Young Audiences, Woodruff Arts Center is excited to announce open enrollment for the smART stART Program for the 2011- 2012 school year!

This means that 15 Georgia elementary schools could have the opportunity to take part in this exciting arts-integrated literacy program. As one of the signature programs of Young Audiences, Woodruff Arts Center, smART stART has helped 18 schools, 94 classrooms, and over 2,000 students develop essential reading‐readiness skills using a hands‐on, arts‐integrated approach that is delivered by one of Young Audiences’ professional teaching artists. smART stART residencies align with and support Georgia Performance Standards in English Language Arts & Reading and in Fine Arts.

Apply by May, 27 2011!

Click Here to Apply

The Three Little Pigs

Amy Alderman, Mattie Wells Primary's site coordinator, said the ‘smART stART’ program has been beneficial to her students. “I was so impressed that my students could easily remember the new art vocabulary and use it in their conversations with others. They were so excited each day to go to class and enjoyed retelling the stories we learned,” Alderman said. “On the final day, my class made a movie of the students retelling the final story. The movie really showed how much the students had learned during the two weeks.” Alderman said it is her hope that the grant will be available again and that Wells Elementary can apply for the grant again next year.

To read more about this story in the Jones County News CLICK HERE

smART stART at Dunleith Continued!

Dunleith students are at it again! Teaching Artist, Pam Beagle-Daresta, is captivating students' imagination using the visual arts. Spending eight sessions with five of Dunleith's kindergarten classrooms, Pam has reinforced the GA Standard, retelling a story; beginning, middle, and end through her artform. The students are working with watercolor, markers, and other materials to create the sequence of a bear's hibernation. They started with the beginning, sketching the animal eating. Next, the students created the end with the bear waking up. Finally, they constructed the middle with the bear dreaming. They were able to draw what they believed the bear was dreaming about. Stories and discussions complete the learning experience in the classroom. The students will share their stories at the end of their residency.

Earn PLU's with smART stART !

Young Audiences, Woodruff Arts Center is proud to announce we are now a vendor for Professional Learning Units! Many smART stART programs have begun , but the opportunity is still available for those participating teachers who would like to acquire 1 PLU (10 hours) toward their certification. The Georgia Department of Education is on a 5 year “pause” which does not require PLU’s for recertification. Once the five years are complete, Professional Learning Units will, once again, be needed to maintain certification. This is a great opportunity to earn credit for a PLU that may be needed in the future. Lastly, Young Audiences, Woodruff Arts Center will keep records of completion if documentation is needed in the future.

smART stART Featured in Atlanta Parent Magazine!

“Paintbrushes for Pencils” features Young Audiences, Woodruff Arts Center and our smART stART and Arts for Learning Lessons programs!

Susan McQuade participated in an interview with the writer (Melanie Wagner) and she is quoted throughout the article. Melanie also interviewed YAWAC artist Karin Mervis while she was doing smART stART at McEver Arts Academy last year. All of the pictures on pages 64 and 65 (starting on page 75 online) are from Young Audiences and feature our 2010 smART stART program.

This is fantastic coverage of YAWAC and our literacy suite programs.
Atlanta Parent Magazine can be found all over town – including here at Woodruff. Make sure you get yourself a copy to share with your friends and coworkers.

To see the complete January 2011 Edition be sure to click HERE

Let the Road Trip Begin...

Let the good times roll! This January, 13 of Young Audiences, Woodruff Arts Center teaching artists will be taking arts and education on the road to 18 Georgia elementary schools. During the next 3 months 94 kindergarten classrooms will be retelling stories through various art forms! Over 2,040 kindergarten students will learning about narrative elements as wells as fundamentals of art. As we get closer to going live, please be sure to check in and keep up on the amazing progress made by some of the schools.

Ready... Set... smART stART!

On November 15th, 2010 there was a whole lot of sharing and learning taking place in the Circle Room at the Woodruff Center. All of the 18 participating smART stART Site Coordinators came from all over the state of Georgia to meet with their Teaching Artist to officially begin the smART stART program. Among the topics discussed were assessment, unit plans for their residency, and arts integrated strategies for teaching literacy to young students. Site Coordinators were introduced to arts based approaches in all of the major artistic disciplines – Theatre, Dance, Visual Arts and Music. All sessions were facilitated by YA staff and YA Teaching Artists making for a hands on fun filled day. The enthusiasm shared by all of the participants helped brighten up the rainy day making the second fall smART stART workshop a success! Thanks to all of those who participated.