June 5, 2020
as told by our favorite Art Coach, Bruce Hucko The Performance This really needs to be experienced in person. We have a video and it’s wonderful, but it’s just not the same as having been there in Ms. Sheila’s music room, which had been converted, quite simply, easily and indeed, magically, into a hybrid theatrical performance space and African ceremonial plaza laying deep in the jungle. The background was hung. Stage sides were set. Drums, Xylophones and other instruments were placed. Characters held their dance masks. Introductions were made. Everyone took their place. Actors, parents, and audience held their breath. […]
May 11, 2020
Debbie Beninati, BTSALP Music specialist at Sandy Elementary School in Canyons School district wrote two original songs and one original rap for a production of The Day the Crayons Quit. Students in the after school program did the rest: staging, casting, orchestrating on Orff instruments, painting protest signs for the crayons to carry, and creating art work that accompanied the story. Their only “script” was the text of the story, The Day the Crayons Quit , by Drew Daywalt. Safe to say it was a SMASH HIT!
March 16, 2020
Education is much more than just academic achievement. The classroom needs to be a place where students can learn about themselves as well as the world around them. Integrating the arts into the core curriculum is a proven strategy for helping to address all the needs of students. In elementary schools, arts-integrated learning has been shown to improve students’ social, emotional, core academic, and arts learning. Art Works for Kids is happy to announce the new and improved Lesson Plan Tool is up and running! Lesson plans for all grade levels, art forms and subject matter are available for your […]
March 1, 2020
Sunshine 2.0 is a professional traveling theater troupe based at Rochester Institute of Technology’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) in Rochester, New York. The troupe provides performances and activities for deaf and hard-of-hearing children and adults that highlight the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math (STEaM), as well as educational topics pertaining to the Deaf experience. The theater troupe travels to schools, and programs serving deaf and hard-of-hearing students, colleges, museums, conferences, civic groups, festivals and other venues. Performances are presented in voice and in American Sign Language, are accessible to all audience members and cover […]
December 16, 2019
First graders at Monte Vista Elementary School in Jordan School District, under the direction of BTSALP Music Specialist, Amanda Maloy, presented a musical and visual extravaganza for parents and students!!!! All the students in the five first grade classrooms participated in the performance. Amanda wrote the script and directed the first graders in a rollicking good show! See for yourself!
December 9, 2019
Robert Smith, BTSALP Art Coach in Alpine School District, led Ms. Decker’s 5th grade class through an integrated lesson using the book, The Mountain Dance by Thomas Locker. He started by having students close their eyes and listen to a Beethoven selection that complemented the wonderful illustrations in the book. Students listed words that described the music such as happy, intense, adventurous, calming and relaxing. He then read the book to the students, pausing at certain passages for the students to visualize the words being read. The class then discussed the vivid verbs and interesting adverbs they found in the […]
October 21, 2019
Spencer and Camilla Duncan are BTSALP Drama specialists and . . . they are also husband and wife! Spencer teaches at Copper Canyon Elementary and Elk Meadows Elementary in the Jordan School District while Camilla is at Edgemont Elementary and Park Lane Elementary in the Canyons School District. Spencer’s sixth grade class Copper Canyon have been studying and acting out the Egyptian myth of Osiris during drama class this month. Below is a short synopsis of the Egyptian myth. The Osiris myth is the most elaborate and influential story in ancient Egyptian mythology. It concerns the murder of the god Osiris, a primeval king of Egypt, […]
April 1, 2019
The University of Utah, College of Fine Arts, presented their ArtsLink 2019 conference on Saturday, March 2nd. ArtsLink is free to students and is a daylong introduction into the wonderful world of arts integration. Plus breakfast, lunch, swag bags, and lesson plans for all! It was a fun day filled with art making and educational conversation. Breakout sessions, integrating the beautiful book, Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth, by Oliver Jeffers, were held in the four art forms of Dance, Drama, Music and Visual Arts. Dance with Jana Shumway: “Here We Are” on the LAND THAT WE […]
March 29, 2019
Guest Blogger: Rachel Zumaya Drama Specialist at Suncrest Elementary School, Alpine School District Pantomime /ˈpan(t)əˌmīm/ nouna dramatic entertainment, originating in Roman mime, in which performers express meaning through gestures accompanied by music. In the Drama space at Suncrest Elementary School, students have been learning about pantomime and how tableaus can tell stories. 2nd graders learned to do “the rope” and had a pantomime Tug-O-War that they acted our for their class. The 5th grade also did a Tug-O-War activity integrating the Underground Railroad and the Salem Witch Trials with drama skills. 3rd graders worked on a collaborative project where they […]
March 9, 2019
BTSALP Student performers advocated for continuing funding for Arts Education at the Utah State Capitol. Student artwork was displayed and students performed musical numbers, theater and dance productions. Thank you student advocates. Thank you Utah State Legislators.
February 21, 2019
BTSALP has known this for a long time!! Glad the rest of the world is catching on! Here’s an article from INC. The Benefits of Playing Music. Music helps your brain more than any other activity, and learning an instrument increases resilience to age-related decline in hearing. Find out what Chalkbeat has to say – Extra arts education boosts students’ writing scores — and their compassion.
January 15, 2019
Jean Gardner, BTSALP Dance Specialist at Meadowlark Elementary School, and her students are Happy to Dance and Happy to Learn! The First Graders learned all about the process of plant growth through dance. Third Graders combined the study of Australian Folk Tales and the phases of the moon. Upper Grades studied and danced ratios and rates using hand and leg movements. They also created a dance inspired by the artwork of Jean Michel Basquiat and the words of Maya Angelou’s poem, Life Doesn’t Frighten Me.
