Co-teaching at PS 229 in Queens: Teaching Artist Erin Orr (L) looks on as first grade teacher Jean Antoldi introduces her students’ puppetry show. Photo by: Brian Hatton Photography
We are delighted to announce that ArtsConnection has been the recipient of a $2.5 million U.S. Department of Education Assistance for Arts in Education Model Development and Dissemination grant for our Bridges Program. This grant is the 13th federal grant awarded to ArtsConnection since 2001.
This four-year grant will support Creating Bridges to Literacy Through the Arts. The goals of the program are to build capacity in educators to implement innovative Puppetry Arts for Literacy; to highlight the connections between arts education and literacy as a basis for professional development; and to publish comprehensive online curricula that will be accessible to a national audience.
The program will work with kindergarten, first and second grades in District 27 in Queens and will reach 60 classroom teachers and school administrators in 5 elementary schools and 1,500 students a year.
We expect that the results of this grant will have an impact on the teaching of the arts in early childhood education throughout the United States.