Connect for Kids / Child Advocacy 360 / Youth Policy Action Center - Arts

Creativity Transcending Boundaries: the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards 2008

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:12:14 -0500

Get the scoop in the 2008 contest and listen to a special CFK podcast with Bryan Doerries, program director of Alliance for Young Artists and Writers, which administers the Scholastic Art and Writing Award, and two of the high school students who took top honors in photography.

Great Science for Girls

Mon, 16 Feb 2009 20:37:39 -0600

Science is, indeed, a "girl thing." Here’s a listing of useful Web sites and research on the most effective practices in after-school programs.

The Kids Carpentry Program

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 21:20:55 -0600

Kids’ Carpentry is a year-round after school program designed especially for boys and girls, kindergarten through the sixth grade. Since 1982 we have been teaching kids the safe use of woodworking hand tools. Children work together and independently on boats, trucks, bird feeders, clocks, doll furniture, airplanes, games and many other projects. In addition to the fun these kids have, they also gain quality experiences in measuring, applied mathematics such as fractions, and hands-on experience with a variety of carpentry tools. By visualizing, planning and building projects, children develop valuable abstract reasoning capabilities and fine motor skills. Children can select from a wide range of project choices supplied by the teacher and are also encouraged to design and build based on their own needs and imaginations. Our Socratic style of teaching empowers the children to become good problem-solvers and independent thinkers!

Significant Scientific Learning Happens Outside the Classroom

Mon, 09 Feb 2009 20:23:43 -0600

Is a trip to the zoo a luxury or an important learning opportunity? A new National Research Council report stresses that trips and TV documentaries can significantly contribute to scientific understanding. Such settings and programs may also support academic gains for young people from groups historically underrepresented in science.

AMERICANS FOR THE ARTS: TOOLKIT FOR ADVOCACY

Mon, 08 Sep 2008 14:37:58 -0500

The Arts Action Center has a range of resources to take action on behalf of the arts. You can check the latest arts policy issues and find tools to identify and communicate
effectively with local, st

PTA Urges Support for Arts and Parent Centers in Schools

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 14:51:51 -0500

The President's budget and the House Committee on Appropriations have no more federal funding for Parent Information Resource Centers (PIRCs) and Arts in Education programs (AIE). The National PTA urg

Using the Arts to Tame Katrina's Emotional Force

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 10:18:10 -0500

Building kites, drawing, creating an on-line community—these are some of the ways that young survivors of Hurricane Katrina are expressing themselves as part of their healing process. Martha Pitts reports on art therapy programs that are helping kids rebound.

Third Space: Arts in Education

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 14:48:30 -0500

There's new evidence that when arts are nurtured in schools, learning thrives as well. This three-year study, published by the Arts Education Partnership, looks at 10 elementary, middle, and high schools serving economically disadvantaged students in urban and rural that have used the arts to effectively transform their curriculum and culture. The term "Third Space" describes the positive and supportive relationships that develop among students, educators, and the community when they are involved in creating, performing, or responding to works of art.

The Fine Art of Helping Kids At Risk

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 22:40:40 -0500

Powerful emotions like anger can become a major roadblock to learning. Art therapy is one approach to helping kids manage those feelings and be successful. Letitia Star reports on an art therapy program in Chicago.

Picture This: Capturing a Special Beauty

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 15:21:52 -0500

Karen Dorame has spent the past few years teaching professional photographers something about seeing how to see the beauty in every child. She includes some helpful tips for taking pictures of children with special needs. David Wilkening reports on Dorame's foundation, Special Kids Photography.

Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, Inc.

Thu, 03 Mar 2005 13:29:14 -0600

The Alliance for Young Artists and Writers provides inspiration and validation for the next generation of artists and writers.

Working on the Radio Road

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 14:33:10 -0500

Educators at the Bluffview Montessori School in Minnesota are using an old medium—radio—to teach modern day lessons about working and thinking creatively. Rob Capriccioso reports on this and other audio-focused programs that are gaining steam across the country.

More than Just a Pretty Picture

Mon, 31 Jan 2005 09:15:43 -0600

Art and Education School funding cuts often hit arts particularly hard
-- but a new book warns that arts are not just a luxury to jettison when
times get tough. Putting the Arts in the Picture finds that integrating
arts into mainstream curriculum has quantifiable cognitive and academic
benefits. A study of 23 arts-integrated schools in Chicago showed test
scores rising up to two times faster there than in demographically

Cartoon Politics

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 14:28:33 -0500

In election years, a common lament is that young people aren't engaged by politics. But some educators are finding creative ways to get kids thinking, through the art and humor of political cartooning. Rob Capriccioso reports.

Every Picture Tells Your Story

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:38:38 -0500

For the young photographers in Lynne Bernay-Roman's classes, image-making becomes an inward voyage of discovery?one their teachers say helps them be more successful in school. Letitia Monaco looks at how Bernay-Roman's Finding Focus Through Photography curriculum is working in some Palm Beach County schools.