The walls of Newhall Elementary School were full of colorful art pieces, dancing, music, and theater performances as the Newhall School District held its annual Celebration of the Arts.
Students from across all 10 of the district’s schools came together last week to admire and celebrate the art pieces that they had been working on throughout the school year, said Chad Rose, director of instruction, assessment and accountability.
In addition to the students displaying their art projects, the Newhall Family Theatre had a ballet de folklorico performance from the students enrolled in the dual-language immersion program. Students of the Walnut Players Theater showed off their theater skills in the Newhall Family Theatre and chorus students from music programs across the district sang, said Rose.
Throughout the year, art teachers will assign their students different projects and show them different skills to make what is presented at the event, Rose added.
“They learn about hot and cool colors, different shading and perspectives. They learn about famous artists and their artistic styles, and they create projects that mirror their artistic style. And many of the lessons are even tied to the curricular they are learning in other content areas,” said Rose.
He added that the true highlight of the evening was seeing how excited the students were when they got to show off to the friends and family in a “professional” setting.
“They talked about how they made the artwork, how it made them feel, and what they learned from it,” said Rose. “It was really cool to listen to the students share what they know and what they learned with their parents. The parents were so proud. They were kind of like, ‘Wow,’ they know we have an art program, but they don’t understand the depth and complexity of what the kids really learn.”
For the students, the event is a way to not only show what they learned and the skills they have developed but also can be a way for them to show off their passions and how they interpret the world around them.
The displays included paintings and drawings, and scale models of their own classrooms that included details down to the names on the white boards and the color paint of the ceilings and the desks.
“At these ages, students are learning what interests them, and what they enjoy. And you have students who love to read, love to write, and reading and writing, of course, is an essential component of core learning in schools,” said Rose. “But we also recognize in our district that the art is also a core learning for kids, and the more they are exposed to a young age, the more they can develop those talents … and they can pursue those as they move into future learning in junior high, high school and beyond.”
Rose added that the district is very proud of the art programs across its schools and appreciates the teachers for always helping put together an amazing event for the students.