October 3, 2018
Don’t miss out on these exciting opportunities available to you, several at minimal or no cost! The Arts Engage Saturday workshops at UVU still have openings. Join the best presenters in the area for Drama, Dance, Music, Visual Art or Robotics workshops. Visit this website to sign up. Class meets October 13, November 10, January 26, February 23, March 16 and April 13. (There will be a make up for the Sept 15 class for those needing USBE credit.) Evening For Educators information and registration can be found here. October 3rd 6:00-9:00 at BYU University of Utah College of Fine Arts ArtsLINK Mini Conference Friday, October 5, 12:30-2:30 at […]
September 25, 2018
Here is a list, by art form, of all of the lesson plans and files, based on the book Locomotive by Brian Floca, from the 2018 BTSALP Statewide Conference.
May 21, 2018
Art Nights, Musical Performances, Theater Productions are what make Springtime in BTSALP schools the best time of the school year! Join the celebration by reading our current newsletter. North Elementary in Iron County, a STEM Partner school with Southern Utah University, held their STEAM Night highlighting Math and Science integration. BTSALP Visual Arts Specialist: Lori Wrankle. Lomond View Elementary, Weber School District, BTSALP Visual Arts Specialist: Mendy Reese North Ogden Elementary, Weber School District, BTSALP Visual Arts Specialist: Alisa Webb Ogden School District Elementary Arts Festival Artwork from James Madison and Horace Mann, BTSALP Visual Arts Specialist: Brent Rhodes and Lincoln, Polk, and […]
April 13, 2018
You won’t believe what the BTBALP students and specialists in the Weber State University region have been up to! Click here to see excellent arts integration in action! GreenWood Charter School Community Mural with Second Grade Lydia Stewart, Visual Art Specialist The second graders at GreenWood Charter had an expedition where they painted a mural along the Ogden River Trail. To prepare, they took a close look at the artist James Rizzi and created a rough draft of the mural on paper, which was posted in the school. They used the paper mural as a template for the design of their final product North Ogden & Hooper Elementary Schools […]
March 25, 2018
Students in BTSALP schools all over the state have been busy connecting curriculum to all four art forms. Click here to see our amazing students drawing, dancing, singing and acting in this month’s newsletter. Wayne Geary, Visual Art Specialist at Rose Park Elementary School, and Louise Fischman, artist and therapeutic art educator, spent the summer of 2017 exploring and absorbing the culture and art of the Canadian First Nations along the Northwest coast of Canada. This trip was like a “master class” in the design process of totem poles and their meanings. Wayne and Louise collaborated with Robin Raine, school counselor, to develop a long term […]
February 23, 2018
It’s time to celebrate – the arts in Utah and the Winter Olympic games. See BTSALP students perform Hamilton: The Making of a Patriot at the Utah State Capitol during Arts Day on the Hill. Do you know what an armature is? Fourth Grade students at South Summit Elementary School do! Learn all about their artistic process and check out their sculptures depicting Olympic sports. Read all this and more in the current newsletter. Click here to see videos on our Facebook page of Summit Academy Bluffdale’s performance of Hamilton: The Making of a Patriot. Arts Day on the Hill The 2018 […]
January 29, 2018
Thank you to our Utah State legislators for their continued support of the Beverley Taylor Sorenson Arts Learning Program. Read all about the opera, Lost on Skull Island, and integrated visual art on display at the 2018 legislative luncheon. Click here. Legislative Luncheon Tuesday, January 2, 2018 | 12:00 – 1:30 pm Fourth grade students from Iron Springs Elementary School in Cedar City, Utah left home at 6:00 am to perform Lost On Skull Island, an opera written and produced by the students themselves. There were even parts written especially for their classroom teacher and the principal of Iron Springs. Art From BTSALP Schools On Display For […]
September 28, 2017
The Beverley Taylor Sorenson Arts Learning Program has expanded! Meet some of our specialists as they go “Back to School” for 2017-2018. Enjoy learning more about our program and these amazing and talented educators. Click here to read all about it!
April 27, 2017
“Of all of the arts, drama involves the participant most fully: intellectually, emotionally, physically, verbally, and socially.” See what kind of “drama” the young BTSALP thespians from all over the state have created! Click here to read all about it.
November 15, 2016
Music, Dance and Drama integrated instruction are essential for elementary school aged students. These art forms help children learn the following: establish a positive learning state create a desired atmosphere build a sense of anticipation energize learning activities change brain wave states focus concentration increase attention improve memory facilitate a multisensory learning experience release tension enhance imagination align groups develop rapport provide inspiration and motivation add an element of fun accentuate theme-oriented units Read our latest newsletter for information about Music, Dance and Drama in some of our BTSALP schools. Click here to read.
May 26, 2016
With the end of the school year approaching, everyone wants to “show off.” Celebrate the arts with BTSALP schools from around the state in our latest newsletter. Click here to read all about it.
April 28, 2016
Infuse art! Change our world! The second annual free statewide ArtsLINK conference took place on Saturday, March 25, 2016 at the Beverley Taylor Sorenson Arts and Education Complex on the University of Utah campus. Learn all about this conference in the latest BTSALP newsletter.
April 14, 2016
This week’s newsletter shows us the power of using Drama and Theatre productions in the classroom. Then the landscapes and natural beauty of Utah are highlighted in visual art projects created by visual art specialist, Bruce Hucko and his BTSALP students from the Moab area. Click here to learn more…