Bob Engelhart Presents to Amity Middle School Orange

By Nancy Goss

The purpose of teaching students about political cartoons is to develop their interpretive skills. Teachers at the middle school realized a need to help students with this process last spring. Sue McKeon, Rebecca Casey and Nancy Goss wrote a grant and submitted it to the Jamie A. Hulley Arts Foundation asking for help in funding a two day presentation by a prominent political cartoonist. In the fall the teachers found out that their grant had been funded.

Team T grade 8 students heard the presentation and participated in the workshop on Friday, March 25, while Team S grade 8 students participated on Friday, April 1.

Bob Engelhart has been the political cartoonist for the Hartford Courant for more than 30 years. His wealth of experience helped students understand the power of political cartoons, the process by which he creates the cartoons, and how the Internet has vastly changed how cartoons are now circulated.

Using the projection device in the Large Group Instruction Room to project his cartoons, Bob shared twenty two of his most recent cartoons and explained how he germinated the initial idea and brought it to final copy which was submitted for publication.

As well as discussing his ideas, Bob described the use of line, shading, background, and the tools that he uses. Following his presentation students were led in a workshop hour in the creation of two caricatures. A document camera captured Bob’s work so that students could easily see how he created caricatures of Dannel Malloy, Governor of Connecticut, and President Barack Obama.

Students and staff were very enthusiastic with Bob’s presentation, his easy manner in describing his art and their own ability to replicate what he was teaching them about caricatures.

Students and staff are indebted to the Jamie A Hulley Arts Foundation for their support of this very engaging and intriguing presentation by an artist.

— Submitted by Nancy Goss, School Library Media Specialist