HIGASFY

I am honored to endorse Beth Oakes and the HIGASFY series wholeheartedly!  I not only consider her a friend but a faithful colleague who pours her heart and soul into advancing the educational needs of today's student.

​ ELEMENTARY PRINCIPAL, OVILLA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL, OVILLA, TX

I had the privilege of being taught by Mrs. Beth when I was in 8th grade.  She was my favorite teacher.  I loved her class and learned so much, not only about art, but about believing in myself and what I can accomplish if I put my mind to it.  When I saw that she was starting this video series I almost jumped for joy.  I now have a son and he will get to learn art from the best art teacher I know.

HOMESCHOOLING MOM

I have had the privilege of having my son and grandson attend Mrs.

Beth’s classes at Ovilla Christian School and they loved the classes and

the encouragement that she gave to them! I have enjoyed knowing her

as a colleague during my own teaching years! I know firsthand

that she is an amazing teacher with a vitality and love for the subject

that is rare!! Her expertise is apparent in everything that she does.

CHEMISTRY TEACHER, WAXAHACHIE PRE

My students were extremely interested and engaged.  They kept wanting to see more due to her excitement and humor. By the end of the first video, they recognized and understood the difference in the following themes: war, bible, portrait, landscape and still life — yet, they were so entertained they did not realize they were learning.

ART TEACHER

Mrs. Beth was my daughter's art teacher in the 8th grade. My daughter came out of that art class with a confidence in her abilities that has impacted her ever since. She continues to follow her artistic instincts to think outside the box as an adult in all her endeavors and those of us around her continue to be blessed by her ability to create beauty.

PARENT

This woman is an amazing epicenter of knowledge. She teaches with finesse.

MOTHER OF 2 ADORING STUDENTS AND REALTOR

Mrs. Beth Oakes was my son's art teacher. She is extremely entertaining and fun. She will engage her students so intently that they will not even realize they are actually learning. Beth lives and loves art, therefore, her teaching is genuine and natural. She makes learning so enjoyable on a group level while also revealing each student's individual creative and artistic abilities. I highly recommend her video series!

PARENT

To be a student in Beth Oakes' art history class at Ovilla Christian School was to be transported into the world of the artist about whom she was teaching. She captured her students' attention with her stories and little-known details about the artist (which they LOVED)! Then they would use what they knew about that artist as well as the setting and context to understand his art. That is master teaching!

FORMER ELEMENTARY PRINCIPAL

Beth taught my three students at the Junior and High School level. Her incredible passion and excellence in teaching has changed who they are now as adults who appreciate and love the arts! As a Dad who enjoys spending time with these kids in art museums, I am forever indebted! 

7TH GRADE TEXAS HISTORY TEACHER; 8TH GRADE AMERICAN HISTORY TEACHER; DIRECTOR OF SAFETY AND SECURITY

HIGASFY was born out of Beth's original curriculum that she used with our OCS students.  Our school adopted and taught the Impressionist series in our elementary art classes here at Ovilla Christian this past spring of 2017.  Our students were highly engaged with the fun cartoon character as they listened intently to Mrs. Beth teach each interactive lesson.  We plan to implement HIGASfY with our elementary art program in the 2017-18 school year.

TEACHING COLLEAGUE

Beth Oakes is an outstanding art teacher who develops a deeper understanding of art history through engaging activities. Her creativity captures the students attention and builds a love for art. I taught with Beth for 14 years and saw how much the students loved her and her class. 

4TH & 5TH GRADE ENGLISH TEACHER

My children have both graduated from college in the past year, but they had the pleasure of having Beth Oakes as an art teacher in their elementary school years. We are a family that travels extensively, and when visiting art museums in Rome, St. Petersburg, and Washington, DC, my children taught me interesting facts about artists that they learned from Mrs. Oakes, and I had even taken art history classes in college! 

PARENT

While performing my duties as Admissions Director at Ovilla Christian School - my primary role is to tour prospective families around the school.  When Beth Oakes taught at OCS, the highlight of the tour would be a stop in the art room where Beth Oakes was teaching elementary students.  Mrs. Oakes had the students undivided attention as she taught with passion, enthusiasm, and energy.  The prospective families wanted their children in her class and we often lingered longer there than any other classroom.  Mrs. Oakes' love of art showed as she taught about different artists and then allowed the students to emulate the artists' work.  

She is a gifted teacher and talented artist.

ADMISSIONS DIRECTOR, OVILLA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

I love the way Beth Oakes teaches!  Not only can she teach young minds, she can teach older minds, as well, which I believe is more of a challenge.  On many occasions, Beth has put a canvas and paints in front of some of her teacher friends.  I can't tell you how many of us said, "We can't paint; we're not artists!"  But with Beth's amazing teaching ability, her patience and her easy to follow step-by-step instructions, we all ended the sessions thinking we were indeed artists! Now THAT'S a talented teacher!

K4 TEACHER

Mrs. Oakes is a gifted teacher.  Her passion for children and art shine through in her teaching.  My children would come home talking about Caravaggio or Alexander Calder with knowledge and enthusiasm!  Mrs. Oakes taught to children's strengths and bolstered their confidence.  As a mother would has had 4 children that were taught by Mrs. Oakes, I would highly recommend this CD, your children will benefit from Mrs Oakes passion and knowledge of art history, and her skill in communicating concepts to children.

RN, HOSPICE NURSE