What Did You Do Over the Summer?
School is back in session, and as students return to buildings all over Western New York, they are asking each other the age-old question:
"What did you do over the summer?"
At Arts for Learning, we know the answer that many students throughout the region will give. With a July and August packed with free creative programming for young learners and their families, Arts for Learning provided opportunities for students to engage in arts programs in an incredible array of settings and contexts.
Check out a few of our highlights below!
Pool and Paint Pop-Ups
This year, we partnered with the City of Buffalo to deliver an exciting new series, Pool and Paint Pop-Ups, designed to get Buffalo residents to the pools and splash pads all around the city.
This series featured five Arts for Learning WNY Teaching Artists who delivered a total of six interactive workshops and performances on topics including:
Cyanotypes
Recycled Art
Interactive Dance Parties
Zentangles
Tie-Dye
Programs were delivered at five locations throughout the city’s network of pools and splash pads. Young learners and families had chances to make art and channel their creativity while enjoying the opportunity to cool off and beat the heat of summer!
Police Athletic League Summer Camp
This year marked a continuation of our ongoing collaboration with the Police Athletic League of Buffalo (PAL). Through this partnership, our Teaching Artists support elements of PAL’s summer camp programming.
This summer, Teaching Artist Kristin Brandt presented workshops at PAL’s Youth Opportunity Connect program, a series dedicated to helping middle and high school students grow, build essential skills, and prepare for jobs and internships in a supportive environment.
Through this collaboration, Arts for Learning supported PAL’s programming with a total of seven hour-long workshops at the Machnica Community Center.
Artpark Partnership
This summer also presented Arts for Learning with an opportunity to expand the public programming that we offer in Niagara County through a newly established collaboration with Artpark in Lewiston, NY.
Over the course of the summer, our Teaching Artists led programs as a part of two distinct Artpark programs: Wonder Wednesdays and Artcamp.
Wonder Wednesdays, a free weekly 2-hour sensory exploration through arts and creativity, consisted of eight total sessions geared toward children ages 2-5 and their caregivers. Exploring concepts and topics like the ocean, dinosaurs, magic, and the weather, this program provided families in Niagara County with a weekly opportunity for creative engagement.
Arts for Learning Teaching Artist presented four total workshops, bringing the weekly topics to life through story theatre, clay molding, and water colors.
Artcamp is a week-long program for students ages 9-14 that provides young artists with opportunities to engage with a variety of artistic disciplines over the course of five day-long sessions. Students develop their artistic skills and confidence in a supportive environment that encourages problem solving, communication, and collaboration.
Arts for Learning WNY Teaching Artist Laura Chenault introduced students at Artcamp to the incredible world of bookbinding through a series of workshops. These workshops provided students with an opportunity to discover bookbinding techniques and take home their own art.
Other Programming
In addition to the programs listed above, Teaching Artists from Arts for Learning spent the summer working with students at various libraries, schools, and other community centers.
Ongoing partnerships that saw Arts for Learning programs include those with Friends Inc. at Dorothy J. Collier Community Center, Clarence Youth Bureau, and branches of Buffalo & Erie County Public Library.
Arts for Learning is proud to offer a full summer calendar of arts-integrated programming throughout the region of Western New York!
If your family didn’t make it to any summer programs, don’t worry! With public programming that runs throughout the year and an online calendar that’s constantly being updated with exciting programs near you, we’ll be sure to see you at an event soon!
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