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Darien resident Dre Towey opened JAM’s first location on Water Street in South Norwalk in 2010. The center’s concept combines visual art and music for a nurturing education experience for children.
“JAM embraces mistakes, encourages students to color outside of the lines and teaches them how to turn an ‘Oops’ into a ‘Wow,’” their website says.
The new space in Darien, located in the Little Red Schoolhouse, will host all of JAM’s regularly scheduled classes. The sessions include morning and early-afternoon classes for preschool-age kids and their parents, and an after-school program for older kids each Thursday.
The early-childhood classes, Jamboree and Fam Jam, take in two- and three-year-olds to “explore light, art and music. The Thursday afternoon class for 4-to-9-year-olds focuses on a mixed media stations, song and story.
“The Schoolhouse location offers the big JAM experience on a smaller scale with intimate classes in a charming space,” said JAM’s Jennifer Jacobs in an e-mail.
The South Norwalk location will stay open, but the space will now focus on JAM’s birthday party packages. Towey and her staff have designed planned parties for a wide age range, including the dinosaur-themed “Prehistoric JAM,” the glow-in-the-dark-themed “Art in the Dark,” and even an option for adult fundraisers.
JAM’s original space is also available for rent for custom parties. The Water Street location includes an open floor plan, wiring for sound and TV and a small stage for renters to use as they see fit.
Towey’s staff also includes “Complex Artist” who studied childhood education in Germany and wins students over with “his playful nature, his childlike attitude and his multiple tattoos,” according to the owner. Jasmin Roberson, who once ran the children’s section of Norwalk’s Barnes & Noble store, is also on staff.
“Her positive energy and sense of story are unsurpassable,” Towey says of Roberson on JAM's website.
JAM is located at 140 Water St. in Norwalk and 21 Tokeneke Road in Darien. For more information, visit their website.
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