ARTS NEWSLETTER #5- 2 APRIL 2007
GREETINGS FROM ARGY’S CUBBY with a view of the STATE HOUSE DOME at the Department of Education
ART’S NEWS
Life as the Visual and Performing Arts Specialist has been especially busy lately. In the last ten days I have visited 20 classrooms, had conversations with numerous administrators, presented workshops and promoted arts education to a variety of individuals. I can not say enough how important it is to collect data about your programs in any concrete manner. This information can make a difference! ** At this point 353 people are receiving the arts newsletter. PLEASE check with your arts colleagues to see if they are receiving it. If not, email me and I would be glad to add them. My goal is to reach 400 arts teachers by the close of school in June! ** As the months go by my belief becomes stronger that the visual and performing arts teachers (in each school) have the most important job in the building. I am grateful for all that you do every day! Please continue to strive to be the best educator you can for every student!
ARTS CONFERENCE-Oct. 5,6, 2007
The first meeting of the conference planning committee was held on March 21st. The conference will be held on October 5 and 6th at the Samoset in Rockland. Please plan on joining us for the two days. The planning committee is made up of representatives from Maine Music Educators Association, Maine Art Education Association, Maine Drama Council, Dance Educators of Maine, Maine Arts Commission, Maine Alliance for Arts Education, Very Special Arts and Maine Department of Education. Through your professional organization you may have been asked if you will be attending. If you have not responded to this question from another source please email me argy.nestor@maine.gov
with a YES if you think you MIGHT attend. We need an approximate number in order to secure rooms at the Samoset. You will in NO WAY be held accountable if you say yes now and do not attend the conference. Thanks for your help!
Argy’s Arts Blog
If you have suggestions for the conference and/or wish to tell us how you celebrate kids work in the arts please go to http://mearts.edublogs.org/
and post your comments. Thanks!
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
** $5000.00 Fellowship
The Maine Alliance for Arts Education (MAAE) and the Maine Community Foundation (Maine CF) announced the recipients of the first round of the Maine Arts Teachers Fellowship Program. Congratulations to the eight arts teachers who have been selected to receive the $5000.00 fellowship: Ora Aselton, Narraguagus High School, Harrington; Michael Davis, Sherwood Heights Elementary School, Auburn; Katherine Greene, George Stevens Academy, Blue Hill; Katy Helman, Deer Isle-Stonington High School, Deer Isle; Vaughn McLaughlin, Caribou High School, Caribou; K. Barry Saunders, Sea Road School and Kennebunkport Consolidated School, Kennebunk; and Allison Villani, Portland High School, Portland; Shanna Wheelock, Lubec Consolidated School, Lubec. Please go to http://www.maineallforartsed.org/matf.html for more details.
** Out of the 18 teachers nominated for Maine Teacher of the Year, four of them are music or visual art teachers. The teachers are: Joe Fagnant, Instrumental Music, Band Director, Houlton High School, Houlton; Charlie Johnson, Art and Digital Art teacher, Mount Desert Island High School, Mt. Desert; George Shabo, grades 4-8 Music, Loranger Middle School, Old Orchard Beach; and Kris Vigue, Grades 6-12, Instrumental Music and Music Theory/History, Stearns High School, Millinocket. These four teachers, along with the other nominees, will begin an extensive process this week with a ceremony at the state house in the hall of flags. Please wish them luck!
** In the words of music educator, Mike Davis: “The Eastern Division Conference in Hartford was absolutely FANTASTIC. With an attendance of 1,790 music teachers from as far away as Virginia, the 4 day conference was a very motivational trip for all who attended. We had a nice contingency from Maine!
** Several Maine visual arts educators attended the National Art Educators conference in NYC recently. It was an awesome experience with 5,000 teachers in attendance. The highlight was keynote speaker Daniel Pink who wrote: “A Whole New Mind”
http://www.danpink.com/ This is a MUST READ for every arts educator.
** The legislature has been working overtime to come up with a plan for the reorganization of school districts. Please look at their latest work that I have attached.
MAINE LEARNING RESULTS UPDATE
Attached is a document from Anita Bernhardt, with an update on the Maine Learning Results.
GRANT OPPORTUNITIES
** Service Learning grants are available (over a three year period) and this year several schools were awarded funding (many include the arts). Teacher training is offered and funding is available through Kids Consortium. Please learn more by going to http://www.kidsconsortium.org/ If you wish to attend a one day service learning training please learn more by going to http://www.kidsconsortium.org/professional_develop.html .
** Redesign Your Schools contest, $10,000 scholarship available. Please see attached for details.
ARTICLES and LINKS
** Study: Early music lessons improve language sensitivity.
Playing a musical instrument significantly enhances the brain's sensitivity to speech sounds, Northwestern University researchers found in a study to appear in the April issue of Nature Neuroscience. Experience with music at a young age can fine-tune the brain's auditory system, making music elementary classes vital, says Nina Kraus, the study's senior author. Science Daily Magazine (3/13)
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/03/070312152003.htm .
** Looking for information for “an entertaining case for creating an education system that nurtures creativity?” Please learn more by going to http://www.ted.com/tedtalks/tedtalksplayer.cfm?key=ken_robinson .
** April’s issue of Mathematics Teaching in the Middle School is dedicated to the connection of the Arts and Math. It has a variety of interdisciplinary units. Please go to http://my.nctm.org/eresources/toc.asp?journal_id=3
for each article.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
** Michele Kaschub, Ph.D., University of Southern Maine, is launching a graduate certificate program at USM for teaching music composition PreK-12 this summer. For more information go to http://www.composingtogether.com/ .
Quote for the day
The greater danger is not that our hopes are too high and we may fail to reach them. It is that they are too low and we do. –Michelangelo
