~Arts Education Program~
Idaho Parents Unlimited Inc.
208-342-5884 ~ ipulidaho.org
Creative Access, Artists In residence Program
Who we are~
Idaho Parents Unlimited is a non- profit organization that advocates and educates parents and
families of children with disabilities and special health care needs in Idaho. Creative Access is
our arts education program targeted for children in pre-kindergarten through high school in
public schools throughout Idaho. Residencies can take place in a variety of settings including
general and special education classrooms and community centers. Each residency is uniquely
designed to meet the needs of the student population. Our Artists in Residence program is
modeled after VSA National Arts Education residencies, a program of Kennedy Center for the
performing Arts. VSA, the international organization on arts and disability, was founded more
than 35 years ago by Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith to provide arts and education
opportunities for people with disabilities and increase access to the arts for all.
Through the support of the Idaho State Dept. of Education and the Kennedy Center we have been
providing residencies in Idaho public schools for 20 years as a VSA affiliate. VSA is committed
to providing arts education programming for people with disabilities around the world. Each
year, 7 million people of all ages and abilities participate in VSA programs, in every aspect of
the arts – from visual arts, performing arts, to the literary arts.
What we do~
This program brings teaching artists into schools for an in-depth arts education curriculum.
Artists and teachers work together to achieve a schedule and teaching approach that best suit the
needs of the students. The residencies require a minimum of 10 hours of direct instruction from
the teaching artist in the medium of the artist’s expertise. Teaching artists’ residencies typically
last 4-6 weeks, occur one or two days per week, with each session lasting for 1-2 hours. In some
cases residencies can be condensed to a one or two week format if that is what works best for the
artists and teacher. Residencies can include visual arts like painting, sculpture or pottery or be in
performing arts areas such as dance, music and theater. All residencies conclude with an art
show or performance to showcase the achievements of students for family, friends and
classmates. Our teaching artists have great deal of experience both in their field as well as with
teaching traditional and special needs students. Many are rostered with the Idaho Commission on
the Arts and some artists have disabilities themselves.
Why it’s important~
The benefits of arts education include creativity, problem solving and collaboration, exposure to
cultural or historical concepts, dissolving barriers between student populations, increased skills,
greater self-esteem, and personal outlet for expression. In addition studies show students display
an increased knowledge of mathematic and artistic concepts. Common Core State Standards and
Twenty First Century skills are imbedded in every residency.
http://www.sde.idaho.gov/site/humanities/
All of our residencies incorporate principles of Universal Design for Learning
Why is UDL necessary?
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an educational framework based on research in the
learning sciences, including cognitive neuroscience that guides the development of flexible
learning environments that can accommodate individual learning differences.[1]
Individuals bring a huge variety of skills, needs, and interests to learning. Neuroscience reveals
that these differences are as varied and unique as our DNA or fingerprints. Three primary brain
networks come into play: The how, the what and the why of learning. Recognizing that the way
individuals learn can be unique, the UDL framework, first defined by the Center for Applied
Special Technology(CAST) in the 1990s,[2] calls for creating curriculum from the outset that
provides:
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Multiple means of representation to give learners various ways of acquiring information
and knowledge,
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Multiple means of expression to provide learners alternatives for demonstrating what they
know, and
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Multiple means of engagement to tap into learners' interests, challenge them
appropriately, and motivate them to learn.[3][4]
UDL principles also lend themselves to implementing inclusionary practices in the classroom.
Residency guidelines, 2015-2016
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A minimum of 10 hours of direct teaching contact with students by teaching artists.
A final project or performance at the end of the residency for friends, family and
classmates.
Residencies must be signed by school principle.
Curriculum for residencies should be collaborated on between teacher and artist to
meet the specialized needs of the students. The timelines and expectations/outcomes
of residencies must also be discussed and agreed upon.
Artists will be paid upon the completion of the residency, including all paperwork
submissions.
Residencies must be tied to student curriculum, address twenty first century skills and/or
assist with the IEP goals of students.
For more information please contact Heather Kirk Skinner, Art Coordinator at Idaho Parents
Unlimited. [email protected] or 208-342-5884 x107