ArtsEd Archives - Page 3 of 6 - Arts for Learning Virginia

New Stories from a Favorite A4L Storyteller

November 10, 2020 By Cindy Sherwood

She’s back, and we couldn’t be happier. After a three-year tour in England, Arts for Learning storyteller Sarah Osburn Brady returned to Virginia in August, her art and her connections to the storytelling community deepened by the experience.

Sarah and her family—daughters who are now eleven and eight and a pediatrician-husband whose transfer to Royal Air Force Lakenheath prompted the move to England—are now living in McLean, Virginia, forever changed by their time in the U.K. Sarah calls her three years there “a gift,” with highlights including being part of the Cambridge Storytellers group and “being able to travel and walk the landscape of so many stories, both historical and traditional, as well as literary stories.”

She believes her storytelling has changed, thanks to new insight she discovered while living abroad.

I think sometimes whenever we grow and change as people, it allows us to bring new things to our art form, and there’s something definitely that will make growth and change happen whenever you move to another country.”

Sarah first explored joining Young Audiences/Arts for Learning more than a decade ago while working as a professor of theater and communications at Hampton University. After the birth of her first child, she joined the roster, partnering with another acclaimed A4L storyteller, Sheila Arnold, with programs on the civil rights movement and two “women of freedom,” Harriet Tubman and Ellen Craft. Sarah also developed solo programs including Poetry and Jabberwockies, which celebrates the rhythm and rhyme of language through classic poems and nonsense words.

As both a performing artist and teaching artist, Sarah’s storytelling isn’t easy to characterize.

“I’m not a storyteller who tells just one type of stories. I tell historical, literary, and traditional stories, along with a smattering of personal stories and tall tales. I find that I do a lot of those different things. My style varies according to the story I’m telling, according to the needs of the program, according to the audience, all of those pieces.”

When she’s developing new programs, Sarah says there are some stories “that won’t let you go, that sit bubbling with you and then punch you in the shoulder until you let them out. Then there are other stories that, because we’re working artists, we get handed.” One of the stories she got “handed” in England was on Thomas Paine, the writer of Common Sense, after she was asked to create a special program about him for a festival. She wasn’t excited about it until she dug into months of research and discovered she found him “fascinating.”

Sarah tells stories related to Thomas Paine as part of a festival in Thetford, England.

“I often tell my husband that almost any subject, if you find the right way in, you can find that it’s fascinating,” Sarah says. “The first time I performed that program, there was a woman who came up to me and said, ‘I thought this was going to be boring, but you made it interesting.’ And that is part of my goal as a storyteller—to take whatever subject I’m telling stories about, whatever program I’m doing, and invite people in, even if they don’t think they’re going to be interested. It’s amazing to me how storytelling can help people be interested in ideas and clarify subjects that people thought they weren’t interested in or thought were confusing or thought were extra complex.”

Sarah previews a new choose-your-own adventure storytelling program on Zoom.

Being back at Arts for Learning in the middle of a pandemic means Sarah is developing programs that can work virtually. A new program, “More Than True: Folk and Fairy Tales with Character,” features a choose-your-own adventure approach that allows students to interact with her live and help decide character and plot details.

Sarah is also developing a new program focused on the stories of women who resisted tyranny during the world wars. We’ll share details soon!

Moving back to the United States during a pandemic hasn’t necessarily been easy for Sarah and her family, but she says there are good parts along with the difficult parts.

“One of the beautiful things is that Zoom and other platforms are allowing for there to be a comfort with and an ease of communication at a distance. So in some ways, it’s almost like we haven’t really moved because there’s regular contact with people in the UK and with the storytelling community there, so there are lots of good things.”

We’d call it 100 percent good for Arts for Learning to have Sarah back with us. Contact us at programs@Arts4LearningVA.org if you’re interested in booking one of Sarah’s programs, which you can explore by clicking here. All are available in a virtual format.

