Pre-AP Art I classes embarked on a project where they created a clay sculpture that doubles as a whistle, combining their creativity with physics.

“We wanted to do a 3D sculptural type of project in clay, and make a musical instrument or whistle that would be functional as well as decorative,” art teacher Pernie Fallon said. “There’s a lot of physics that goes into this. You have to have the air blow through at a certain angle at a certain force, and then the size of the bowl determines if the pitch is higher or lower.”

Some of the students creations ranged from animals to mythical creatures to actual musical instruments.

“I did a polar bear because the whistle reminded me of the wind, so it reminded me of a snowstorm,” sophomore Sunyoung Yun said. “ It was hard and I was surprised it actually managed to make a sound.”

This is the first year art students made whistles in class and it may become an ongoing tradition.

“I wanted the the kids to have a keepsake or a memento from the class,” Fallon said. “I think the kids really had fun and liked doing it. I was thinking we might do it every year, so they can have a collection.”