UCSF to Celebrate Week of the Young Child
Flower by Sara,
Laurel Heights
A free family movie screening is planned, as well, on Sunday, April 2.
The Week of the Young Child is an annual celebration sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, the world's largest early childhood education association, with nearly 100,000 members and a network of more than 300 local, state and regional affiliates. The purpose of the week is to focus public attention on the needs of young children and their families, and to recognize the early childhood programs and services that meet those needs, such as UCSF's Campus Life Services (CLS) child care centers at Parnassus, Laurel Heights and soon Mission Bay. In collaboration with CLS Arts & Events and the San Francisco Department of Children, Youth & Families, UCSF will present family day at the movies on Sunday, April 2, with free admission to "Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit" at 3 p.m. in Cole Hall Cinema on the Parnassus campus. The UCSF campus community is also invited to view the art show in these campus locations: Parnassus campus: Millberry Union (I Level), Medical Sciences Building lobby, Millberry Fitness & Recreation Center and School of Nursing second floor mezzanine; Laurel Heights on the second floor near the View; Mission Center Building lobby; and Mission Bay campus Community Center lobby.
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| Rainbow by Arianna, Laurel Heights |
"The works will serve as a window into children's spirits and souls, as a creative interpretation of their world," says Robert Frank, director of UCSF Early Care & Education Programs at UCSF. The artwork, created by children ages 1 to 5 years who attend the two - and soon to be three - campus child care centers, will be on display at multiple campus locations. Two wine and cheese receptions are planned on Monday, April 3, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at the Mission Bay Community Center lobby and then on Friday, April 7, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at the Millberry Conference Center on the Parnassus campus. A child's approach to art differs with age, says Frank. "During the preschool years, children begin with scribbling or wide swaths of color. They are exploring the media - the qualities of color and line, the texture and mixing of paint. The physicality of the media is as important as the image. A 2-year-old will often have as much paint on herself or himself as on the paper. "As they grow towards kindergarten age, their art begins to tell stories, to represent boats, people, animals - often in action. Still, the process is far more important than the result, initiative more primary than interpretation," Frank says. "Many children will approach the easel with an initial circumspection, only to end up completely overpainting their original idea with a curtain of color. As with adult artists, the work contains its own meaning and does not require interpretation. Children often label their creations as an afterthought." Questions about the art exhibit and the free family movie should be directed to Frank at 415/476-1469. More information is also available here. Source: Lisa Cisneros