‘Make Comics Now’ with A4L’s Matt Harrison

October 15, 2020 By Cindy Sherwood

Norfolk-based artist Matt Harrison is new to the Arts for Learning roster this year, teaching a popular workshop called “Make Comics Now.” Matt comes from a teaching family—his parents are retired elementary school teachers and his wife is a middle school English teacher, and he says conversations about classroom theory and its practical applications have been a constant throughout his life. Mentoring students is one of his favorite things, whether in his role as a comic artist or in his pay-the-bills job as a web developer.

Although Matt enjoyed drawing when he was a kid, he didn’t become interested in comics until he was a young adult and stumbled on a friend’s box of old comic books.

“I started with X-Men and Spider-Man. The way those shows worked, it wasn’t episodic, it was a continuous story from one to the next. It made me very curious about continuity, so once you start down that path about caring about comics and which way the story goes, it can quickly spiral out of control. So I wound up collecting way more comics than I knew what to do with.”

Eventually Matt transitioned from an interest in traditional mainstream comics to indie comics, where he says he’s now developed a “simple, cartoony, humorous aesthetic.” He’s published more than a dozen mini-comics of eight to 48-pages long and regularly exhibits his work at comic conventions. He also works as an illustrator using a different style, which he describes as somewhat realistic straight-to-ink contour drawings of people from photos. Clients include the Naro Expanded Cinema which features his posters at their cult movie nights.

When you look at Matt’s website, www.rootbeercomics.com, you see an eclectic variety of topics and styles in his comic books, zines, and comic strips. Titles range from “Ninja Turtles with Guns” and “Lincoln versus Booth” to “Harrison Ford is Old.”

“I like to do short projects because that lets me experiment with a lot of different themes and styles of drawings. I can knock out a comic in a month and then move on to the next idea of interest.”

So why Root Beer Comics? First came the impossibility of finding a domain name when you’re named Matt Harrison. Second came the need to choose something unique, memorable, and easy to spell. But root beer also has a deeper meaning to Matt.

“I love root beer. It sets the tone for the humor stuff. Also, there’s beer, which is an interest that a lot of people have, and then there’s root beer, which is kind of tangentially related to that but not really. And that’s kind of like what my comics are. If mainstream comics are beer, my comics are root beer.”Matt describes what he calls a “pivotal moment” in his life when he realized that comics don’t have to look a set way, that they can look like anything.

“That barrier falls away and you realize anyone can make a comic, I can make a comic, it doesn’t matter that it won’t look like the Spider-Man comic that I saw, it will look like my version of that,” he says. “I realized that I didn’t have to wait until I’m an amazing draftsman, which is a day that may never come, before I put pen on paper and put it out there for people to see.”

That pivotal moment still resonates with him as he teaches.

My objective with teaching is to recreate that moment in other people’s lives so the chains come off and they can get started in this creative hobby that can benefit them in a lot of ways.”

Matt led two Make Comics Now residencies in-person at summer camps and is currently teaching students virtually through Alternatives Inc’s after-school program. Although he’s found COVID-19 safety protocols have made establishing relationships with students more challenging, he hasn’t let that stand in the way.

“Ultimately, I think you just jump right in and treat them like they’re already old friends and eventually they’ll come along for the ride.”

Are you interested in learning more about Matt leading a workshop? Contact us at scheduling@Arts4LearningVA.org for more information.

#BecauseOfArtsEd: Celebrating National Arts in Education Week

September 16, 2020 By Cindy Sherwood

It’s a week to celebrate the transformative power of the arts in education. Here at Arts for Learning Virginia, we served more than 78,000 students during 2019/2020. We’ve collected thoughts from some of those we’ve impacted plus from some of our talented artists. Enjoy!

Strings Impact

Mila Stith, student violinist, Portsmouth Public Schools: “I liked when we got to play in front of our family and friends. Sometimes my teachers would come and support us too. It made me feel good so I could show them what I could do. My mom would be so happy and proud of me and my brother.”

