MONROE - Schools can be a confusing maze of hallways, but at Abraham Lincoln Accelerated Learning Academy in Monroe, students and visitors get colorful directions to guide them.
Thanks to the school's art teacher, Pam Manion, Abe's halls and stairwells are painted with stripes and murals of active children - in basic primary colors.
Manion was recognized for her efforts with a plaque from the Parent-Teacher Organization and the school's Principal Tina Van Meer on Monday during a student assembly.
Manion had help painting the stripes and the child-like figures she designed from other staff members. Still, the project has taken about three years, working a week each summer.
The original idea came from a kindergarten teacher, Manion said.
"The idea was to make the whole lower level cheerful and kid-friendly," she said.
Now, playing and smiling children adorn the stairwells' walls once painted in basic whites, and different colored stripes at kid eye-level mark the many halls.
It's easier for children to find a room, if they know it's down the hall with the yellow entrance.
The stairwell in the front entrance is filled with children depicting the different intelligences - math, reading, science, sports, music, art, and kinesthetic movement.
"Each child symbolizes something different," Manion said. "And that is one of the missions of the school, to bring out the strengths of each child."
The only intelligence not on display is philosophical. That one was too difficult to depict, Manion said, laughing.
Manion has taught in the Monroe school district for 35 years, coming just one year after the old Abe Lincoln School burned down. Her first year was spent traveling to different schools in the district.
Thanks to the school's art teacher, Pam Manion, Abe's halls and stairwells are painted with stripes and murals of active children - in basic primary colors.
Manion was recognized for her efforts with a plaque from the Parent-Teacher Organization and the school's Principal Tina Van Meer on Monday during a student assembly.
Manion had help painting the stripes and the child-like figures she designed from other staff members. Still, the project has taken about three years, working a week each summer.
The original idea came from a kindergarten teacher, Manion said.
"The idea was to make the whole lower level cheerful and kid-friendly," she said.
Now, playing and smiling children adorn the stairwells' walls once painted in basic whites, and different colored stripes at kid eye-level mark the many halls.
It's easier for children to find a room, if they know it's down the hall with the yellow entrance.
The stairwell in the front entrance is filled with children depicting the different intelligences - math, reading, science, sports, music, art, and kinesthetic movement.
"Each child symbolizes something different," Manion said. "And that is one of the missions of the school, to bring out the strengths of each child."
The only intelligence not on display is philosophical. That one was too difficult to depict, Manion said, laughing.
Manion has taught in the Monroe school district for 35 years, coming just one year after the old Abe Lincoln School burned down. Her first year was spent traveling to different schools in the district.