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Black Stallion Literacy Project
Marion County’s first-grade students experience the joys of reading, thanks to horses. By SHANNA BELLINGHAM AND SUMMER BEST
“It looks like Little Black!” an excited little boy exclaimed. harmony of “oohs” and “ahs” from 20 first-graders filled the lobby of Hammett Bowen Jr. Elementary School the morning of March 23. It took only a few minutes for Angie Draper to have their undivided attention. She began with a blank piece of paper and a black marker; within seconds she transformed a square into a horse. Draper, 80, is known for her exquisite horse paintings, many of which adorn the walls of The Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ and Owners’ Association building. Wellknown portraits there include Affirmed (the last horse to win the Triple Crown in 1978) Precisionist, Needles and Rough N’ Tumble. Arguably, Draper’s most recognized pieces are the book covers for the original Walter Farley novels: “The
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Black Stallion and The Girl,” “The Black Stallion Challenged,” “The Black Stallion’s Ghost,” and “Man O’ War.” Draper’s message to the first-graders at Hammett Bowen in March was to demonstrate how images are words, during a lesson in The Black Stallion Literacy Project. “I like to share the common subject,” Draper said. “If they like the story and my drawings, I like to show them. Horses are magnetic…majestic. I think if illustrations in books were a magnet for me to read, it will be the same for them.” The Black Stallion Literacy Project is a public schoolbased operation to encourage elementary students in reading by introducing horses as a learning tool. The BSLP was officially established in 1999 by Walter Farley’s son, Tim Farley, and Mark Miller, creator and owner of Arabian Nights Dinner Attraction in Kissimmee. “The reading project is important for children. Action invites them in,” Draper said. “If they are interested in horses