WOS Students Learn About Textile Arts

Second graders at William O. Schaefer Elementary School are learning all about textile art and creating their own wall hangings in WOS Art teacher Liz Piteo’s class!

Earlier this school year, Piteo applied for and received a SOCES PTA Teacher Grant to purchase materials for stitching and weaving projects to integrate creativity, hands-on learning and cultural exploration into the PreK-2 art curriculum. “I really wanted to try something new with the kids with the textile units. It’s a 3-dimensional piece that’s different for them but it also builds on skills that we have been working on. Even though it’s challenging, it really teaches them perseverance. I want them to try working with all different types of materials so they can truly appreciate art and everyday items in the world around us,” explained Piteo.

Second graders first learned about Native American folk art while creating their own dream catchers in the fall and to kick off the textile unit, students learned about the unique processes that different countries use to produce textile art including Peru, Guatemala and Ireland. Using the basic knot-making and stitching skills they learned while making their dream catchers, second grade classes have been working on making their very own mini wall hangings using a wooden weaving loom, weaving needles and colorful yarn.