Jamita Stith, parent of two student violinists: “Teachers come, teachers go, but the fact that every spring they had violin coming, it gave the kids something to look forward to. And music is very, very, very important. My kids practiced twice a week and they got to take a violin home if they needed it.”

Tina Culver, Teaching Artist for Strings Impact: “If there hadn’t had been programs like this available for me, my childhood would have been so much different. It’s important for me to feel that I can pay it forward and be a part of growing positivity in the community.”

After-School Creative Enrichment (ACE) Theater Residency in Norfolk

Christian Osho and Harmony Riddick participated in the ACE theater residency program at Norfolk’s Bay View Elementary School.

Joy Osho, Parent: “My kids both participated in an Arts for Learning program, and they loved it. Now all they want to do is sing, dance, act, and make people laugh!! Chris has found his love for comedy. Harmony has really grown into a young artist since participating in this program.”

Christopher Mathews, Norfolk Public Schools’ educator: “We put them in a place that said your story matters even if it’s a hard story to tell and you telling it can be therapeutic for you. But it can also be something that brightens the world through the creativity you bring.”

Brittany Cottrill, Parent: “I could see my daughter’s confidence and understanding of emotions greatly increase during this program. She helped out behind the scenes and was very proud of herself. She showed compassion at home toward me in ways I hadn’t seen before.”

ACE theater residency final performance — Everyone in the ACE residency pitched in to create a performance celebrating the power of kindness.

Mikayla Cottrill, Student: “I really liked the activities that we got to do, especially the ones that helped us with the acting part. And I liked that the (teaching artists) were fine, even when we were still learning how to do everything. During the performance, people on stage were helping each other. I liked the performance because people were able to see the scenes that we’d put together.”

Instructors help a student with a yoga pose during Rhythm and Me — Instructor Natasha Leshanski helps a student with a yoga pose, while supported by instructor Jasmine Marshall.

Rhythm and Me Adaptive Dance Residency in Portsmouth

Natasha Leshanski, Teaching Artist: “We want the kids to feel confident, we want them to be moving their bodies, and we want them to enjoy themselves. So everything else takes a back seat to those things. We’re constantly telling them, ‘Of course you can do more things. That feeling you’re feeling is discomfort because you’re trying something new.’ So as long as they’re willing to put themselves out there, it’s success day after day.”

Monica Morgan, Parent: “The number one benefit for Naomi was social, meeting new peers. Learning to follow instructions, step-by-step, was also very positive. The instructors did marvelous. They came down to their level and they were very patient with each and every one of the children.”

Naomi Morgan, Student: (Favorite part of program): “Dancing DJ! Doing dance moves!”

A4L Teaching and Performing Artists

Joel Casanova, Dancer: Arts for Learning helps me support myself in a way that’s also meaningful. I don’t have to sacrifice making ends meet with supporting kids and doing what I love. The thing that pays my bills is also affecting children for the rest of their lives.”

Via Goode, Storyteller: “I was fortunate enough when I was growing up to take clarinet lessons, and I lived in a school district where I was able to take field trips and I know what a difference it made to me. And so being on the other end where you’re giving it to the schools so that the children can experience that is just very, very rewarding for me.”

Jennifer Gammill, Singer/Musician: “I feel like Arts for Learning is on my team, and they’re like, ‘Hey, we want you to be an artist. You can make money doing what you do.’ I feel super supported.”

Sheila Arnold, Storyteller: “I love watching kids’ engagement whether it’s laughter or just seeing the look on their face. They’re deep into the story and they can’t find themselves out. They’re cool middle-schoolers and all of a sudden they’re wrapped around my finger and they didn’t know they were going to do that.”

“People say, ‘They’re kindergarteners— they sat for an hour! How did you do that?’ I love it when teachers ask me how I did that, and I say, ‘I kept it interesting and they learned.’”

We want to keep making an impact on children’s lives. We’ve shown that we can adapt and continue our mission despite the challenges of COVID-19, but we need your support so that we can keep moving forward. Please click here to make a tax-deductible contribution—any amount helps.

