April 2016 - Parks & Recreation - 12

Community Center
Art Contest Connects Kids to
Nature Like Nothing Else
By Richard J. Dolesh

rt in the parks is a new avenue for our parks to educate kids and
interpret nature, " says Chris Holmes, director of interpretation
and outreach services for Texas Parks and Wildlife, about the Texas State Parks annual children's nature art contest. The annual
event, conducted in cooperation with the Get to Know contest of the Wild
Neighbor Society, kicks off nationally May 1, 2016.
The Get to Know contest invites kids
" to create original works of art, writing,
photography, videography and music
inspired by nature. " The contest runs
through November 1, 2016. All entries
are submitted online and kids and students can immediately view their artwork in an online gallery open to all.
Prizes - including art supplies, cameras, subscriptions to the National Wildlife Federation's Ranger Rick magazine
and more - are awarded at the conclusion of the contest to the top entries.
The Get to Know contest was
founded in 1999 in Canada with the

support of internationally known
wildlife artist Robert Bateman. One
of the original purposes of the contest was to encourage kids to learn
the names of the common plants,
birds and wildlife they encountered
every day. The contest has expanded
beyond drawings, paintings and photography to include original writing,
poetry, video and even music.
This contest has proven an ideal way
for park and recreation agencies to
develop creative new ways to connect
kids to nature and art. " The goal of the
contest for us has been to get kids into

A participant in the Texas Nature Art in Parks program has a great time creating art
from nature.
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our parks, either as groups or with their
families. When we get people to the
park, the park speaks for itself, " says
Holmes. " People realize that parks are
very special places. " Holmes noted that
some parks offer a bilingual program in
Spanish and English. " We try to make
sure that language is not a barrier to
participation. "
The contest now draws almost
5,000 entries nationally, and in recent
years, the number of entries inspired
by wildlife and nature seen in parks
has grown dramatically. Many park
and recreation agencies are developing programs around the contest, and
some have even gone so far as to hold
their own contests that feed into the
national event. In addition to Texas
Parks and Wildlife, East Bay Regional Park Authority, Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC) and other park
agencies have developed annual children's nature art contests and participate in Get to Know.
The Department of Parks and
Recreation of M-NCPPC in Prince
George's County, Maryland, has
developed an extensive children's
nature art program based on the
Get to Know contest and now engages kids in summer playgrounds,
afterschool programs and Extreme
Teens programs to create their own
nature art for their contest. Anthony Nolan, special projects division
chief, says, " Once you bring awareness of the natural world to kids,
it really sparks their curiosity. It is

April 2016 - Parks & Recreation

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