Our Story
The Atelier stems from our love of art, music, children, and education. We seek to bring the joy of learning to young children and families within our community! We believe in the power of learning through the fine arts and have designed our programs to be a hands on creative curriculum that integrates all learning with a strong focus in art and music and the creative/learning process.
Kara holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and a Master of Education in Art Education from the University of Missouri. She has taught preschool and elementary children for over 13 years in Columbia, MO, Blacksburg, Virginia and Toronto, Ontario. While in Virginia she was lucky enough to teach at a Reggio Emilia inspired research and laboratory school on the campus of Virginia Tech. She fell in love with the Reggio approach which naturally mimics her own philosophies about childhood education. She has attended Reggio Emilia workshops and conferences and looks forward to continuing her education through continued involvement in the Reggio community. Her dream to create a beautiful, nurturing environment for children to learn, experiment, discover, create, laugh, and grow has come true through The Atelier!
Co-owner/director, lead preschool/primary school teacher, & Let's Create ART Together instructor.
Co-owner/director, lead preschool/primary school teacher, & Let's Create ART Together instructor.
Benjamin is a life long scholar, educator, and musician. He grew up in Columbia, a son of two music educators. I guess you could say that he has music education in his blood. He is a certified instructor in the Orff-Schulwerk method of preschool music education, and loves sharing his passion of music with children. Benjamin is a multi-instrumentalist and voice specialist who has toured the United States and produced albums of original work. He also holds a PhD in Earth Sciences from the University of Toronto. When he isn't "Mr. Benjamin" at The Atelier, he is "Dr. Hook" an instructor in the School of Natural Resources at MU. His wide range of knowledge and experience brings so many learning opportunities to the classroom.
Co-owner/director, lead preschool/primary school teacher, Let's Create MUSIC Together instructor, private & small group music lessons.
Co-owner/director, lead preschool/primary school teacher, Let's Create MUSIC Together instructor, private & small group music lessons.
We are fortunate to have had the opportunity to move back to Columbia, with our two young sons, to be near family and friends. We love being a part of this community and want to give children a place to learn, explore, discover, and create.
We hope to see you at The Atelier!
Kara and Benjamin Hook
We hope to see you at The Atelier!
Kara and Benjamin Hook
you will also find these lovely teachers
spreading their joy of learning at The Atelier...
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Jenn Book Haselswerdt (Ms. Jenn) received her BA in Theatre from The American University and her MA in Theatre History and Criticism, Dramaturgy focus, from The Catholic University of America. She loves teaching children of all ages creative drama and music; writing and facilitating curriculum for arts-integrated lessons, and creating plays for and with young actors. She is also a certified yoga instructor and enjoys integrating creative drama and yoga in classes for young people. In addition to her work with children, Jenn is also a dramaturg who has worked locally with actors, directors, playwrights, and audiences in Columbia. Assistant preschool teacher, Story Time Yoga Together & Artful Yoga instructor, |
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Brianna Casey (Ms. Brianna) holds a Bachelor degree in Art Education from the University of Missouri. She has worked many years with preschool aged children as a lead teacher and assistant director. Brianna is passionate about providing children with a creative learning environment that allows them to organically build skills by working together, expressing their ideas, and reflecting on their experiences. In her free time, you can often find her in the ceramics studio or the local community theatre! Assistant preschool/primary school teacher. |
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Lacy Karnes (Ms. Lacy) loves being a part of The Atelier community! Currently, she is working toward a Bachelor degree in Education and enjoying her time assisting in the preschool classrooms while engaging with children, and helping to facilitate learning opportunities. Preschool classroom assistant |
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