BYU Arts Bridge

BYU ARTS Bridge

Heather Francis, Arts Bridge Program Coordinator

This semester, the Arts Bridge Program at BYU has 25 university students—or arts scholars—providing arts education in elementary classrooms. Arts scholars are working with a coordinating classroom teacher and an assigned BYU faculty mentor, giving both BYU students and grade-level teachers a truly unique learning opportunity.

The arts scholars are working hard on their lesson plans, visiting their classrooms, and blogging about their experiences. Blogs provide ideas about arts-integrated lessons and invite everyone to follow their journies through the semester.

Here are some highlights from the blogs:

·      Arts scholar Savannah Angle and elementary music specialist Cheree Rowley from Westland Elementary in West Jordan coteach effectively. Ms. Rowley teaches her class for 10–15 minutes while Miss Savannah observes, and then Miss Savannah teaches her dance lesson for 30 minutes while Ms. Rowley observes. Both teachers serve one another by modeling practice in classroom management and art-specific instructional methods.

·      Casey Greenwood, drama scholar, invited the children in her fourth grade class at Sunset View Elementary to play the part of magician, knight, physician, or commoner to come up with a plan to save the princess—played by Wendy Bruce, their classroom teacher—­­­­who was being eaten by the dragon in their play.

·      Heidi Dimmick, coordinating teacher from Spanish Oaks Elementary school, has used Kristen Freeland’s blog to reflect and share the things she and her students have enjoyed about the music lessons they’ve participated in.

Thanks to the talented and dedicated arts scholars, coordinating teachers, and faculty mentors providing arts education to children in our schools. This year, approximately 650 children are benefitting from Arts Bridge, as are the 25 teachers and 25 future teachers.

See all the Arts Bridge scholars’ blogs below:

http://education.byu.edu/arts/arts_bridge