My block looks like the hip the hop
the birthplace of aerosol masterpieces
lyrical wordplay and
cardboard dance floors.
Our art soars across the world.
from My Block Looks Like
written by Janelle Harper
illustrated by Frank Morrison
Viking, 2024
My oldest grandchild moved into his dorm this past weekend to begin his college career. He’s passionate about music and chose a conservatory to continue his education. His classes will include science, math, English, and the social sciences, but the heaviest concentration will be on music education. He elected to focus on instrumental music, but has a wonderful singing voice, too.
His real music education began before he was born when my daughter sang nursery rhymes and her favorite songs to him. He was only days old when my husband and I visited. The baby was “fussy” and my daughter (and son-in-law) were exhausted, of course.
“I’ll rock him for a little while,” I offered. Sitting next to a sunny window in a comfortable rocking chair, I started to sing “Hush, Little Baby.” Needless to say, given the materialism that’s flaunted in the lyrics and the assumption that it’s Papa who’s gonna buy all this stuff, I wouldn’t necessarily make that song my first choice anymore, but that was then…
And, he quieted right down. When my daughter came back into the living room, she asked me how I did it. I told her which song I sang. Here’s her answer. “Huh, that’s what I sang to him before he was born.”
Nursery rhymes, Laurie Berkner, Raffi, and my favorite polka music were followed by The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and other classic rock and contemporary music. Theirs was a house alive with song. Do all 18-year-olds go to the symphony with a couple of friends for fun?
Piano lessons began soon after his sixth birthday. All the boys play exceedingly well and now my daughter is taking lessons in her oldest son’s empty time slot.
Their public school system provides challenging and engaging coursework and has a diverse and dynamic music program.
Current information from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), ArtsWorks states “arts education in schools is truly an investment in the artistic future of the nation.” But courses in the four major arts disciplines: visual art; dance; theater; and music are not universally available. ArtWorks estimates that only 82/% of all high schools in the nation offer at least one course in one or more disciplines.
And while most states require schools to offer arts instruction in grades k-12, only 20 states accept arts courses as an option to fulfill graduation requirements. Only 16 states require testing students’ learning in the arts.
Why is all this so important?
Here are several reasons stated on the webpage for Americans for the Arts:
“To understand a work of art, we must understand the society that created it.” In other words, Art is a connection to and reflection of the society that created it.
Practice makes perfect is especially true in the four major arts disciplines. Practicing a musical instrument, a dance routine, or literary technique enhances both physical and intellectual dexterity.
Playing music together, dancing together, singing together, designing everything from fashion to sets for the spring play together encourages collaboration.
Children learn that there are many ways to solve a problem.
Creativity is probably the most important outcome of teaching and studying “the arts.” Where else can a child feel validated for exploring patterns, shapes, and color? Does completing a LEGO set by following detailed instructions qualify as art? Does engineering a bridge “from scratch?” Is studying Fibinocci patterns less artistic than examining a sunflower? And what about beauty? Sure it’s in the “eye of the beholder” but interesting visual art can be as beautiful as the simplicity of a chemical formula or a mathematical puzzle or a mental image produced by a poem.
Skills that help develop creativity include both listening to each other to foster collaboration and communicating ideas clearly. Finding different ways to solve problems leads to resourcefulness, ingenuity, and imagination.
In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis cut $32 billion from the 2024/2025 State Budget for culture and museum grants. While no set dollar amount is ever guaranteed to grantees, this highly unusual move has sent arts organizations all over the state wondering how to survive.
It is ironic that this link advertises the University of Florida’s Master’s Program in Art Education. The posting date is November 30, 2023. At least someone in Florida thinks art is important enough to teach to our next generation. At least for now.
My older daughter asked if the title of this week’s blog post could be “Earth without Art is EH”. Turns out that’s a real thing! Mugs and t-shirts are abundant on the Internet.
I finished reading James by Percival Everett (Doubleday, 2024). On the surface, it is a re-telling of Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn from Jim’s, rather James’s, point of view. On a closer look, readers “hear” James’s wisdom throughout the novel and discover the importance of James's and Huck's surprising relationship not only to each other but to the people around them, Black and white, and society’s expectations in mid-19th Century US. Thoughtful and thought-provoking. Recommended.
the birthplace of aerosol masterpieces
lyrical wordplay and
cardboard dance floors.
