In the 2009/10 school year, artsREACH has had to greatly reduce its delivery goals due to reduced grant funding. With a focus on schools that have a high proportion of students from low-income families, the adjusted goal is to deliver 6-week after-school programs in ten elementary schools and a minimum of forty 90-minute visual arts workshops throughout the Capital Region. For this year, we are projecting that approximately 920 students will experience high-quality arts workshops run by professionally trained artists and actors.
In the current school year (2009-2010), the visual arts workshops explore the theme of “Exploring the Environment”.
Painting Workshops
Students will learn how Ted Harrison uses simplified forms and introduces rhythm and colour to create his distinctive style of painting. After being shown basic techniques such as brush strokes, mixing pastels and paint, and concepts such as foreground, background, and composition, the students will express themselves by using Ted Harrison's painting style to create their own story within their painting using oil pastels and tempera paint.
Printmaking Workshops
Students will examine images of creatures and plants that live within our oceans, learn the basic steps of printmaking and then use their newfound printmaking skills to develop a plate that expresses healthy marine life, through a grouping of several different images.
After-School Theatre Program
Over the course of six weeks, students develop and hone theatre performance skills. They will be entrusted with group projects, learn decision-making, and build confidence. At the end of the program, the students present a showcase of their best/ favourite work over the six weeks to an invited audience of peers, teachers and parents.
Through these workshops, students will: participate in cooperative theatre games and exercises; build skills and confidence in self-expression, movement, characterization, improvisation and dramatic play; and, learn about positive team building and the importance of respect for others.