Perpich Center for the Arts: Full STEAM ahead

By Jean McDermott

Parenting Resource Center

I.J. Holton Intermediate School was notified in January that they have been selected as one of four Minnesota schools to newly join the Turnaround Arts: Minnesota program in collaboration with the Perpich Center for the Arts. As a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, ARTS, and Mathematics) focused school. This is exciting news.

Turnaround Arts is a program that uses the arts to improve student learning and transform schools. At the national level, Turnaround Arts is a signature program of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, in partnership with the U.S. Department of Education, the National Endowment for the Arts, and several private foundations.

Decades of research show that art-engaged students perform better than their peers academically.

For example, recent studies show that students who participate regularly in the arts: 1. are more self-confident and better able to express their ideas, 2. have higher attendance and high school graduations rates, 3. are more likely to attend a four-year university, graduate and go on to a career with potential. Arts education can also benefit overall school culture and climate, especially when it is integrated into the school, giving teachers new tools, increasing collaboration, creating an atmosphere of creativity and inspiration and engaging parents and the community.

What does this mean for I.J. Holton School students and staff? The principal and two teachers will be attending a week-long Turnaround Arts National summer conference at the end of June. All Holton teaching staff will be attending a professional development day-long gathering with the Perpich Center for the Arts and our partner schools in August.

A nationally-recognized Turnaround Artist will “adopt” our school for the next two years and work with both students and teachers during the school year. Grant dollars of up to $20,000 will be made available to us each year of the grant to support the acquisition of teaching artist residencies, field trips, and arts supplies/materials to support art integration.

To start the process for the 2016-17 school year, the school leadership team selected an arts-based strategy on which to focus. Arts-based strategies are instructional methods that come directly from an arts discipline.

They are all fairly simple to learn, but can be pushed to deeper levels over the year and can be used across subject areas. Pantomime, observational drawing, and rhythm clapping are a few. But the most successful initial strategies for that schools use in the first year of implementation are Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) and Tableau. I.J. Holton has selected Tableau as our first strategy to develop.

Tableau involves creating frozen group pictures. Students have to work as a team to use their bodies to express ideas, using important means of dramatic communication such as gesture, facial expression, body position, etc.

This strategy is a great community builder as groups of students learn to negotiate and work together to form a product, a product based on their understanding of the content they are learning in their classes.

 

SportsPlus

Education

PHOTOS: Unified fun — Austin High School hosts 2nd Unified Basketball Day

Mower County

Sen. Tina Smith of Minnesota won’t seek reelection, dealing blow to Democrats’ hopes to take Senate

News

Republicans advance anti-abortion legislation during control of Minnesota House

News

Feds to probe Minnesota State High School League over transgender athlete policy

Mower County

Hormel honors winners of Martin Luther King Jr. Essay Contest

News

MnDOT announces winners of Name a Snowplow contest

News

US inflation got worse with rising groceries and gasoline prices

Education

With federal money at risk, Minnesota’s public colleges stress high stakes of state budget debate

Mower County

Snow, cold to impact region into tomorrow

Business

Hosting Legends: Mower CEO program promising big night with Local Legends concert

Education

APS School board authorizes bidding process for tennis courts reconstruction

Mower County

Austin Symphony Orchestra gets a little help in promotion for Sunday’s concert

Crime, Courts & Emergencies

Convictions: Jan. 27-Feb. 3

Education

Local students advance to Southeast Minnesota Final Spelling Bee

Education

Education Briefs

News

Trump steel, aluminum tariffs likely to drive up car costs, industry leaders say

News

Republicans put fraud, measures to stop it in spotlight as they take Minnesota House reins

News

Most nations miss deadline for plans to fight climate change

News

Trump once again slaps taxes on foreign steel, aluminum, a move that proved costly in his first term

Education

APS Board votes to return to 2020 version of sex nondiscrimination policy

Mower County

Man already charged in two cases of criminal sexual conduct with a child charged a third time

News

Judge finds Trump administration hasn’t fully followed his order to unfreeze federal spending

Mower County

Hormel Historic Home’s Harris Music Contest registration deadline approaching

Mower County

Percussive impact: MacPhail’s Cheryl Berglund being honored at state conference