BUENA PARK : Happiness Is an Art for These Pupils

Fourth-grader John Woods wore a large grin as he smeared his hands, covered in red and blue paint, on the sheet of paper on his desk. He was drawing a fish.

In the next room, sixth-grader Cassandra Sanchez, 11, colored a parrot using bright pastels. “It’s fun. You learn interesting things with art,” she said shyly.

John and Cassandra attend two classes at Gordon H. Beatty School where the study of art is a primary focus.

The work of these special education students adorns the walls and hangs from the ceilings in the classrooms of teachers Georgia Haxton and Michele Mukanos. Blue ribbons dangle from some of the work, and trophies are displayed on countertops.

Because the students have learning disabilities and face difficulties expressing themselves, communicating or understanding academic concepts, art is a creative outlet that allows them to excel in the classroom, Haxton said.

In the less-structured world of art, they can more freely give their own interpretations, she said.

Two of Haxton’s students, fifth-grader Brichette Belthius, 11, and fourth-grader David Micklos, 9, proudly showed their artwork. “It makes me happy because I’ve accomplished,” David said, unpretentiously pointing to his drawings and ceramic pieces.

The students work in a variety of media, including clay, plaster of Paris, paint, pastels and watercolors. They also use construction paper, yarn and recycled materials such as milk cartons and old fabric.

For the past seven years, the teachers have been entering students’ art in contests, with award-winning results. The awards help generate self-confidence and pride, the teachers said.

“The kids get so excited when they see their stuff up,” said Mukanos, who teaches students in the second, third and fourth grades.

Some students recently entered and won first-place awards in both a city-sponsored art contest and the 1993 Youth Expo at the Orange County Fairgrounds. Their work will also be entered in the Orange County Fair’s youth contest.

“It helps them to show off . . . and they really get proud,” said Lydia Ortiz, an aide who teaches art to Haxton’s fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders.

“They really can achieve something with it--they can excel in an art project and win a ribbon,” said Helen Bailey, an aide in Mukanos’ classroom, who also teaches art. “It’s good therapy when they can achieve at something like this. It’s really special.”