Arts Programming

Art is at the heart of Creative Arts. Our Arts Programming leads with creative joy and the belief that the arts are essential to a thriving life and community.

Our program invites our students to develop their craft through a variety of arts disciplines-dance, music, theater and visual arts. Additionally, we recognize that the arts supports our learners in the development of critical thinking, problem solving, and personal well-being.

With the arts at the core of our curriculum, we expect our students to:

Imagine their own possibilities and within situations they confront.
Think like artists- to envision, reflect, stretch and explore, and express themselves in authentic ways.
Make connections and build relationships within our school and greater San Francisco community-using the arts as to experience and
See art as a form of expression, as a tool for communication and healing.

Elementary School

From Kindergarten through 4th grade, students participate in studio art classes three times each week, 45 minutes a session, one each in visual arts, music, and dance. Beginning in 5th grade, students choose their top three choices in arts, including theater, and experience each of their choices for 45 minutes a session, per week.

Below is a video of one of our kindergarten students expressing themselves through joyful movement during dance class.

Middle School Artist Collective

From grades 6-8, students make a yearlong commitment to an artistic discipline-dance, music, theater or visual arts. Students propose their choice between the spring-summer prior to the upcoming academic year. Students meet three times a week, for 45 minutes per session. As a Middle School Artist Collective, students focus on the arts as rigorous disciplines essential to their personal development as caring, thoughtful, collaborative and social justice grounded learners.

Our studio approach in rooted in the Studio Habits of Mind, Making our Learning Visible, and the Arts as a joyful and Culturally Responsive and Anti-Racist practice:

The visual arts program focuses on the creation of individual fine-arts projects in a variety of media, introducing students to a rich array of materials, techniques, contemporary artists, and art history. These projects also maintain a focus on connecting to themes in the core classroom curriculum. Students are grounded in artistic play, experimentation and finding joy in creative work as individuals and collaborators. Ultimately, we strive to ensure that each student leads with their voice, and use their artmaking as a tool for self-expression, communication and connection to the world around them.
The music program takes a step-by-step approach to guide students toward an essential understanding of rhythm, ensembleship, and fundamental concepts and skills. From singing, game playing, and percussion in the lower grades, to the introduction of strings, winds, and jazz and rock instrumentation later on, students work together to learn and perform authentic projects, pieces, and compositions spanning various genres and historical contexts. The program centers the joy and love of the universal musical experience and strives to embody a culturally responsive, anti-racist educational approach.
The dance program nurtures all students’ unique way of expressing who they are through movement. In an environment of encouragement, consistency and mutual respect, student dancers are challenged both physically and creatively. Workshops are lively, exposing the children to a rich blend of jazz, hip-hop, ballet and creative movement to engage everyone and inspire imagination. Weekly workshops build toward a culmination performance in the Spring.

Guest Artists

We enrich our artistic thinking and understanding of community by connecting guest artists from the wider San Francisco art community to join us in hosting short-term workshops or residencies that expand the exposure of our K-8 student artists to different styles of art-making and contemporary art.

Our guest artists have included:

Experiential learning is an essential component of our arts programming, with field trips to museums, galleries, and artist studios. In addition, students attend concerts, dance performances, film festivals, and theater throughout the city, connecting classroom learning with art in the community.