~Arts Education Program~

Idaho Parents Unlimited Inc.

208-342-5884 ~ ipulidaho.org

Creative Access, Artists In residence Program

Who we are~

Idaho Parents Unlimited is a non- profit organization that advocates and educates parents and families of children with disabilities and special health care needs in Idaho. Creative Accessis our arts education program targeted for children in pre-kindergarten through high school in public schools throughout Idaho. Residencies can take place in a variety of settings including general and special education classrooms and community centers. Each residency is uniquely designed to meet the needs of the student population. Our Artists in Residence program is modeled after VSANational Arts Education residencies, a program of Kennedy Center for the performing Arts. VSA, the international organization on arts and disability, was founded more than 35 years ago by Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith to provide arts and education opportunities for people with disabilities and increase access to the arts for all.

Through the support of the Idaho State Dept. of Education and the Kennedy Center we have been providing residencies in Idaho public schools for 20 years as a VSA affiliate. VSA is committed to providing arts education programming for people with disabilities around the world.Each year, 7 million people of all ages and abilities participate in VSA programs, in every aspect of the arts – from visual arts, performing arts, to the literary arts.

What we do~

This program brings teaching artists into schools for an in-depth arts education curriculum. Artists and teachers work together to achieve a schedule and teaching approach that best suit the needs of the students. The residencies require a minimum of 10 hours of direct instruction from the teaching artist in the medium of the artist’s expertise. Teaching artists’ residencies typically last 4-6 weeks, occur one or two days per week, with each session lasting for 1-2 hours. In some cases residencies can be condensed to a one or two week format if that is what works best for the artists and teacher. Residencies can include visual arts like painting, sculpture or pottery or be in performing arts areas such as dance, music and theater. All residencies conclude with an art show or performance to showcase the achievements of students for family, friends and classmates.Our teaching artists have great deal of experience both in their field as well as with teaching traditional and special needs students. Many are rostered with the Idaho Commission on the Arts and some artistshave disabilities themselves.

Why it’s important~

The benefits of arts education include creativity, problem solving and collaboration, exposure to cultural or historical concepts, dissolving barriers between student populations, increased skills, greater self-esteem, and personal outlet for expression. In addition studies show students display an increased knowledge of mathematic and artistic concepts. Common Core State Standards andTwentyFirst Century skills are imbedded in every residency.

All of our residencies incorporate principles of Universal Design for Learning

Why is UDL necessary?

Universal Design for Learning(UDL) is an educational framework based on research in the learning sciences, including cognitive neuroscience that guides the development of flexible learning environments that can accommodate individual learning differences.[1]

Individuals bring a huge variety of skills, needs, and interests to learning. Neuroscience reveals that these differences are as varied and unique as our DNA or fingerprints. Three primary brain networks come into play: The how,the what and the why of learning.Recognizing that the way individuals learn can be unique, the UDL framework, first defined by theCenter for Applied Special Technology(CAST) in the 1990s,[2]calls for creating curriculum from the outset that provides:

  • Multiple means of representationto give learners various ways of acquiring information and knowledge,
  • Multiple means of expressionto provide learners alternatives for demonstrating what they know, and
  • Multiple means of engagementto tap into learners' interests, challenge them appropriately, and motivate them to learn.[3][4]

UDL principles also lend themselves to implementing inclusionary practices in the classroom.

Residency guidelines, 2015-2016

  • A minimum of 10 hours of direct teaching contact with students by teaching artists.
  • A final project or performance at the end of the residency for friends, family and classmates.
  • Residencies must be signed by school principle.
  • Curriculum for residencies should be collaborated on between teacher and artist to meet the specialized needs of the students. The timelines and expectations/outcomes of residencies must also be discussed and agreed upon.
  • Artists will be paid upon the completion of the residency, including all paperwork submissions.
  • Residencies must be tied to student curriculum, address twenty first century skills and/or assist with the IEP goals of students.

For more information please contact Heather Kirk Skinner, Art Coordinator at Idaho Parents Unlimited. or 208-342-5884 x107