The house that Courtney York has built cannot be inhabited. The walls are structurally flawed and the foundation is sure to give way. He built a church using similar material.

Courtney is not a master builder. He's just an 8-year-old kid who is part of a group of young children learning to plan and build a city of their own using cardboard boxes.

"I made a church out of a milk carton and a house out of a white box and a blue plastic cup," said Courtney, a third-grade student at Lucy Campbell Elementary.

Eight-year-old Kylin Watt built a gas station with boxes but needed his instructor's help to finish. A little tape helped the third-grade student at Balmoral Elementary hold the pieces together.
Courtney and Kylin are among about 30 academically at-risk students ages six to 16 learning to improve their literacy skills through a 12-week, three-phased program called "Literacy Through the Arts."

The curriculum is based on the life and works of Gordon Parks, an African-American photographer, musician, poet, novelist, journalist, activist and film director. Parks died in 2006.

"We're trying to get the kids to see that there was someone who looked like them who went through the struggles of life and still made it through," said Earlice Taylor, the program's executive director. "We used his life and works as a model that kids can learn."

Parks was the youngest of 15 children who refused to languish in poverty. Taylor said Parks' determination to succeed can motivate the kids in the program who may be just as impoverished.

Classes are held each Saturday for five hours at Glenview Community Center in Midtown. Vocal music, drama/dance, photography and visual art are taught by local artists. An education consultant is teaching basic reading.

Jalyn Gatewood, 8, didn't know anything about the program until a neighbor's grandmother urged Jalyn's mother to sign her up. Her neighbor, 8-year-old William Kincaide, had already signed up for the program.

William, a third-grade student at Idlewild Elementary, didn't give his secrets to community building. Instead, he listened intently to Alicia Cobbs, who projected scenes of Memphis on a wall last Saturday and asked the students to point to a person, building or object that they could recognize.

Many of them pointed to Mayor Willie Herenton and Mayor A C Wharton in a photograph together and called out their names. They also recognized some government buildings.

"We're here to teach young people about city planning and concepts," said Cobbs, an employee with the Memphis & Shelby County Division of Planning and Development. "They will put a city together from boxes next weekend to enhance their knowledge of the arts."

City planning is a concept that children aren't familiar with, said Cobb, one of two facilitators from OPD teaching a special class called Mock City, an instructional program that teaches students how to replicate the community with boxes.

Mock City is part of the culminating activities on Aug. 30.

Of the various phases of the literacy program, instructor Rainey Harris said the dance and drama class helps students tap into their creative side to enhance their literary skills.

"They also learn public speaking and how to interpret words to songs," said Harris, who graduated in 1997 from Tennessee State University with a degree in communication and theatre.

“The kids are receptive, especially the younger ones. They are very energetic. They were shy at first, but I can see the growth,” said Harris, who is trying to build the students’ confidence and self-esteem.

According to a syllabus, Harris is introducing students to eight fundamental movement patterns that human beings from eight to 12 use to develop eye convergence, reading and sensory motor skills.

Noted artist and sculptor Nelson Smith is trying to get the students in his class to look at art and how it affects their lives. He said their personality is reflected in their artwork.

“Some of them see things in rectangles and squares. That separates the ones who are literal and the ones who are visual,” he said. “When you mention art, they get excited. I guess because they want to express their inner feelings.”

Reading is the cornerstone of academic excellence and a self-esteem builder, said Dr. Brenda Taylor, an education consultant. She said the goal is to make reading fun, interesting and exciting for the children.

Children have basic needs that need to be fulfilled, she said. “One of those needs is positive relationships. The other is self-esteem. We tried to build on self-esteem to make them feel that they can succeed in what they attempt to do.”

In order to be a successful reader, a large vocabulary is needed, said Dr. Taylor. “In reading, I taught vocabulary and word-attack skills (breaking words down into syllables). Now they’re able to attack words together.”

Dr. Taylor is teaching basic phonics as well. And with a hands-on approach, she said, the children are able to recite the beginning and ending sound of words. This process, she added, is helping the children study Parks’ novels and poetry.

“We’re showing children how they can use the same philosophy that Gordon Parks had,” Dr. Taylor said. “That was the premise for this program.”

The goal is to use the model of “Literacy Through the Arts” for other community-based efforts, she said. With Dr. Kriner Cash at the helm of Memphis City Schools, “it will help his efforts to improve the school system.”

“It’s going to take a village,” she said.

“Literacy Through the Arts” is sponsored by Glenview Community Development Partners, Inc., and funded in part by a State of Tennessee Enhancement Grant and the Tennessee Cultural Heritage Preservation Society.

For more information about the program, contact Earlice Taylor at (901) 725-5275 or (901) 292-9470.