March Is Arts Education Month! The Arts Matter at SCVi
By Sara McDaniels
Arts and Community Outreach Coordinator
At SCVi, we know that creating and exploring the world through arts experience enhances all subject areas for our learners.
Because arts education is an integral part of developing a whole education, SCVi strives to provide high-quality arts education that not only stands alone as a core subject but is also incorporated into the project-based learning (PBL) mechanism of all subject areas. Whether it be through dance, music, theatre, media, or visual methods, at SCVi the arts are often viewed as the thread that weaves the integration of multiple subject areas, as they mesh into the PBL process.
Participation in the arts facilitates intercultural awareness and develops an open-minded approach to learning and valuing different cultures. Coursework in the arts is naturally collaborative, making arts education the ideal vehicle for helping young people to become true 21st-century learners.
The arts cannot be learned through occasional or random exposure any more than mastery of math, language, or science concepts can occur without a strong foundation that builds and grows with a child’s learning. This is why SCVi offers a curriculum rich in the arts for all grade levels, TK-12th.
The video above was the winning submission in the California Alliance for Arts Education Student Voices Campaign in 2016. It was created by iLEAD learner Mila Cuda with Miriam Sachs. Mila went on to be named the Youth Poet Laureate of LA County the following year.
From Arts with the Brain in Mind by Eric Jensen:
“The arts enhance the process of learning. The systems they nourish, which include our integrated sensory, attentional, cognitive, emotional, and motor capacities, are, in fact, the driving forces behind all other learning.”
Each year SCVi learners can be seen participating and sharing with the community their love of learning through the arts. A prime example is our school’s open house each year in the late spring, which has evolved through the years from the Kid’s Creating Art Festival to the Expresstival. The event takes the form of artistic interaction and expression.
SCVi learners have been showcased in Santa Clarita’s local galleries and have been honored with awards for their skill and ability in the arts. Our IB Theatre class has even enjoyed a field studies trip to London, where they participated in advanced level workshops and attended live theatre performances almost daily.
We are grateful to have a community that emphasizes the arts in education.
