Skip To Main Content

Origami Cranes – Bringing Hope and Healing to Our Community

Post RSS Feeds Subscribe to Post Alerts
Origami Cranes – Bringing Hope and Healing to Our Community

This past fall in art class, students learned about cranes and their cultural significance around the world. In Japan, origami cranes are symbols of hope and peace. An old Japanese folktale promises that anyone who folds 1,000 cranes will be granted a wish! This practice was popularized after World War II by the story of Sadako Sasaki. Communities often band together to fold 1,000 cranes for a shared purpose. At The Willows, origami paper was sent home with our DK thru 8th grade students. In art history, 3rd thru 8th graders learned about cranes and how to fold origami cranes in art class to create a community senbazuru, a group of 1,000 cranes, to promote hope, health, and healing for our community during this challenging time. Our diverse and inclusive community banded together and folded over 2,000 cranes!

The Willows WPA Co-Chairs, Taryn Condo and Lori Hashimoto, and art teachers Jean and Kristy, all played an integral part in the final installations of the cranes. There are three installations throughout campus. The spiraling care installation in the Middle School art room totals 1,000 cranes, the installation in the 3rd-5th grade building has around 850 cranes, and the remainder of the cranes are in the installation behind the front desk of The Willows entrance.

Middle School art teacher Jean Magers said, “It was so rewarding to see the kids delight in these gorgeous crane installations and then watch them realize that they had a part in making it. I love everything that it represents – beauty, hope, dreams, determination, and the power of community.”

Lower School art teacher Kristy Acero said, “I loved the collaboration aspect of this project and how the entire community was involved in some shape or form. The results are striking and loved the wow factor from the students!”

This school-wide community project exemplifies and highlights the cohesive, nurturing, and inclusive community we foster here at The Willows. The word “community” is indeed an intentional and integral part of our name.

Learn about The Willows Visual Arts Program Here

Explore More Tips for Parents

Post RSS Feeds Subscribe to Post Alerts
Guiding Growth: Teacher Mentoring
Guiding Growth: Teacher Mentoring

At The Willows, learning is a lifelong journey that extends beyond our classrooms and into every part of our community. Just as we nurture curiosity and creativity in our students, we also invest deeply in the growth of our teachers. One way this commitment comes to life is through our teacher mentoring program, which pairs educators with faculty members to foster collaboration, confidence, and professional fulfillment.

The Willows Recognized Among L.A.’s Best Private Schools
The Willows Recognized Among L.A.’s Best Private Schools

We are proud to share that The Willows Community School has been recognized by The Hollywood Reporter as one of Los Angeles’ Best Private Schools. For The Willows, this recognition reflects our long-standing commitment to a balanced yet demanding progressive education rooted in experiential learning and social values.

Forecasting Learning: How a New Weather Station Strengthens Science
Forecasting Learning: How a New Weather Station Strengthens Science

The Willows community is seeing science come to life, quite literally in the air around us. Thanks to funds raised during last year’s Jog-a-Thon, we have purchased a professional-grade weather station, the Davis Vantage Pro 2. This new device is more than just an exciting gadget, but a learning tool that constantly updates and deepens our integrated science curriculum, empowering students to explore our environment and climate through real data, observation, and discovery.

Celebrating 10 Years of RULER at The Willows
Celebrating 10 Years of RULER at The Willows

For the past decade, The Willows’ implementation of the RULER Approach has not only transformed how our students learn, but how our entire community understands, expresses, and values emotions. We recognize that emotions matter, and that healthy emotional regulation plays a vital piece in helping to cultivate children’s minds.

Struggle: Helping Children Grow Through Challenge
Struggle: Helping Children Grow Through Challenge

The Willows school-wide theme for the 2025-2026 school year is Struggle. Each day, we challenge students to uncover meaning and significance in the world around them and emphasize independence and courage in risk-taking. One of the most powerful ways children develop these skills is through something many of us instinctively want to protect them from: struggle.