Art is Education

The Art is Education Saturday workshop series began in the fall of 2013. It grew out of brainstorming sessions by Superintendent Dr. Matt Wayne, art teachers Marisol Pastor-Cabrera and Geoff Landreau, and retired psychology professor Joan Sieber. Joan generously provided the initial funding. It was decided that the best way to inspire classroom teachers to integrate the arts was to give the teachers, themselves, a significant art-making experience along with the materials they would need for their students.

The workshops, designed by High School art teachers, are provided in a variety of artistic mediums: watercolor, digital photography, dance, theater, mask-making, zentangle, and paper arts. By the final workshop session, the teacher-participants are thrilled to present the ways they have integrated art into their curriculum and to present artwork their students had created. Teachers described the transformational effects arts integration have had on their students. Arts integration has allowed students to connect with their emotions, express themselves, and engage meaningfully with the curriculum.