Creativity is a fundamentally human resource that is essential to innovation and problem solving. It engages us to think in new ways. It is the engine that drives progress. It is no wonder that it is one of the most highly coveted skills that employers look for when hiring!

Seattle artist Ginny Ruffner says in her book, Creativity: The Flowering Tornado, “Creativity is equal parts of thought and action. Like a battery, creativity recharges itself and grows stronger with use. When it’s used often, creativity becomes a force that can’t be stopped from blossoming.” 

The arts nurture the development of creativity. Classrooms that teach the arts are in full bloom imagining the possibilities . . .

For more ideas:

How to Be Creative: 6 Secrets Backed By Research by Eric Barker

How to Raise Creative Children: a video featuring Adam Grant, University of Pennsylvania Wharton School

Thank you for all that you do in service of the arts in education,

Janet Hayakawa, Program Supervisor
The Arts - Dance, Media Arts, Music, Theatre, and Visual Arts
Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction
Janet.Hayakawa@k12.wa.us
Office: 360-725-4966             
Cell/Text: 360-764-6157

Art by: O. Ramirez  "A Subtle Reverie" (Recipient of OSPI Superintendent's Choice Award of 2009 Art Show) 

The 47^th Annual Regional School Art Shows

For the past few months, high school students from all nine WA State Educational Service Districts (ESDs) have been submitting their artwork for the 47^th annual regional art shows. These young visual artists will have their amazing artwork displayed in recognition and awards ceremonies given by their ESD’s. Contact the ESD for more information. 

• ESD 114 Bremerton: March 2
• ESD 123 Pasco: March 4 
• ESD 105 Yakima: March 12 
• ESD 171 Wenatchee: March 14
• ESD 189 Anacortes: March 17
• ESD 121 Renton: March 18 
• ESD 112 Vancouver: March 18
• ESD 101 Spokane: March 19
• ESD 113 Tumwater: March 25

Finalists from these regional art shows will send their artwork to the Superintendent’s High School Art Show, where several exemplary pieces will be recognized.  To see winners from previous years, click here.

Art by: T. Miller  "Soup" (Recipient of WAEA Award 2009 Art Show) 

Civics and Film: Join the Future Voters Project and Get a Free Film Kit

The Future Voters Project is on a mission to register all eligible students by the time they graduate high school. To join this cause, click here, and learn more about the resources available to start registering future voters as well as finding grants to support your voter registration projects. A film kit which includes a viewer’s guide and DVD of the popular documentary Selma: The Bridge to the Ballot is free of charge.

The Future Voters Project is a program within Teaching Tolerance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting social justice and anti-bias education in the teaching community through the four domains of identity, diversity, justice and action.

21^st Century Revival of West Side Story integrates Media

Classic 1957 musical, West Side Story meets the 21^st Century. Watch this "60 Minutes" story on how this amazing Broadway production combines new and contemporary dance numbers with a modern media twist to reimagine an unforgettable classic and captivate a new generation of audiences.

To watch the video and learn more, click here. 

U.S. Media Literacy Policy Report 2020

Media Literacy education provides students with the ability to use critical thinking skills to approach media platforms that would otherwise contribute to public health issues such as bullying, low self-esteem, risky sexual behavior, and other problems. Due to this, media literacy education is a rapidly growing need in K-12 schools nationwide.

In early January 2020, Media Literacy Now released the findings of the U.S. Media Literacy Policy Report 2020, the first state-by-state status report for media literacy education laws in K-12 schools.

WA State is noted to be a progressing leader in the field. 

To view these findings and learn more about this critical policy, click on the links above.

Stories that Inspire: What Do You Do with an Idea? By Kobi Yamada

An idea can be big, it can be small, or it can be rough around the edges. It can look like anything you imagine it to be but once it's alive, what do you do with it? Kobi Yamada takes readers of all ages on an adventure to discover the inspirational power of how one single idea can become something amazing.

Published in 2014, this book is a gold medal winner of the Independent Publishers Award, the Washington State Book Award, and the Moonbeam Children's Book Award. It is a National best seller, appearing in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly.

ArtsWA Gives Early Learning Classrooms an Opportunity for a Creative Start!

Washington State Arts Commission (ArtsWA) has launched Creative Start, a statewide arts integration and early learning program. The program is designed to bridge the opportunity gap by implementing culturally responsive arts integration practices in early learning communities across the state. Creative Start will support early learning educators, teachers, teaching artists, and leadership with grants, gatherings, and professional learning opportunities.

Creative Start is launching with two grants: Site Grants (open now) and Regional Grants (opening in March).

ArtsWA FY21 First Step Grants Now Open

ArtsWA (the Washington State Arts Commission) is now accepting applications for their Arts in Education First Step grants. These grants support emerging and new community partnerships committed to arts education as part of basic education for K-12 public school students in Washington State. Grant amounts range from $1,000 - $5,000. Applications are open now through March 17, 2020: https://www.arts.wa.gov/first-step-grants/

This performance features exceptional young musicians mixing up diverse music styles, celebrates the rich musical talent of youth in our community, and provides musicians, regardless of what style they play, the opportunity to make music together.

To learn more information and register, visit https://www.stgpresents.org/education/student-matinees

Youth Art Month Student Art Exhibit 

Youth Art Month is an annual observance each March to emphasize the value of art and art education for all children and to encourage public support for quality school arts programs.  The National Art Education Association, as a national sponsor through the Council for Art Education, administers the program at a national level, and Washington Art Education Association administers the program at the state level. 

For information on the Student Artworks exhibit that will showcase in the Tacoma Art Museum in April, click here. Submission Deadline: March 21st 

A Call for High School Artwork to Help Cultivate Global Kindness

The Portrait Program organizes high school artists to paint portraits of children living in difficult situations around the world as special messages of friendship and keepsakes for the children. Since 2004, art students in all 50 states have produced over 130,000 portraits of children living in 45 countries.

While there’s normally a $15 fee required, Title 1 students can temporarily enter for free. For more information, click here.

The Portrait Program is one of three artistic programs connecting children around the world through the Memory Project, a nonprofit dedicated to creating a kinder world through art.

Arts Opportunities for Students and Teachers at Centrum

Located in Port Townsend, Centrum in partnership with OSPI, gathers young artists, scientists and teachers together for an intensive, residential learning experience. Artists working in the fields of visual art, writing, theater, movement, music and dance will provide young artists opportunities to learn new ways of thinking, seeing, and being. Opportunities in 2020 include:

• Dance This! For grades 9-12, August 2-9, an in-depth opportunity to learn a wide range of dance styles, techniques and choreography for all levels. For more information, click here.