iPads Transform Art at Penn Hills Elementary

When you walk into the art room at Penn Hills Elementary, you can feel that quiet electricity of discovery. Students lean over their iPads, sketching bold patterns and vivid colors inspired by Brazilian pop artist Romero Britto. The room hums with joy, focus, and the sound of learning made visible.

This isn’t just an art class. It’s a glimpse into the future of learning in Penn Hills, one where creativity meets technology, and imagination takes center stage.

“Romero Britto is who sparked my passion to become an art teacher,” says Mollie Smith, Penn Hills Elementary School Art Teacher, her eyes lighting up as she helps a student shade in a neon pumpkin. “To see the kids create this so easily and so beautifully was absolutely fantastic.”

The Britto-Inspired Digital Pumpkins project wasn’t just about design. It was about empowerment. Using iPads newly introduced to the elementary school, students explored how art, color, and digital tools intersect to tell a story. With every tap and swipe, they discovered that technology isn’t just for consumption, but also for creation.

“Moments like this are exactly why we brought iPads into our classrooms,” said Dr. John Mozzocio, Superintendent. “We want our students to see technology not as a device, but as a canvas, a tool for imagination, storytelling, and possibility.”

For many students, this was their first time creating digital art. But the results were remarkable: swirling patterns, radiant hues, and designs bursting with Britto’s trademark optimism and joy made visible on a screen.

The iPad rollout represents more than new devices; it’s part of a larger movement in Penn Hills to reimagine learning for the next generation. Each classroom becomes a studio, a lab, a workshop, a place where students build, design, explore, and express who they are.

“People don’t always get to see these moments,” Smith said. “But they’re happening here, every day. Kids discovering they can make something beautiful, that’s what Penn Hills is about.”

In Penn Hills, technology is no longer something that sits on a desk. It’s something that brings creativity to life.