We need to add an “A” for art to the national STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education agenda and turn it to STEAM, writes guest columnist John Maeda.

John Maeda is president of Rhode Island School of Design and the author of “The Laws of Simplicity and Redesigning Leadership,” which expands on his Twitter feed at @johnmaeda

By John Maeda

Special to The Seattle Times

I tell people that I am a native of Seattle, but that I only knew it before it became cool. The creative economy hadn’t really happened yet — Boeing was the booming Microsoft equivalent back then; there was nascent grunge music and no coffee culture to speak of.

But amid the rain, and the fog, and the rain, and the rain, Seattle was home to the beginning of my journey traversing the fields of technology, art and design.

Eighteen years later on my journey, my foremost conclusion is that there is great power in these fields taken separately, and even more when they are put together. It’s why I believe we need to add an “A” for art to the national STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) education agenda — to turn it to STEAM. Read more →

Watch How Smart Can We Get? on PBS. See more from NOVA scienceNOW.

This is a great series about what it means to be smart. What were the circumstances that grew Einstein’s brain?

Nurture creates nature vs. nature creates nurture. The hypothesis is that playing a musical instrument (the Violin in Einstein’s Case) helps to access intuition.

How creativity and creative thought manifests ways of conceptualizations that can be attributed to problem solving. The actual act of creating art and focus on problem solving allows people to enter the “Zone”

Thus allowing for processes to appear, emerge to the top and to access other intelligences and perhaps intuition itself. Musicians that learn to play an Instrument as a young person developed “bumps” on the brain that may increase intuitive thought.

Growing the brain is important and to keep it in shape mandatory.

There are several classes being offered for adults at the North Valley and Highland Senior Centers. Please see our web page and sign up. You can pay for the class online or come to class and pay. Please remember to sign up if you are interested. We try to have at least 3 people and the  limit is 8 people per class. Classes may cancel if we do not have the attendance needed. Whether you are experienced or a beginner you are welcome. Depending on the experience of the class each lesson will be geared towards the students interest.

The workshops covers primarily landscape painting however, if you are interested in figurative work I can work with you on your projects. Consider working on at least two painting while in attendance.

If you have take the program before come back and work on another project.

Below are the links for the North Valley Senior Center fliers:

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Below are the links for the Highland Senior Center fliers:

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Remember to sign up so we know that you are interested in the program.

Registration for the Born to Draw Saturday Morning Classes Begin on Saturday January 26 for the first Session.

Born to Draw Saturday Mornings

Jacob age 11 completed charcoal drawing is the Summer Session of Born to Draw

2 sessions:  Total length of class time 2 hours including set up and clean up

Session 1: January 26 – March 2, 2012 10 am – 12 noon

Session 2: March 23 – April 27, 2012 10 am – 12 noon

Read more →

Happy Holidays!

I hope you join us in the new year to support Visual Literacy and the Born to Draw Art Program

Regards

Elaine Cimino

ElaineCiminoStudios.com

Schools draw on the community to bring art and music to students.

BY EDUTOPIA STAFF

Almost every one of us can point back to a creative pursuit, in or out of school, that enhanced our skills, knowledge, or understanding. Yet the majority of secondary school students in the United States aren’t required to enroll in arts courses, many elementary schools nationwide lack art classes or activities, and arts and music instruction is often the first thing to go when schools feel the pressure to improve test scores. Read more →

http://www.edutopia.org/stw-arts-integration-resources-lesson-plans#graph1

I suggest that teachers and homeschooling parents check out edutopia if you have not already. there is a wealth of information on integrating art into core studies.

Edutopia’s Schools That Work series profiles K-12 schools, districts, and programs that are dramatically improving the way students learn. Focusing on evidenced-based successes, we create how-to videos and actionable tip lists to help you transform your schools. We get close to the teachers, students, principals, and other administrators who have changed the future of their schools, and show you how they did it.

These educators also share their resources — rubrics, lesson plans, assessments, and training tools that will help you build your own successes.

And one more thing: We connect you with teachers and administrators from around the country who are collaborating to make similar improvements in education.

Are you using mLearning to present core studies to your Classrooms? If so, you should check out the Born To Draw digital learning resources. Our program includes professional development training and offers a website membership subscription that gives secure access to all the resources on the Born To Draw website. This helps integrate art education into core studies and gives children a chance to learn to draw.

Mobile devices such as the Apple iPad, iPhone, are an investment into the achievement gap by offering digital educational curriculum, presentation and interaction into the learning environment. More digital learning resources are now being offered, such as my products for integrating art education for common core learning or offering art education as required.

The Born To Draw digital learning products are definitely a niche offering. I cannot begins to compete with the likes of Scholastic or other the corporations. Read more →

By Caleb Jacobo, Guest Writer

Creative Commons 4.0 Attributions

Nation of Change photo Credit Creative Commons 4.0 Attributions

With my daughter soon to be entering the public school system, I’ve become more and more concerned with the quality of exposure to the arts that our public schools provide for our children. That includes music classes, drama clubs, and any other ‘extra-curricular’ activity that is suffering from budget cuts. Read more →