Deer Park teacher recognized by art Web site

Whether they’re learning to draw wavy lines or making letters from homemade Play-Doh, the kindergartners in Suzy Morey Menke’s class at Deer Park School have a day immersed in the arts.

Buoyed by Menke’s effervescent personality, the children are all smiles they experience the building blocks of a solid education.

Menke grew up in Glacier National Park. Her father, Bob Morey, was a ranger there. After graduating from Columbia Falls High School, she went on to get teaching degrees in secondary education and then elementary education from Eastern Washington University.

Menke started teaching at Deer Park School in 1982, splitting most of her career between kindergarten and first grade. It’s an age group she loves.

“They’re so ready to go and learn,” she said last week. “The hallmark of a 5-year-old is they want to please adults. You can see it in their faces. They’re OK with who they are. They haven’t developed the social pressures. They’re ready to go and be happy.”

And happy kids seem to rub off on this teacher — Menke’s smile is contagious. But after 30 years at Deer Park, she said this one will be her last as a teacher. It’s time to retire.

Menke was recently recognized with an Artsonia Leadership Award from the Artsonia Web site. The site allows teachers and students to share their artwork on the Internet with family and friends and the rest of the world, if they so desire. Students can form “fan clubs” of their work, and the site provides art lessons for teachers.

“Each student has an electronic studio,” Menke explained.

Artsonia Web recently ranked Deer Park and Menke’s students No. 7 in Montana, and Menke was recognized for her outstanding leadership during the 2011-12 school year. Menke appreciates the recognition, but also notes how the site helped her.

“They have an amazing catalog of art lessons,” she said. “It’s a great resource.”