PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Students at South Philadelphia's George W. Nebinger Elementary School had the honor of designing all of the ornaments on Pennsylvania's official Christmas tree in Washington, D.C.
Nebinger was selected by the state Department of Education to create the designs for the ornaments decorating Pennsylvania's tree, which is among 58 state, district and territory trees that will surround the National Christmas Tree outside the White House.
Leslie Grace, Nebinger's art teacher, presented her students with state icons they could choose to draw, such as the LOVE statue, the Liberty Bell, the bridges in Pittsburgh – or Pennsylvania’s state bird.
"They were all like, 'What's this weird, ugly peacock thing?'" Grace recalled. "And I'm like, 'It's beautiful. It's a ruffed grouse. They're in the forest!' So it was really exciting for them to get to experience something outside the city just through the art that they were making."
Grace, who is also the president of the Pennsylvania Art Education Association, said one second grader didn't hesitate to pick his design.
"He's a little history buff," she told KYW Newsradio. "It's the cutest thing ever. And when he saw the picture of Washington crossing the Delaware, he said, 'That's the one for me!'"
Grace chose 17 designs to submit for Pennsylvania's tree. "I did take all of the designs including the ones that didn't get submitted and I just hung them up on the first floor of the school. I made a little basic hemlock tree-looking cutout and glued those to the front of it," she said.
The national tree display can be viewed by the public from December 4 to New Year's Day.
Related
