Expert instructors from Pisces School of Dive had kids in the water, learning the basics. At Festival, we don't TALK about scuba diving, we GO scuba diving in the high school pool!
Marbled Paper
Rich colors in swirling patterns? Oh yeah! Artist Ashley Rehler taught kids to make their own marbled paper using Ebru, the traditional Turkish paper marbling technique.
Circus Arts
Instructors from Roc City Circus taught kids how to swing on an aerial hammock, hang from a hoop, balance on a Rolla Bolla, walk a tight wire and more!
Paper Flowers
Create beautiful flowers from paper and wire? You bet! Fiber artist Pamela Frame shared her incredible skills at Festival for the first time.
TV Studio Production
Led by the Brighton High School Morning Show crew, kids learned how to operate cameras, mixers, lights and recorders to produce their own live program in a real TV studio.
Music and Sound Exploration
Jim Dewitt and Travis Rankin from the Rochester Music Lab brought an incredible collection of modular synthesizers and music recording software to Festival for the first time, so that kids could experiment with music and sounds.
Knitting Creations
In a one-on-one lesson with an experienced knitter, kids learned the fundamentals of knitting. Everyone went home with needles, yarn and a project in process.
Emoji Cookies
Julene Gilbert and Julie Kashtan helped kids turn plain cookies into their favorite emojis using basic cookie decorating techniques. Tasty fun for everyone!
SCUBA Diving
Expert instructors from Pisces School of Dive had kids in the water, learning the basics. At Festival, we don't TALK about scuba diving, we GO scuba diving in the high school pool!
Marbled Paper
Rich colors in swirling patterns? Oh yeah! Artist Ashley Rehler taught kids to make their own marbled paper using Ebru, the traditional Turkish paper marbling technique.
Circus Arts
Instructors from Roc City Circus taught kids how to swing on an aerial hammock, hang from a hoop, balance on a Rolla Bolla, walk a tight wire and more!
Paper Flowers
Create beautiful flowers from paper and wire? You bet! Fiber artist Pamela Frame shared her incredible skills at Festival for the first time.
TV Studio Production
Led by the Brighton High School Morning Show crew, kids learned how to operate cameras, mixers, lights and recorders to produce their own live program in a real TV studio.
Music and Sound Exploration
Jim Dewitt and Travis Rankin from the Rochester Music Lab brought an incredible collection of modular synthesizers and music recording software to Festival for the first time, so that kids could experiment with music and sounds.
Knitting Creations
In a one-on-one lesson with an experienced knitter, kids learned the fundamentals of knitting. Everyone went home with needles, yarn and a project in process.
Emoji Cookies
Julene Gilbert and Julie Kashtan helped kids turn plain cookies into their favorite emojis using basic cookie decorating techniques. Tasty fun for everyone!
Pause
Play
Previous
Next
Description
This annual event is an educational "fun day" for Brighton students in grades 3 through 8. Each year, roughly 700 students participate in almost 70 workshops led by members of the community. Most presenters are adults, but several workshops are led by students or clubs from Brighton High School.
This year's mind-boggling array of topics includes returning favorites such as Chocolate Explosion, Fencing, Cupcake Decorating, Circus Arts, Mini Gem Tree, Pretzel Making, and Your Day in Court. For 2025, the lineup includes exciting new entries such as Rock 101, Build Your Own Space Rover, Felt Succulents, and Hands-On Robotics. Want the whole story? Click here to download the Idea Catalog in PDF form!
When
Saturday, March 1, 2025
Where
Brighton High School
Format
Three sessions of 50-minute workshops. While most workshop presenters lead three sessions, some choose to lead only one or two. Workshops can be limited in size or restricted to a specific age group if the presenter wishes. In addition, the Festival committee and the school district collaborate to provide volunteer helpers, supplies and audiovisual equipment as required.
Sponsor
The Festival of Ideas is sponsored by Brighton Central Parent-Teacher-Student Association, but is not a PTSA fund-raiser. Most of our presenters volunteer their time, and the registration fee ($5 per student) is used to pay event costs.
Festival could not happen without the generous support we receive from the Brighton Central School District, Wegmans, and the Pisces School of Dive.
The Festival of Ideas committee is composed of Brighton parents and community members. The committee is chaired by Martha Sciremammano. Working on Festival is good clean fun! If you'd like to join the committee, please call Martha at 746-6818, or send her e-mail at marthascire@gmail.com.
About six weeks before Festival, registration materials are distributed at FRES and TCMS. The packet comes home in kids' backpacks, so parents are asked to watch carefully for its arrival!
Kids read the Idea Catalog and pre-register for the six workshops that most appeal to them using a registration form included in the packet. If a student is registering for SCUBA Diving, his or her parents must complete and sign the included SCUBA Permission Form.
NOTE:
The registration deadline has been changed to WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29. The deadline date printed on the Idea Catalogs and registration forms that went home in backpacks is INCORRECT, but the deadline date on materials you download from this website is correct. Thank you for understanding!
The Festival committee assigns each student to three workshops, based on space availability and other constraints. The kids receive their assignments — a very exciting moment! — on the day of the Festival.
Volunteers Needed!
Parents and friends, adults and teens are invited to join the fun. If you can help out for an hour or two — or for the entire afternoon — please fill out our Volunteer Sign-Up Form, that comes home along with our registration materials.
Want to get a little feel for Festival? Visit the 2024 Photo Album!
Our photos this year — over 400 photos in all! — came to us courtesy of Dan Goldman (BCSD Communication Coordinator), Eric Gruner (BCSD Digital Media and Video Production), Lance Mitchell, and Wendy Walsh.
Festival in the News
BCSD videographer Eric Gruner provided a great feel for the event with this video detailing 2016's Festival of Ideas:
Additional settings for Safari Browser.
