McLean Art Teacher Finds Growing Success With Zoom Classes

MCLEAN, VA — McLean art teacher Pamela Saunders may not be able to see her students in person during the pandemic, but her growing virtual class offerings might be just as rewarding, if not more. After all, the teacher who students call "Miss Pam" can see all of their faces and what they're doing during class on Zoom.

Saunders, a mom of two who has taught in McLean since 2004, typically teaches classes at Brooksfield School, Chesterbrook Elementary, Franklin Sherman Elementary and Kent Gardens Elementary. But once the pandemic hit, she moved from the classroom to Zoom so students could continue art lessons while staying home.

"It became more normal to be solitary, but it doesn't feel solitary for these children," she said about her art lessons.

Since the spring, Saunders has seen over 600 registrations, and she's had 47 published classes. Her eight to 12 week sessions include weekly classes for children. Class sizes are small so she can work individually with students. The "art hive" classes are designed for ages 5 to 9, while "art mastermind" classes are for ages 9 to 13. Each set of art classes comes with an art kit with the supplies needed for each class.

A major perk of conducting classes online is being able to teach students Saunders couldn't otherwise teach in person. She said one of her students who took in-person classes got her cousin from Alabama to joint the virtual sessions.

"I've just been really trying to bring that sense of community and connection into my art classes," she told Patch.

Along with holding virtual classes, Saunders helped with a project featured during the inauguration. Saunders was invited to be one of the group leaders for an Inauguration Kolam, which became America's largest collaborative kolam. Kolam is a form of Indian art centered around geometric patterns and is meant to give off a welcoming feel. The Inauguration Kolam is made up of 1,800 handcrafted-cardboard tiles to form a 2,500-square-foot groundcover.

As a group leader, Saunders had hoped to get 30 students involved but instead found 50 students and parents interested. That included students from her art classes from places like London, California, South Carolina, Connecticut, and of course, McLean.

The kolam was meant to be installed outside the U.S. Capitol for the inauguration, but that was postponed due to heightened security. However, the inaugural committee did feature the project in a video, and her students were excited to see their work.

"I think that was really exciting to a lot of people, and it brought out a lot of my students and their families to participate," said Saunders.

Saunders has also art camps, run birthday parties with virtual art lessons, art lessons to help Brownies and Girl Scouts get their badges, and family art nights. By participating in a family art class, children can interact with multiple generations of family such as grandparents they haven't seen during the pandemic.

Parents have told Saunders the art lessons give children confidence and keep them engaged. Sometimes, it gives them something to talk about at the dinner table or a project to try with the family on their own time.

"It gives them something to look forward to. It gives them structure in their day," said Saunders. "It allows them to pursue their interests."

As Saunders continues teaching, she's also been asked by organizations to conduct summer programs. Even when she returns to teach in-person classes at schools, she plans to continue the virtual offerings.

"I love still being able to teach my students who have moved away," she said.

For more information on classes, visit www.youngatartwithmisspam.com.