ArtsEd Archives - Arts for Learning Virginia

Community Creators in STEAM Art Club: Designing 3D Prototypes

November 15, 2023 By Cindy Sherwood

As part of an innovative after-school residency, 5th graders in Newport News have unveiled 3D artistic creations that are the result of weeks of brainstorming, teamwork, and hands-on design. Four teams of students at George J. McIntosh Elementary School created prototypes that address social issues, presenting their models to educators, community leaders, Arts for Learning staff and board members, and their peers in the residency.

Led by A4L teaching artist James Cooper and art teacher Tiffany Murchison, students have met twice a week after school this fall to collaborate on designing and building their prototypes that incorporate STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts Math) concepts. James, a puppeteer with an engineering and computer science background, says he’s there to help fill in some of the gaps in kids’ knowledge, but they’re doing the real work.

“They’re fantastic,” James said. “They’re very strategic in how they think…they’re really smart, bright, and on the road to being successful adults, which is what we really hope for.” But there’s more. “They’re very feisty. It’s a great energy—they’re willing to work and ready to get it done.”

Each of the four student groups based their prototypes on a social issue they chose to address. Following an introduction by Aisha Noel, A4L’s Programs and Community Engagement Manager, students took turns presenting their prototypes and explaining their projects.

The Voyagers designed a statue of a figure holding a heart.

“We made this statue to represent peace and to stop violence—for people to see it and understand how and why they need to stop fighting,” said Andy, one of a five-member team. “I think art can make a difference because statues can represent different meanings—stop bullying, stop violence, stop cyber bullying, anything.”

Team Shine Bright Squad focused on cyber-bullying, with their prototype featuring a two-sided screen and a girl who was being bullied from her own bedroom.

For their prototype, Team Big Macs designed a food truck that would service the homeless.

Team Star Power also selected homelessness as their social issue, building a model of a home that comes well stocked with food for its residents.

After the presentations, judges, including student peer judges, voted on which prototype will be built by the group as a whole. The winner—Star Power and its house for the homeless.

The final 3-D artwork will be displayed at the Downing-Gross Cultural Arts Center, with the unveiling to take place December 13 at a special reception for students and families. The public is invited to come view the artwork through December 22.

The excitement of seeing their artwork publicly displayed may wind up being students’ favorite part of this residency. But for now, they have different takeaways that may be even more important:

“Teamwork, to never give up, and anything can be art.” Joshua, Fifth Grade

“I learned that I can always help people when they need help. And I learned that if someone is feeling sad or something, I can cheer them up.” Treasure, Fifth Grade

“Being more interactive with other people. And learning how to speak out loud without stuttering.” Nialiah, Fifth Grade

But for Emily, the best part of the residency has been a practical one—getting to make art at school.

“I can make 3D stuff without getting yelled at by my mom to clean my room.”

Arts for Learning thanks Huntington Ingalls/Newport News Shipbuilding for underwriting this residency, which is provided at no cost to students and their families. Additional community support is provided by Newport News Public Schools Fine Arts and STEM supervisors and the Newport News Arts Commission.

Story Hour with Mark Twain: Free, Family – Friendly Entertainment at the Z

November 7, 2023 By Cindy Sherwood

“The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated.”
Mark Twain

Mark Twain lives, at least for an afternoon in Virginia Beach this November. Kicking off a new Family Time Performance series at the Zeiders American Dream Theater, Arts for Learning’s Ryan Cleme ns will perform as his famous relative, Samuel Clemens, better known as Mark Twain.

Clemens will present Story Hour with Mark Twain on Saturday, November 18 at 2 p.m. at the Z, located at 4509 Commerce Street in Virginia Beach.

Tickets are free at this link:
Story Hour with Mark Twain

“The Z is such a terrific place for performers like myself to offer our special gifts,” says Ryan Clemens. “I’ve been performing as Mark Twain for decades, and I’m excited to bring him to meet the good folks at Virginia Beach’s own Zeiders American Dream Theater. It’s Mark Twain as you would have met him when he came to visit our area in 1907. He’s full of tall tales, jokes, maybe a ghost story or two, and lots of playful audience banter. Whether you’re 10 years old or 110, you’re sure to enjoy an hour with my jovial, old cousin.”

Story Hour with Mark Twain is part of the Family Time Series, a partnership between Arts for Learning and the Z to provide entertaining, family-oriented programming. Future performances include Orisirisi African Folklore and Roberta Lea in February and storyteller Sarah Osburn Brady in April. Programs will be presented by Arts for Learning’s roster of professional artists who use their art forms to educate and engage audiences while actively exploring artistic traditions and cultures from around the world.