Our art soars across the world.
from My Block Looks Like
written by Janelle Harper
illustrated by Frank Morrison
Viking, 2024
My oldest grandchild moved into his dorm this past weekend to begin his college career. He’s passionate about music and chose a conservatory to continue his education. His classes will include science, math, English, and the social sciences, but the heaviest concentration will be on music education. He elected to focus on instrumental music, but has a wonderful singing voice, too.
His real music education began before he was born when my daughter sang nursery rhymes and her favorite songs to him. He was only days old when my husband and I visited. The baby was “fussy” and my daughter (and son-in-law) were exhausted, of course.
“I’ll rock him for a little while,” I offered. Sitting next to a sunny window in a comfortable rocking chair, I started to sing “Hush, Little Baby.” Needless to say, given the materialism that’s flaunted in the lyrics and the assumption that it’s Papa who’s gonna buy all this stuff, I wouldn’t necessarily make that song my first choice anymore, but that was then…
And, he quieted right down. When my daughter came back into the living room, she asked me how I did it. I told her which song I sang. Here’s her answer. “Huh, that’s what I sang to him before he was born.”
Nursery rhymes, Laurie Berkner, Raffi, and my favorite polka music were followed by The Beatles, Bob Dylan, and other classic rock and contemporary music. Theirs was a house alive with song. Do all 18-year-olds go to the symphony with a couple of friends for fun?
Piano lessons began soon after his sixth birthday. All the boys play exceedingly well and now my daughter is taking lessons in her oldest son’s empty time slot.
Their public school system provides challenging and engaging coursework and has a diverse and dynamic music program.
Current information from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), ArtsWorks states “arts education in schools is truly an investment in the artistic future of the nation.” But courses in the four major arts disciplines: visual art; dance; theater; and music are not universally available. ArtWorks estimates that only 82/% of all high schools in the nation offer at least one course in one or more disciplines.
And while most states require schools to offer arts instruction in grades k-12, only 20 states accept arts courses as an option to fulfill graduation requirements. Only 16 states require testing students’ learning in the arts.
Why is all this so important?
Here are several reasons stated on the webpage for Americans for the Arts:
- Students who study arts and music all four years of high school score an average of over 150 points higher on the SAT than students who take only one-half year or less
- Low-income students who are highly engaged in the arts are twice as likely to graduate college (NOT a typo) as their peers with no arts education.
- More superintendents used the Title IV well-rounded education provision of the Every Child Succeeds Act (ESSA) to fund music and the arts than the percentages who used Title IV to fund physical education, foreign language, and civics combined.
- 91 percent of Americans believe that the arts are vital to providing a well-rounded education.
“To understand a work of art, we must understand the society that created it.” In other words, Art is a connection to and reflection of the society that created it.
Practice makes perfect is especially true in the four major arts disciplines. Practicing a musical instrument, a dance routine, or literary technique enhances both physical and intellectual dexterity.
Playing music together, dancing together, singing together, designing everything from fashion to sets for the spring play together encourages collaboration.
Children learn that there are many ways to solve a problem.
Creativity is probably the most important outcome of teaching and studying “the arts.” Where else can a child feel validated for exploring patterns, shapes, and color? Does completing a LEGO set by following detailed instructions qualify as art? Does engineering a bridge “from scratch?” Is studying Fibinocci patterns less artistic than examining a sunflower? And what about beauty? Sure it’s in the “eye of the beholder” but interesting visual art can be as beautiful as the simplicity of a chemical formula or a mathematical puzzle or a mental image produced by a poem.
Skills that help develop creativity include both listening to each other to foster collaboration and communicating ideas clearly. Finding different ways to solve problems leads to resourcefulness, ingenuity, and imagination.
In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis cut $32 billion from the 2024/2025 State Budget for culture and museum grants. While no set dollar amount is ever guaranteed to grantees, this highly unusual move has sent arts organizations all over the state wondering how to survive.
It is ironic that this link advertises the University of Florida’s Master’s Program in Art Education. The posting date is November 30, 2023. At least someone in Florida thinks art is important enough to teach to our next generation. At least for now.
My older daughter asked if the title of this week’s blog post could be “Earth without Art is EH”. Turns out that’s a real thing! Mugs and t-shirts are abundant on the Internet.
I finished reading James by Percival Everett (Doubleday, 2024). On the surface, it is a re-telling of Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn from Jim’s, rather James’s, point of view. On a closer look, readers “hear” James’s wisdom throughout the novel and discover the importance of James's and Huck's surprising relationship not only to each other but to the people around them, Black and white, and society’s expectations in mid-19th Century US. Thoughtful and thought-provoking. Recommended.
RSS Feed