Art Classes
Art is a universal, visual language basic to all civilizations and cultures. At Aurora School students are given the opportunity to develop this language as one of the many tools in their "tool box" for life long learning. The goal of the Aurora Art Program is to help children become visually literate. The process of discovery and self-expression is far more important than the piece of art generated, and is primary to helping children grow and learn. Therefore, the motto in the art room is "Take Risks - Make Mistakes."
Art projects focus on mastering basic art skills and concepts through exploration, and self-expression. Each class project combines the three interrelated themes of creating art, observing art, and living with art. Through the use of hands-on projects, the students have the opportunity to create and explore a broad range of art skills or concepts.
Reproductions of works of art are used to give the children a chance to look at art created by a wide variety of artists and cultures. Through literature and informal discussions, the children learn to compare and contrast visual qualities of natural and constructed forms of art. The curriculum also incorporates the study of artists' lives and their works to help students develop better understanding for the various ways in which people of many different cultures use their creative skills and help us understand "why we create ART!"
As with all curricular areas at Aurora, literature, science, social studies, math, and writing are integrated into art studies. This occurs during our weekly, fifty-minute art classes, as well as our Integrated Art Program. Integrated Art projects are special, long-range projects developed around a particular theme. Each project extends over several weeks and is coordinated with both classrooms from the same grade level and the art program.
For example, when students in grades 2/3 are studying the Bay Area watershed, they rotate among the two classrooms and the art room. Students may be exploring the watershed through science in one room, poetry and writing in another and creating their artistic impressions of the water cycle through different media in art. These projects rotate among the different grade levels throughout the year. This creates a more holistic approach to learning and reinforces an understanding that learning in all subjects is related and integrated.
At all times students are guided to reflect on the work and experiences they have had throughout the year by keeping artists' portfolios. In the spring, the children make selections and write about their chosen pieces that then are displayed in the galleries of our annual Art Show.