Children sing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” using recycled instruments at the Korea Children’s Culture and Arts Center in Chungmu Art Hall, Seoul, Tuesday. / Korea Times photos by Shim Hyun-chul

By Kwon Mee-yoo

Everyone is a protagonist here. Fifteen children taking a preschool course at the Korea Children’s Culture and Arts Center (KCCAC) poured into their classroom in the Rose Room of the Chungmu Art Hall in central Seoul, Tuesday.

The KCCAC is a social enterprise dedicated to an educational theater program, and the Synthetic Art Program (SAP) is designed for six- and seven-year-old children to learn how to socialize before entering elementary school. Though the main program of KCCAC is drama, the SAP program integrates other forms of art such as music, drawing and activities to assist the preschoolers learning.

Two instructors — Koo Soo-hyun and Lim Seung-ah — led the children to the magical world of Bremen to form a band.

As they arrived, they hung clothing on a hanger and took off their socks.

“The SAP class teaches children how to socialize with each other, obey rules and express themselves through storytelling,” Han Hae-min of the KCCAC said. “Taking off their socks is a way to let children frolic around more freely.”

Tuesday’s class was to perform “The SAP Town Musicians,” based on the German folktale of “The Town Musicians of Bremen.”

Every step was carefully designed as a game to have the children concentrate their minds on the class.

First, students ran barefoot across the wooden-floored classroom to warm up. Their screams of excitement filled the room.

Children these days might not have such a comfortable place or the time to play around like in the SAP program, Han added.

They started off playing tag, once again running across the room in excitement. Each was eager to play the roles of tagger and chaser.

After warming up, the teachers read aloud “The Town Musicians of Bremen” and the students played another game expressing musical notes with their body. The feet were the lower “do,” the knees “re,” the hips “me” and so on.

The highlight of the class was the performance of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” using recycled instruments.

Divided into five groups, students held musical instruments such as large plastic bottles, small ones filled with grains to make rattling sounds and toy tops to create snapping sounds. They practiced twice and their third attempt was successful, everyone playing their own instrument and taking full pleasure in it.

At the end of the two-hour class, faces glowed with excitement.

Lee Mi-hee, co-president of the KCCAC, said the programs aim to let children express what they have inside in a healthy way.

“Creativity has become the keyword of children’s education and most educational programs are designed to develop creative power. However, kids these days lack sociability as they tend to do things individually,” Lee said. “Playacting is not something you can do alone. Our goal is to encourage sociability of children through group work.”



“For instance, the SAP program lets children ‘play.’ At the orientation, we tell the parents not to expect their children to ‘learn’ anything here,” she said.

She emphasized that it is different from just spending time in the playground. “Combining music, art and play, we provide a whole-person education,” Lee said.

The KCCAC will not expand their regular courses. “We have classes Monday through Friday and occasional weekend art field trips. Other than educational programs, we also stage performances for children or the elderly and programs for the underprivileged. Instead of extending further, we will enrich our internal substance,” Lee said.




Playing ‘madanggeuk’

Though the KCCAC does not put much effort in promoting the programs, word of mouth brings more and more student to the center.

Some who finish the SAP course return to the KCCAC to take its dramatic play or “madanggeuk” (Korean traditional outdoor theater) class.

The dramatic play course is offered on two levels — for elementary school students from first grade to third grade and from fourth grade to sixth grade.

The madanggeuk course features Korean traditional songs and musical instruments. The students play traditional instruments such as the buk, (large drum), and janggu, (double-headed drum). They also write lyrics to folk songs from their imagination.

At the end of the 24-week program, the students stage a performance based on their experience. Parents as well as the students fully enjoy the fruits of their effort at the show.

“The teacher gathers information during class and writes a script of what the students like, what they are interested in and what they are good at. Ultimately, the children perform a summary of their half year in front of the audience,” Lee said.

Art camp for children

Joo Sung-hye, a professor at Korea National University of Arts, also offers an art camp for children with her students.

During the three-day camp at the National Youth Center of Korea in Cheonan earlier this week, some 170 elementary school students experienced a composite art program such as making shadow pictures and drawing their feelings after listening to the music.

“I wanted to teach my students to communicate with the audience and local community through this program. Being cooped up in one’s workroom is not everything for an artist,” Joo said.

The professor also wishes to ultimately create a model for synthetic art education.

“Current art education takes off points if the student does not know that Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 is called ‘Fate,’” she said. “This kind of education cannot develop creativity.”

Joo’s goal is to help children enjoy art, regardless of the genre.

The Korea Foundation for the Advancement of Science and Creativity, co-organizer of the camp, said they will develop this program as a nationwide nurturing of talent by university students.

meeyoo@koreatimes.co.kr