we haven't even worried this year because we got so

confident after last year," art teacher Claudia Clancy said this week. "Last

year we were really stressed. This year we're positive they're going to be

wonderful."

In creating their scarecrows, the students must come up with projects that

have one part that can be moved by nature, such as a pinwheel. Each scarecrow

must be so durable that it defies Mother Nature and her wrath for a full week;

each must banish a demon of the designers' choice; and each must be larger

than life, so as to be seen easily in a "drive by" fashion.

The scarecrows can fit into one of five different categories, as described by

the teachers. They can be of science fiction origin; robotic (movable by

nature); a hero or heroine, based on books, art or real people; organic, with

all materials coming from sources that were once alive; or synthetic, using

all man-made materials.

Frugal Beginnings

In her book Scarecrow! , author Valerie Littlewood described scarecrows as

homemade figures that have been used around the world to protect the precious

crops of farmers for more than 3,000 years.

Scarecrows continue to be very popular figures in legends and horror stories,

responsible for everything from hiding dead bodies and spiriting children away

during the Halloween season to playing host to ghosts and spirits. Although

originally portrayed only as frightening, menacing, sinister spirits in

ancient myths and legends, more recent portrayals have also shown scarecrows

to be loyal and friendly companions.

Scarecrows have always been as individual as those who create them. The

figures have been created by thrifty farmers from giant sheets of corrugated

tin, sheets of plastic, and even old suits of armor.

Through all kinds of weather and all four seasons, scarecrows "stay at their

post, guarding crows from sowing to harvest," wrote Miss Littlewood. In the

spring, scarecrows help protect young corn; in summer, peas and cabbages; and

in autumn and winter, early wheat sowing.

A Living Art Gallery

The finished scarecrows are due at the school on Sunday, October 19. They will

be put on display Saturday, October 25, and remain on view for at least one

week, giving residents and visitors a longer voting period this year. The

public is invited to stop by the front lawn of the school to look at the

entries, and choose their three favorites. Last year's contest raised over

$180, with just one day of voting.

"We were very impressed with how much respect the community and the kids had

for the sculptures," Mrs Clancy said. "We especially loved how families came

and walked through the exhibit. It turned the front lawn into an art gallery."

Votes cost $1 each, with all monies to be donated to the charity of choice by

the first, second and third place winners. Ballots will be available in next

week's issue of The Newtown Bee , as well as at the school's front lawn once

the scarecrows go up. Ballots are to be turned in to the Bee offices or to

John Vouros' classroom by Monday morning, November 3.

The money that is turned in with each vote is the money the students are

allowed to turn over to their chosen beneficiaries. Appropriately, last year's

first place winners (Mike Williams and Dan Anderheggen) chose to donate the

money raised by votes for their scarecrow to Socko's Haunted Yard. An annual

haunted house event in Newtown, the money raised through admission charges and

refreshments sales at the Yard in turn benefits Newtown Youth Services.

The second and third place winners selected the Danbury Women's Center and an

organization dedicated to research on Alzheimer's disease as beneficiaries. An

obvious amount of careful thought went into the students' selection of

charities.

"John made choosing the charities a very serious part of this project,"

Claudia Clancy said. The students, in turn, came up with very important causes

that were as diverse as their creations.

With this year's judging just around the corner, work has begun by the eighth

grade students to be cooperative, creative and compassionate once again.

"The kids are very excited," Mrs Clancy continued. "Now we're just waiting to

see what comes in."

So be ready, Newtown: The second haunting of Newtown Middle School's front

lawn begins soon.