Inspiring Creativity
Building Character
Growing Community
Inspiring Creativity
Building Character
Growing Community

Residencies & Workshops

Miss Fiddle plays for students at Hobart School

Philosophy

Whether a child decides to follow the path of an artist, a scientist, a homemaker or any of the infinite number of options that make for a successful and well-lived life, what matters is that they learn to feel good about themselves and empowered by their creativity. Our arts-based social-emotional learning programs allow children to explore who they are, discover their gifts and take ownership of the creative power that lies within them so that they can follow their dreams and live a successful, healthy life.

 

We seek partner schools whose principals and teachers believe in the power of the arts and the importance of social-emotional learning to enhance academic learning.

Design

Residency Structure and Content: Social-emotional learning is embedded within an arts framework designed to impact children, parents, teachers and overall school culture. By following children from transitional kindergarten through third grade and engaging parents and teachers, we have the greatest impact on a child’s development in their formative years.

All programs are based on the Visual and Performing Arts standards for the State of California Common Core Standards for Language Arts and the National Core Standards. Each program links with core subjects and connects the art form with a universal principle which applies to children’s everyday life experiences. Workshops are built upon an “anchor work”, an artistic work, which propels an exploration into the art form itself, and creates an entrance to the enduring understanding which is revealed throughout the creative process.

Enduring and recurring themes, called “secrets of the heart,” are presented in each residency and build upon what children have learned in the previous year. Children learn to sign each “secret” using American Sign Language. Programs provide a high-quality arts experiences delivered by well-respected arts professionals. In the first year, Secrets of the Heart® teaches children friendship, kindness, imagination and gratitude as they are immersed in multi-disciplinary arts. In year two, One World Drum Circles teaches compassion, respect, generosity and other secrets through drumming, rhythms, music and folklore from seven different countries.  In year three, Dance In America teaches children dedication, passion and discipline through dance forms from ballet to Hip-hop.   In the fourth year, Gifts of the Griot explores inspiration and the journey of a hero through the eyes of a West African storyteller called a griot.

Evaluation and Assessment:  Following every residency, anecdotal information, classroom observation, rubrics completed by classroom teachers and surveys completed by principals and parents are combined into a comprehensive evaluation and assessment of student outcomes.

Explore

Our Programs

Delivered by a diverse team of highly skilled professional artists, programs positively impact school climate and culture and create a continuum of learning for students, parents and teachers.

Secrets of the Heart®

Foundational UTK-Kindergarten

Year-long

Music, Dance, Theater Arts, and Visual Arts Links an arts experience to academic achievement and critical thinking skills in Language Arts, Listening/Speaking, History, Social Studies and the development of interpersonal skills.

One World Drum Circles

1st Grade

12 weeks

Arts and universal themes as children learn
rhythms, folklore and song in a variety of styles
from cultures around the world.
             

Dance In America

2nd Grade

12 weeks

Children view videos demonstrating dance excellence. They learn classic dance technique and explore styles from ballet to hip hop.

Gifts of the Griot (Gree-oh)

2nd or 3rd grade

7 weeks

Exploring the traditions of West African Storytellers
and the heroes in their midst through
poetry, song and dance.

Professional Development

Professional Development workshops are designed to inspire, uplift and energize. They are filled with
music, dance and creativity.

Parent Workshops

Parents are introduced to the arts and the core values we are teaching their children
 

Programs

Whole Program Demo

Content Demo​