2015-271-E Arts - The Expedition School Arts Grant

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DocuSign Envelope ID:085A7E92-3BDD-46E2-AOA2-FF65COA4FOD6 Application Narrative The Expedition School 2014-2015 Arts in Education Grant School Profile Overvieit, The Expedition School (TES) is a public charter school in Hillsborough,NC, that opened its doors to its first students in August, 2014. Our school offers hands-on learning in all subjects for grades K-6 and will expand up to grade 8 over the first 3 years. The school's mission is to embrace the natural curiosity of children and empower them to become innovative problem solvers and community builders. TES provides a dynamic learning experience through an experiential, projectbased, and a science,technology, engineering, and math(STEM)-focused curriculum. More about Project-Based Learning: Children learn best when curriculum comes to life. Hands-on, integrated,project-based learning allows children to connect to big ideas and attach real world meaning to what they are learning. Instead of skimming the surface of a concept, children participating in project-based learning delve deeply into topics of study and are encouraged to ask questions, find answers, and take ownership of their learning. Students work individually and collaboratively on projects that build character and can make a difference, allowing them to develop respect and compassion for individuals, our community, and the global community. Schoolneeds There are 230 students enrolled at TES. We have a diverse community of students coming from Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Orange, Chatham,Durham,Alamance, Caswell, and Wake counties, The student body includes children of Asian,African-American, Hispanic, and Caucasian backgrounds. The Expedition School is in its first year of operation and currently has a very limited budget for dedicated arts programs. There is a true need for hands-on programs that can be integrated with the curriculum, in accordance with the school's commitment to project-based learning. We are fortunate to have a wonderful community of local artists and authors, who are willing to share their talents in the classroom and in doing so, inspire the next generation. School Arts Programs All TES students attend music class two to three times a week,taught by Cindy Glass,who also leads the middle school band. Formal art classes will be offered starting in August 2015, taught by Emily Thewlis; however, it should be emphasized that art is already an integral part of project-based learning across all disciplines. For instance,weekly homework assignments for the kindergarteners use art as a means to develop math or emerging literacy skills (e.g., children have been asked to identify and draw household items of varying geometric shapes, or to draw items that start with different letters of the alphabet). As an in-class example,the kindergarteners learned about music and principles of sound by making their own instruments using a variety of materials such as cardboard,rubber bands and empty containers. Our first and second graders have completed a variety of projects including a personal timeline on paper cut-outs of their bodies, a rain gauge as part of their introduction to meteorology and handmade cards to encourage donations to their food drive as they explore the concept of caring. In the third and fourth grade classrooms, students drew and painted their own