| Our Mission |
to enhance children’s learning with creative resources from the arts community.
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How Do I Succeed as a Teaching Artist?
Artist's Mission
Guide to the highest aesthetic, teach to the basics and provide quality examples.
- Carol Basch, visual artist |
Not every artist has what it takes to be a teaching artist - that rare combination of artistic and teaching abilities, a love of children and an understanding of school environments. Young Audiences has long been regarded by the community as a trusted source of quality arts educators who embrace a three-fold role of Artist, Teacher and Collaborator in the work they do. |
Photo: Buff Mdeb Meretin works with students. | | | | As Artists | | Roster artists express the essential principles and elements of their art forms and weave a demonstration of professional mastery into program design. Artists nurture student understanding of the art form and inspire them through their performance or demonstration. | | | | As Teachers | | Roster artists impart their skills and share knowledge of their art form in a student-centered, age-appropriate manner. Through questioning strategies and a focus on problem solving, artists assist students in becoming proficient in the Arts Standards, which include creating, presenting and performing, historical and cultural perspectives and aesthetics and art criticism. | | | | As Collaborators | Roster artists work in collaboration with teachers and fellow artists to glean skills and expertise from each other. Together artists and teachers might plan ways to integrate an art form into a specific curriculum, team-teach or co-present and determine evaluation criteria for student learning.
The three-fold role is based on the assumption that every artist understands and is using the Young Audiences’ Rubrics for Teaching Artists’ Performance or Residency Design and Implementation to assess their work. Please see pages 23-35 to review the appropriate Rubric or contact the Director of Education or the Artist Program Specialist for help with these guidelines. |
Tips for Performing Artists
As a storyteller, a folk artist, I want to create a community experience that encourages interaction and erases distance between artist and audience
- Will Hornyak, storyteller | | | | Performing in schools provides opportunities for artists to introduce their artistry to new audiences, involve students in the creative process and share their unique perspective of an art form. To deliver a seamless and enriching program: | | | | | Get clear directions to the school and allow enough travel time.Call the school at least three (3) days prior to your performance to confirm the starting and ending times of the performance and discuss any special needs before students arrive.Ask for assistance in using the school’s PA system and conduct a sound check for volume and audibility before • the start of the performance.Display the Young Audiences Arts for Learning sign.Give the principal or contact teacher a short, written introduction to the performance when you arrive at the school.Mention that your program is brought to the school through Young Audiences.Perform rather than talk at the beginning of the program to hook your audience.Give clear instructions to students when requesting audience participation.Repeat student questions before answering them.Thank the school for inviting you. If you are a Run For The Arts school, thank the students and their parents for raising the money to bring you to their school. | | | 
Photo: Habiba performs. |
Tips for Residency Artists
Artists tend to think of process and teachers tend to think of the finished product. Balance the two.
- Lori Latham, visual artist | | | Try to get a good practical feel for the realities of the current school environment and work within those parameters. That doesn’t mean to not dream, but to realize what is realistically possible.
- Peggy Ross, fiber artist | | | | | How to Have a Productive Planning Meeting | | | | The Residency Planning Meeting is the first face-to-face encounter between the artist and the school prior to the start of a Residency Program. Ideally it will be attended by the principal, grade-level teachers and perhaps a parent coordinator. The purpose of the Planning Meeting is to collaboratively coordinate scheduling, supply budget, facilities, program/curriculum connections and other pre-program activities, completing and signing the Planning Agreement and determining the total number of hours needed, if any, for planning, research and development. |
| | | Goals | | | Teacher gains knowledge about the artist and the art form.Teacher understands what will take place in the classroom with students.Artist gains understanding of the school’s goals and resources.Artist and teachers collaborate on supporting the school’s curriculum and arts plan. | | | | During the Planning Meeting | | | Introduce your art form.Provide personal background information: resume, portfolio, photos.Share your teaching philosophy.Share your strategies for working with students of different learning styles.Describe a previous school residency experience.Help teachers understand how you might use your art form to help them achieve a particular learning outcome.Describe how students will be active participants in the residency.Describe what you need for a successful residency: equipment and materials, space and classroom set-up, technical requirements, volunteer support, etc.Determine with teachers how they can become an integral part of the residency.Discuss what teachers can do to prepare students for your residency.Clarify expectations for finished product or culminating event.Gather information about the classroom dynamic and attention-getting discipline techniques.If you are working with multiple classrooms, suggest beginning your residency with an informal all-class presentation.Assess what professional development activities would help the school make better use of the residency. | | | 
Photo: Lisa Wilcke teaches glass cutting to a student during a residency at Capitol Hill Elementary School. |
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