National Arts in Education Week celebrates the transformative power of the arts in education. Passed by Congress in 2010 through House Resolution 275, the week is designated to bring attention to this cause for elected officials and educational decision makers across the country and to support equitable access to the arts for all students. For more information, visit Americans for the Arts, a national advocacy group.

#TBT Rhythm and Me: An Adaptive Dance Residency

September 3, 2020 By Cindy Sherwood

As Virginia public school students get ready to head back to school next week, many will once again be experiencing virtual learning. We take a moment to look back on this Throwback Thursday to a time last winter before Virginia schools shut down and our artists worked with students in-person.

#TBT

Sometimes a single moment can illustrate the power of an Arts for Learning program.

That was the case at Rhythm and Me, an adaptive dance residency that connects students living with and without Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Students from throughout Portsmouth Public Schools are transported to Simonsdale Elementary School twice a week to learn the basics of dance and movement, with a focus on key health concerns associated with ASD, including non-verbal communication.

A4L teaching artists Jasmine Marshall and Natasha Leshanski have been working with a group of students since early February. Natasha, who leads the yoga portion of the program, says it’s the “very opposite” of typical classroom learning, where students are expected to be self-contained as they lean over desks and aren’t free to move around. In Rhythm and Me, students exercise, stretch out, and open their bodies, Natasha says it’s also “helping them feel less vulnerable about opening up emotionally by literally using their whole body.” That process may be more challenging for students living with ASD who can feel uncomfortable with certain types of movement or with touching or being touched.

In the early weeks of the program, Natasha had been encouraging students to create more independent yoga poses, but it wasn’t quite working. She introduced the concept of partner poses, including one called “lizard on a rock,” with the person on the bottom kneeling in a child’s pose and the person on the top leaning back and extending their arms to the ground.

A second-grader named Seth was fascinated. Natasha says he’s often not interested in certain activities and will choose to run laps around the classroom instead. This time, though, was different. With Jasmine stretched out in the child’s pose, Seth climbed on her back as the “lizard” and Natasha supported him as he balanced himself. He then tried out the post with other students, connecting with them in a brand new way.

“It was the first time Seth had relinquished control over his body, so when he was laying across his classmate’s back, he even was able to draw his arms up and get that full stretch. When you think about it, that’s probably the most vulnerable position you can be in,” Natasha says. “He let himself go all the way in a classroom full with people he doesn’t know very well, and so I felt like it was really a breakthrough with his comfort level with all of that.”

The goal of Rhythm and Me, Natasha says, isn’t the perfect downward dog or the precise execution of partner poses.

“We want the kids to feel confident, we want them to be moving their bodies, and we want them to enjoy themselves. So everything else takes a back seat to those. As long as they’re willing to put themselves out there, it’s success, day after day.”

We are grateful to the Portsmouth General Hospital Foundation, the Portsmouth Service League, the Helen G. Gifford Foundation, the Business Consortium for Arts Support, and the Virginia Commission for the Arts for their funding of the Rhythm and Me dance residency.

We look forward to serving students both virtually and, when safe, in person, and we wish all students and educators a successful start to the school year. If you’d like information about our special arts experiences created for virtual learning, please click here.

Wherever. However. Arts for Learning Introduces New Virtual Arts Experiences

August 27, 2020 By Cindy Sherwood

This will be a back-to-school like no other for students attending Virginia public schools, with so many school divisions operating on a virtual basis only, at least initially. Educators have been busy preparing to provide students with quality virtual learning…. and so have we here at Arts for Learning.

Our program team and artists are collaborating closely to create a rich and diverse collection of virtual arts experiences. Check out the variety of programs we’re offering by clicking here. And be sure to contact us at programs@arts4learningVA.org if you’d like more information on specific programs or artists.

Despite the challenges presented by COVID-19, we’re determined to find innovative ways to connect children with arts experiences WHEREVER and HOWEVER their schooling is taking place.