NEW GENERATION LEARNS AN ANCIENT ART FORM; JEFFERSON ELEMENTARY STUDENTS LEARN UKRAINIAN EGG PAINTING

Easter has come and gone, but Ann Freeman's third grade class at Jefferson Elementary School spent most of the morning Thursday decorating eggs to give away as gifts.

Freeman's class learned Pysanky, an ancient Ukrainian art form that uses eggs, beeswax, dye and a special tool called a kyska. Barb Duncan worked with students four hours on the projects.

Duncan coached students as they meticulously covered egg drawings with dye and beeswax, then added more dye and melted the wax. Finally, the eggs were varnished and students displayed their projects.

Their teacher was surprised how well her students handled the project. "Thirty minutes is their maximum time to sit, so this is amazing," said Ann Freeman after more than two hours.

Duncan's visit was the third to Jefferson this week. She taught Pysanky to all third grade students at the school as part of the Southeast Missouri State University Goals 2000 fine arts program.

Goals 2000 promotes the integration of multicultural arts with other school subject areas.

"It's an art that teaches patience," said Duncan. "I keep telling them they have to have a lot of patience, but it will have a good result."

While students worked on their projects, Duncan told them about Ukrainian history and information she gained from a visit to Ukrainian schools several years ago. Students learned math facts as they drew geometric shapes on their eggs. Duncan even played music by Peter Tchaikovsky, a 19th Century Russian composer.

Duncan said fine motor skill development, creative expression, concentration and patience were only a few of the benefits students received from learning Pysanky.

"You just don't know until you let a child get started what will happen," she said.

Fred Sparks had nearly completed his first Pysanky project when it fell to the floor. Duncan took the opportunity to praise the beauty of his egg and share a few science facts.

"The yolk and albumen were all over the floor, and it was just beautiful," she said. "All of our eggs -- even the dropped ones -- are beautiful."