“Our artists are excited for the partnership with Zeiders American Dream Theater,” says Drew Lusher, Arts for Learning’s Artist programming Manager. “In addition to being a modern and inviting performance venue, Zeiders is an energetic organization with a mission that parallels ours. We appreciate the opportunity to pair our performing artists with their beautiful space to further engage the community and inspire creative growth.”

Arts for Learning thanks the Virginia Beach Arts and Humanities Commission, Helen G. Gifford Foundation, Virginia Commission for the Arts, and National Endowment for the Arts for underwriting A4L’s Family Time Series at the Z.

Major News: Arts for Learning Becomes the Coastal Virginia Wolf Trap Affiliate

August 14, 2023 By Katie Driskill

We’re… thrilled… honored… happy… ecstatic… overjoyed… and delighted to announce we’re now partnering with the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. As the Coastal Virginia Wolf Trap affiliate, we’ll bring customized arts-based teaching and learning programs to early childhood classrooms.

“Our teaching artists have the opportunity to be trained in the Wolf Trap method, which focuses on bringing arts-integrated strategies into the classrooms of our youngest learners,” said Drew Lusher, Arts for Learning Artist and Programming Manager and Coastal Virginia Wolf Trap Affiliate Director. “We’re excited to foster this work in our community.”

The affiliate program is operated under Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, a program of Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts based in Vienna, Virginia.

Last week, four teaching artists on our roster received paid training to learn creative, interactive techniques of how to work with children in preschool and kindergarten classrooms. Wolf Trap Master Artist Trainer Christina Farrell showed how to incorporate song, movement, imaginative play, and musical instruments into lessons that introduce key curricular concepts such as literacy and social-emotional learning.

The training sessions were held at Children’s Harbor Ghent where the teaching artists had the opportunity to practice what they learned with young learners.

“I greatly appreciated observing Christina with the kids,” said Arts for Learning’s Amelia Zontini. “Each day they bloomed a little more. On my way out to my car on Friday, Miss Destiny and some kids opened their door and cried out, ‘Thank you!’ What a special experience for us all.”

Teaching artists who participated last week were Ryan Clemens, Jennifer Graham, Dylan Pritchett, and Amelia Zontini.

Arts for Learning’s Cindy Aitken, James Cooper, Via Goode, and Roberta Lea will undergo training in September.

Initially, Coastal Virginia Wolf Trap will deliver services in Norfolk, but will branch out to other Hampton Roads’ communities in future academic years. Our Wolf Trap-trained teaching artists will partner with early childhood education classroom teachers, illustrating how they can use the performing arts to engage children, enrich their learning, and reinforce the curriculum. Through multi-day residencies, our teaching artists will work one-on-one with classroom teachers to create custom lesson plans using proven, arts-based learning experiences.

We couldn’t be happier (or more elated… excited… glad… eager… tickled pink… you name it!) to enter into this partnership and join Wolf Trap’s network of 24 affiliates across the United States and Singapore. Thank you to all who made last week’s first training such a success!

In Their Own Words: IDEAL Residency Students

June 6, 2023 By Cindy Sherwood

Sometimes we can learn the most about the impact of a program that we offer directly from the students we serve.

So we wanted to share comments from some of the students who participated in our IDEAL (Intentional Designs of Expression in Artistic Languages) residency this spring. Remarks from students at Virginia Beach’s College Park Elementary and Portsmouth’s Westhaven Elementary are divided into the categories that we measure before, during, and after the residency to determine gains: self-worth, community connectedness, and creative expression.

SELF-WORTH

Emma, College Park, 5^th grade: “It showed me I could really be anything I want to be.”

Sadé, College Park, 5^th grade: “I want to teach others how to do art. It’s very inspiring. It makes you feel like you can do other things that you thought that you couldn’t do in art. And that’s why I love Arts for Learning.”

Deniya, Westhaven, 5^th grade: “I learned you can do what you want to do. You just have to keep practicing. Don’t let anybody make you come down, just keep trying and trying… And you might end up being an artist if you keep trying.”

Harmony, Westhaven, 5^th grade: “I got a lot more friends in my life. They made us sit at different tables so we could get to know each other, and it really helped a lot. I’m very shy. I got put into a room full of new people I didn’t know, at least most of them. I guess I had to branch out… I feel like Arts for Learning made me into a better person.”

COMMUNITY CONNECTIVENESS

Samantha, Westhaven, 6^th grade: “Arts for Learning was important because it helped you connect with who you are and your identity.” (Samantha had noted that she was Filipino on her mother’s side and used to visit cousins in the Philippines prior to Covid. She said she had done research about the Philippines as part of IDEAL.)

CREATIVE EXPRESSION

Sadé, College Park, 5^th grade: “I’m more excited when I do art. It makes my heart burst.”

