April 27, 2026
Important Dates…
Monday, May 4: Overfield Summer Camp registration opens, 8 a.m. on the Overfield website.
Monday, May 11-Friday, May 15: Week-long residency with The Guitar Man, Jim McCutcheon.
Thursday, May 14: OFP Picnic, 5:30 p.m. on the Overfield Playground. Concert with visiting artist, Jim McCutcheon, 6:30 p.m. on the Overfield Playground.
Thursday, May 21: Primary Class End of Year Celebration, 6 p.m. in the Gathering Place.
Friday, May 22: Last Day of School for the 2025-2026 school year.
Monday, June 8-Friday, June 12: Summer Camp Week One: Fee, Fi, Fo–Fantasy Fun, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Monday, June 15-Friday, June 19: Summer Camp Week Two: Games and Adventures, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Monday, June 22-Friday, June 26: Summer Camp Week Three: Splish, Splash, Splosh–Water Week, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Insights from the Studio
The studio has been an especially damp place for the last month of school as several classes have immersed themselves in the art of papermaking. Buckets and pitchers and vats full of water are a necessary part of the process. Towels must be wrung out repeatedly and hung to dry. All of this labor is worth it for the delight the children experience in exploring this ancient technology.
For those who’ve never tried it, the process can be relatively simple. We start by making a slurry with water and some form of plant. This could be anything from dried leaves and petals to scraps from the paper shredder to pressed cotton sheets from a papermaking supplier, and those are just a few examples! The children enjoy tearing up the materials and adding them to the glass pitcher, choosing what colors and textures to add next, and of course, watching it whir together with the push of a blender button. Someone often says, “It looks like a smoothie!” The possibilities truly are endless. The result is always a little bit of a surprise, which is a great part of the fun.
The next step brings its own sensory delights: the slurry is added to a bin of water. The pulp forms billowing clouds as it’s poured in. The concoction practically calls out to young hands, inviting them to touch, swirl, and sift.
Next a screen and frame, called a deckle and mold, are dipped in. The pulp stays on the screen while water streams through and back into the bin. The pulp is transferred to an absorbent cloth to pull out more water, and still more moisture is pulled out with a sponge.
Finally, we put the wet paper up on a window, to dry in the sun. Children return in a day or two to see how the paper has transformed once again, now that it’s dry.
There are many steps to this process, and the children are eager to practice and master them. Those that catch the papermaking bug have to be encouraged to leave to return to class at some point, with promises that they can return another day. I’ve found that those who are less interested in practicing the dipping and drying techniques are eager to help collect extra materials, especially filling the water bucket with the hose and collecting fresh leaves and flower petals to sprinkle into the slurry.
If you’re looking for something fun to try together as a family this summer, I encourage you to give papermaking a try. It’s pretty simple once you get started, and it provides a magical way to engage with some of the ordinary materials we encounter every day.
Elizabeth Perry – Atelierista
Thank you to everyone who attended the 22nd annual Spring Night Hike! Our 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade children did a phenomenal job teaching everyone about some of the animals that call Overfield home. What a lovely evening!
The Overfield organic veggie garden is coming along nicely, and we know it’s going to grow like crazy this summer! The children have been busy amending soil, planting, weeding, and tasting the goodies that have popped up so far! By August, it will be a beautiful space in which children can learn and snack when they return to school.
We are looking for families to sign up for a Sunday-Saturday shift to help keep our garden thriving and producing throughout the summer. Below you’ll find a link to sign up to help keep our garden amazing all summer long.
Expectations are to weed, search for insects on plants, groundhog openings in the fence, and make sure the garden is getting watered. Volunteers usually stop in a few times during their scheduled week.
Overfield Garden Summer Volunteer Signup
Thank you, Robin Ramsey
We are thrilled to be welcoming the Guitar Man, Jim McCutcheon, as a visiting artist the week of May 11th! Many thanks to the Ohio Arts Council for helping to provide this opportunity, where the children will get to learn all about the guitar, as well as about stringed instruments from all over the world.
There will be an outdoor concert with Jim on the main playground on Thursday, May 14th, at 6:30 p.m., following the OFP End of Year Picnic. We hope to see you all there!
