Techniques for brainstorming, collaborative project management, and individual artistic expression. Guides students through the iterative creative process from initial concept to final execution.
A high school art unit focused on creating massive, 'larger than life' sculptures using recycled cardboard, paper clay, and found objects. Students analyze contemporary environmental artists and master structural engineering and surface texture in 3D design.
A comprehensive 3D art unit that guides students from transforming recycled materials to mastering monumental scale, combining fine arts history with engineering and technical skill.
A comprehensive workshop sequence on goal setting and visual manifestation.
This project-based sequence takes students on a global tour as ethnomusicologists, examining how geography and culture influence musical instruments and sounds. Students classify instruments using the Hornbostel-Sachs system and explore rhythms and scales from Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
This sequence traces the evolution of contemporary music from 19th-century African American spirituals through the development of the Blues, Jazz, and Rock & Roll. Students investigate how cultural exchange, technology, and social struggles shaped the sounds we listen to today, culminating in a musical genealogy project.
A comprehensive playwriting sequence for 9th-grade students focused on dramatic architecture, taking them from structural analysis to drafting and staged readings of a ten-minute play.
An inquiry-based journey into the logic of pitch organization, covering the Grand Staff, major scale construction, the Circle of Fifths, relative minors, and sight-singing applications. Students use a 'decoding' lens to master the patterns that govern tonal music.
A project-based sequence where 7th-grade students act as community organizers to launch an arts advocacy campaign, moving from needs assessment to a final pitch.
Students explore relief printing using soft foam plates, focusing on positive and negative space, inking techniques, and pattern creation. The sequence culminates in a professional-style edition of prints and a gallery walk critique.
A comprehensive 7th-grade unit that integrates graphic design principles with the physical craft of screen printing. Students learn about typography, visual hierarchy, and composition while navigating the technical challenges of stencil-making and screen printing to create a persuasive poster series.
Students explore the evolution of instrumental music into the 20th and 21st centuries, focusing on non-traditional notation and extended techniques. The sequence covers major movements like serialism and minimalism, practical workshops on multiphonics and percussive effects, and project-based work with graphic scores.
A comprehensive 5-lesson sequence for 8th-grade music students focusing on the architectural, creative, and technical aspects of songwriting, culminating in a final portfolio-ready composition.
This sequence introduces students to the art of film scoring, focusing on how music influences emotional narrative. Students analyze case studies, create leitmotifs, explore orchestration, and practice synchronization before scoring their own short film clip.
A comprehensive 5-lesson sequence for 7th-grade students on the fundamentals of rhythm, exploring subdivision, syncopation, ostinatos, and polyrhythms, culminating in an original percussion ensemble composition.
A comprehensive graphic design simulation where students act as a design agency to develop a full brand identity. They progress from analyzing logo symbolism and interpreting client briefs to digital vectorization and presenting a professional brand style guide.
A comprehensive introduction to graphic design where students explore color psychology, master vector tools, and create a cohesive brand identity through logo design and typography.
Students step into the role of a professional graphic designer to develop a comprehensive brand identity for a fictional client. This project-based sequence simulates a real-world design workflow, moving from analyzing client needs to brainstorming, prototyping, and refining a final logo system.
This sequence explores the foundational principles of theatrical improvisation, focusing on the 'Yes, And' rule, CROW (Character, Relationship, Objective, Where), object work, and status dynamics. Students will build ensemble trust and spontaneity through a variety of workshop games and simulations, culminating in a short-form improv performance.
This sequence focuses on improvisation and ensemble building, teaching students to think quickly and collaborate creatively. The arc moves from basic rule-setting (Yes, And) to active listening and reacting in the moment. Students learn to build scenes cooperatively without a script, focusing on maintaining character and narrative logic.
A high school sequence exploring the shift from traditional ballet to modern dance through five key movements: Duncan's naturalism, Graham's psychological depth, Cunningham's chance operations, Judson Dance Theater's pedestrianism, and Bausch's Tanztheater. Students engage in both physical workshops and intellectual analysis to understand art as a reaction to its time.
A comprehensive music technology unit where middle and high school students master digital audio production and collaborate to produce a multi-grade showcase concert, bridging the gap between classroom creation and public performance.
A high school visual arts sequence focusing on mastering colored pencil techniques, specifically layering, blending, and creating three-dimensional value. Students will progress from basic mechanics to rendering realistic forms with depth and vibrancy.
This sequence explores the representation of apes in the film 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes', focusing on the transition from scientific subjects to sentient leaders. Students analyze the use of motion-capture technology and narrative techniques used to humanize non-human characters.
