American students make Obama mural from 2,420 dominoes

Washington, Jun 20 (ANI): A mural of US President Barack Obama has been created by students at Franklin Avenue Elementary School and nearby Westfield State College by using 2,420 dominoes.

The official unveiling of the mural, which has been called Obaminoes, took place on June 16 in the school cafeteria.

Julian F. Fleron, professor of mathematics at Westfield State, said the work is a based on a design by Robert A. Bosch, a mathematician at Ohio's Oberlin College, who created the mural's plans for Obama's inauguration.

"Bosch has many wonderful domino designs, including Abraham Lincoln and Marttin Luther King Jr, which have been made by many groups of schoolchildren," Fleron said.

"However, this Obaminoes installation is only the second of its kind in the world - and the first ever created by an elementary school," he explained.

A group of middle school students working after school in Shelby, Miss., also constructed the Obama mural in honour of his inauguration.

Fleron said that Obaminoes is the largest Bosch design in terms of the number of dominoes used.

It took 2,420 dominoes, 44 complete sets of double-nine dominoes to create the mural of the 44th president.

The mural, which will be on permanent display at the school, is 4-feet tall and almost 6.5-feet wide.

Fleron oversaw the project, along with Leslie Clark-Yvon, principal at the Franklin Avenue school and a former teacher-in-residence at the college.

The college's Division of Academic Affairs, Department of Education and several individual faculty and staff members at both schools also supported the project.

Several college students and the entire K-5 student body constructed the mural, working in small groups to make 55 individual sections.

"The Obaminoes mural is an excellent example of the college's primary mission at work - learning combined with community service," said Evan S. Dobelle, president of Westfield State.

"Everyone involved, from kindergarten students to the college faculty, expanded their mathematics skills and had fun in the process," he said.

"What is really amazing about this project was watching it all happen, listening to and taking part in the excitement of the children's learning," Clark-Yvon said.

"Every part of the work (even the challenges) brought a smile to the faces of everyone involved. Everyone said it was neat, awesome, cool. That is why we are teachers - the look of love of learning on children's faces.

"The discussions that went on around this project were incredible," she said, adding that they related not only to math, but also to social studies and art.

"I thought it was fun and it actually gave us hands-on experience instead of doing a lot of paperwork," fifth grade student Nathaniel Brady said.

"It helped me do fractions and stuff and practice adding together. And it was fun," 4th grade student Conlan Spinale added. (ANI)