Mark, Westhaven, 6^th grade: “I created a phoenix, and it was really inspiring because it shows my personality, like the power of the phoenix. It’s a sock puppet so it’s silly and goofy but on the inside it’s powerful and meaningful. The project changed how I saw myself because I expressed my inner personality.”

Kerrington, College Park, 5^th grade: “Before I joined [the IDEAL residency], I wasn’t really artistic because I didn’t think I could do the things I wanted to do. When I joined Arts for Learning, it was really fun because I got to paint, do watercolors, and sculptures…. Anytime I go home, I have paint and canvases in my room, and I just paint nonstop. And my mom tells me to go to bed and I’m like, ‘No, I’ve got to paint.’”

Mary, Westhaven, 5^th grade: “I realized that I could express myself in different ways instead of just talking about it. I can express myself through singing or dancing or painting or drawing. Arts for Learning has helped me a lot because I learned I can express myself in different ways.”

Raenah, Westhaven, 5^th grade: “I’ve changed the way I express myself going to [the IDEAL residency] because I learned that I don’t have to just speak the way I feel, I can draw it out, dance it out, sing it out, or do it all types of ways. My favorite way of showing my feelings is painting. I can show it if I’m mad, happy, sad, or any other emotion. The painting I did for the Chrysler Museum I basically just put lots of fun and colorful things because I feel like it describes how I am most of the time because I’m mostly happy.”

Many thanks to Hannah Sobol and Jackie Glass of Heard Productions for conducting interviews with students at the Chrysler Museum.

The IDEAL student art exhibit is still on display and available for the public to view through Sunday, June 11. Admission to the Chrysler Museum is free. The artwork can be viewed at the Margaret Shepherd Ray Family and Student Gallery.

An Artistic Tribute to Marty Einhorn

May 17, 2023 By Cindy Sherwood

A very special—and poignant—Arts for Learning performance this month honored the life and legacy of former board president Marty Einhorn.

A4L’s Rita Cohen performed A World of Song and Dance as a free performance in memory of Marty, who died in 2021 at the age of 63. After Marty’s death, Arts for Learning received many gifts in his memory. A board subcommittee decided those donations should be used each year to underwrite a school performance and small stipend for the school’s music educator. Arts for Learning selected Norfolk’s Granby Elementary as the first school because it was where Marty was inspired to learn to play the trumpet after watching a Young Audiences’ performance.

“Granby is a school that is deep, rich with tradition and love of learning,” said Denise J. Green, principal. “Mr. Einhorn was inspired as a youth in this building—he attended here in the 60s, so you’re talking more than 50 years ago. This is a great legacy to leave for the students to be inspired, just the way that he was inspired when he was a young boy. I hope that today was the ignition for some students that they will have the same love for art and music.”Marty’s wife Susan, son Will, and parents Barry and Lois Einhorn attended the memorial performance, which included a tribute to Marty and the impact he made during his life.

“It was so nice to see his generosity and his musical ability and love for music honored here today,” said Susan Einhorn. “I try to be half the person he was. He was the most generous person in the world. And every day I just feel so lucky to have spent most of my life with him.”

A number of A4L board and staff members also enjoyed the program, remembering the man who was a friend to all and passionately devoted to Arts for Learning’s mission of quality arts education.

Board president Beth Hazelette called Marty “the backbone of our organization for as long as I can remember.”

“Marty did so much to make sure we have programming for children. It’s very special that we were able to come back to his school and honor him here. And even though the children were little, I think they understood why we were here.”

Martin (Marty) A. Einhorn passed away February 18, 2021 after contracting COVID-19 while battling cancer. Marty was a founding member of Norfolk CPA firm Wall, Einhorn & Chernitzer and an active community and arts advocate who served on the boards of 14 separate nonprofits during his lifetime. After becoming involved with Young Audiences in the mid-1980s, Marty first served as president of the Board of Directors in the early 1990s and was later re-elected in 2011. Marty received our Volunteer of the Year award twice, sharing with us his time, financial resources, creativity, and leadership skills. We are thankful we could use the funds donated in his honor in a way that furthers his legacy.

To give to Arts for Learning in Marty’s memory, please use this link to donate online, https://young-audiences.networkforgood.com/projects/174292-annual-fund-68, or send a check to Young Audiences of Virginia, 420 N. Center Drive #239, Norfolk, VA 23502.

Community Creators in STEAM Art Club: Designing 3D Prototypes

Story Hour with Mark Twain: Free, Family – Friendly Entertainment at the Z

Major News: Arts for Learning Becomes the Coastal Virginia Wolf Trap Affiliate

In Their Own Words: IDEAL Residency Students

An Artistic Tribute to Marty Einhorn

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Community Creators in STEAM Art Club: Designing 3D Prototypes

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