This sequence investigates how the technological explosion of the 20th and 21st centuries, from the electric guitar to AI, redefined music genres and creation. Students analyze production techniques, listen for layers, and explore the concept of technology as a musical instrument.
Students learn to translate narrative fiction into dramatic scripts by analyzing storytelling modes, converting internal thoughts to external actions, and drafting their own theatrical adaptations of fables.
A technical foundation for playwriting, moving from critical analysis of dramatic structure and subtext to the mastery of professional industry formatting standards and scene composition.
This project-based sequence guides students through the structural engineering of a narrative, moving from a raw premise to a developed one-act play. Students analyze the dramatic arc and apply these concepts to their own original scripts, focusing on pacing, high-stakes storytelling, and professional formatting.
This sequence guides 9th-grade students through the technical and creative aspects of playwriting, from professional script formatting to mastering character voice, subtext, and pacing. Students will conclude the unit by drafting a polished two-character conflict scene.
This sequence guides 8th-grade students through the complexities of musical time, covering simple and compound meters, sixteenth note subdivisions, syncopation, and polyrhythms, culminating in a rhythmic composition project. Students will develop skills in rhythmic analysis, notation, and performance to understand how time organization shapes musical genre and emotion.
A comprehensive high school music theory sequence focused on advanced rhythmic notation, metric organization, and the transition from simple to complex time signatures. Students will analyze, transcribe, and compose music using syncopation, tuplets, and asymmetrical meters.
Students step into the shoes of a set designer to transform a written script into a physical world through script analysis, floor planning, mood boards, and 3D model construction. The sequence emphasizes how visual choices in color, texture, and space support the storytelling.
This 9th-grade sequence moves beyond art appreciation to explore the economic and policy frameworks of the arts sector. Students analyze funding models, historical controversies, grant writing, and urban policy, culminating in a mock legislative session on arts advocacy.
A high school sequence exploring the intersection of digital design and traditional printmaking. Students learn to bridge vector precision with analog texture through zine production and professional practice.
This sequence explores how musicians work together as an ensemble, focusing on conducting cues, dynamic control, balance, and tempo maintenance. Students transition from following a leader to collaborating in small independent groups.
A 5-lesson sequence for 8th-grade music students focusing on musical arrangement, genre-based production, and the technical elements that define musical style. Students act as producers, transforming simple melodies into diverse genres like Hip Hop, Rock, and EDM.
This sequence explores the mechanics of commercial songwriting, focusing on the structural patterns and lyrical techniques used in hit music. Students will move from analyzing song forms and prosody to crafting original hooks and bridges, culminating in a professional-style peer critique.
This sequence immerses students in the professional workflow of creating a cohesive visual identity, focusing specifically on the interplay between typography, color theory, and layout. Students progress from conceptual sketching and mood boarding to digital rendering and refinement of a logomark and accompanying marketing asset.
An 8-session sports broadcasting course for grades 4–12, covering play-by-play, color analysis, interviewing, and technical production. Students move from foundational commentary to producing a full capstone broadcast segment.
An 8-session sports broadcasting course for grades 4–12, covering play-by-play, color commentary, interviewing, camera work, audio mixing, and live production directing. Students progress from foundational vocal skills to a complete capstone broadcast project.
A 5-lesson sequence for 9th-grade students exploring the birth and evolution of modern dance, from Isadora Duncan's natural movement to Alvin Ailey's social commentary. Students will analyze key figures, practice foundational techniques, and create their own choreographic manifestos.
An inquiry-based exploration of dance as a language of storytelling and ritual in indigenous cultures, focusing on gesture, formation, regalia, and rhythm.
A journey through the history of classical dance, exploring how power, fashion, and social hierarchy shaped the movement styles of the Renaissance and Baroque eras into the formalized art of ballet. Students will move from court etiquette to the technical rigor of King Louis XIV's court, analyze Romantic era narratives, and create their own codified dance systems.
A 5-lesson unit exploring how dance served as the primary form of communication and history-keeping before written language, investigating Hawaiian, Greek, and West African traditions.
This sequence explores collaboration through the lens of specialized roles within a multimedia project. Students transition from generalists to specialists, learning how interdependence and trust between a Writer, Visual Artist, Sound Designer, and Director are essential for creating a cohesive digital narrative.
A middle school theater and creative thinking unit focused on building trust, active listening, and collaborative agility through improvisational techniques. Students progress from basic focus exercises to devising and performing original ensemble pieces.
A 5-lesson sequence where students learn the art of collaboration by designing and executing a large-scale mural, moving from individual brainstorming to collective creation.
