Remember that one teacher in school everyone loved, who loved everyone right back? Yup, that teacher – everyone’s favorite who cared, inspired, and taught us so much inside and outside the classroom.
Today, we’re here to introduce you to our new favorite schoolteacher: Stephanie! She’s the winner of our “Top of the Class” award. She’s truly at the top of our list of amazing volunteers!
(Also known as the coolest teacher ever.)
Back to the First Day of Class...
Having been an art teacher and an advocate for education for over 20 years, Stephanie’s definitely at the top of her game!
In her classes, kids become painters, sculptors, and Picassos – while having fun and learning. (If only our own classes were this fun while growing up!)
When Stephanie first learned about CoachArt, she wanted to work with students and loved the idea of teaching awesome skills that bring them joy. Since then, Stephanie has opened up her time and heart to 3 amazing students.
Stephanie has made a big difference in their lives (and in our hearts) through arts and crafts!
And It’s a Masterpiece!
Stephanie’s first student was Maddy (7), who is full of spunk and loves to joke, giggle, and laugh. Put these two together and you’ve got a recipe for a great time!
Maddy is a spectacular artist, creating artwork that anyone would want to decorate their fridge doors with. Sign us up on the waiting list!
With fierce determination, Maddy succeeded in every crafting challenge placed her way. There’s nothing getting in the way of this brave first-grader.
Maddy and Stephanie are showing us all how masterpieces are created! Way to go, Maddy and Stephanie!
You Can Hear the Laughter for Miles
Stephanie’s next student was Aiko (11), a sixth grader.
Now, if we wanted to describe Aiko’s amazing qualities, we’d need hours, days, and weeks to get started! But our favorite thing about Aiko is how special she is.
Ever since she was young, Aiko had a unique set of challenges due to her autism. But there’s no challenge too big for Aiko, who aced her art sessions with flying colors (literally and figuratively)!
Although Aiko was a tad bit shy at first, Aiko and Stephanie formed a very special bond together over the course of 4 months. They say you can hear Aiko and Stephanie’s joyous laughter from miles away when they’re together!
They stuck to one another like paper and glue. For their final project, guess what they made?! Yes, slime! Not too runny or sticky, but just the perfect, squishy slime — made by a perfect duo together.
Then Came the Greatest Test…
After months of volunteering over Zoom, Stephanie was looking forward to opportunities to also coach kids in person.
Enter Iliana! As a high school junior, Iliana (17) was older than the other kids Stephanie had worked with. But Stephanie had a great idea: Iliana could make friendship bracelets, holiday projects, and special gifts for friends. Is there anything more meaningful than art with heart?! Iliana could share her art with her besties and do creative projects together with them too!
And the best part? Meeting in person meant Stephanie and Iliana could connect and become besties in real life.
The Results Are In!
For bringing smiles (and new skills) to kids who need them, Stephanie gets top scores and a gold sticker from the CoachArt community!
It didn’t matter what grade these students were in. All Stephanie needed was to be someone they could laugh with, connect with, and create with!
To be the best teacher, Stephanie became the nicest, kindest, and most encouraging friend of all. For that, let’s give a warm round of applause to Stephanie, who’s definitely the coolest teacher we’d all want in our classrooms!
How You—Yeah, YOU!—Can Make Art Time the Best Time for Kids and Families
Your donations to CoachArt guarantee that super-star teachers like Stephanie can have a positive impact in the lives of aspiring artists like Maddie, Aiko, and Iliana.
100% of our 2023 Impact Fund goes to the lesson materials and volunteer training and management to provide more lessons to more kids in 2023.
$14 is the average cost of 1 lesson for 1 student, through CoachArt’s innovative model.
