<h4>What is “Creative Education”?</h4>

<p>(Definition)</p>

<p>Guiding principles:</p>

<ul>
	<li>Informal education
	<ul>
		<li>Using art to explore a larger topic, not (usually) just art for arts-sake.&nbsp;</li>
	</ul>
	</li>
	<li>Each lesson plan should be accessible for all students (take into account literacy, educational background, age, abilities)</li>
	<li>As interactive and hands-on as possible:&nbsp;
	<ul>
		<li>Promoting creativity over “rote learning”</li>
	</ul>
	</li>
	<li>Provide participants with new perspectives, including these elements:
	<ul>
		<li>Guest speaker(s)</li>
		<li>Field trip(s)</li>
		<li>Multimedia or video exchange</li>
		<li>Connection with another Skateistan site or other school outside of your city</li>
	</ul>
	</li>
</ul>

<h4>Benefits of Combining Arts with Education</h4>

<p>Students explore various themes using artistic mediums. They learn self-expression and creativity. Art classes can be simple crafts, or have a broad scope. Art can be used to explore almost any topic – safety, community health, the environment, friendship, family, etc. Class themes need to be decided on with input from staff who have an excellent understanding of the cultural context. Art can also include gardening, and other creative activities.</p>

<p>These classes are an opportunity to reach students who are less interested in skating, as well as a chance for children to develop and show a variety of talents.</p>

<p>(List examples of art mediums and how they were used:)</p>

<p>Example: Skateistan’s “Skate and Create” program</p>

<ul>
	<li>kids to spend same amount of time in the classroom as the skatepark.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>We quickly realized that arts were, like skateboarding, more of a level playing field than formal education</li>
	<li>Covers topics related to:
	<ul>
		<li>Wellness</li>
		<li>Human Rights</li>
		<li>Creative Expression</li>
		<li>Science &amp; Technology</li>
		<li>Thinking Global, Acting Local</li>
	</ul>
	</li>
</ul>

<h4>Mixing Skateboarding with Creative Education</h4>

<p>Skate and create can also be combined –&nbsp;Lots of lessons can bridge over into the skatepark or vice versa.</p>

<p>Since skating is the hook for a lot of kids, this can be a fun way to first introduce the creative educational programming as they’ll be super interested in anything related to skateboarding!</p>

<p>Examples: decorating boards, designing obstacles, board maintenance, making posters for the rules, navigation, mapping</p>

<h4>Multimedia &amp; Cultural Exchanges</h4>

<p><strong>Why do them?</strong></p>

<p>Cultural exchange, to learn about different parts of the world (especially for kids who don’t get to travel), to build trust/understanding between cultures, to practice english, to help create a positive image of your community</p>

<p>Format: There are many different options, such as video calls, pre-recorded videos, photo stories, blog posts, emails, drawings&nbsp;</p>

<p>→ Can use multiple with one exchange partner</p>

<p>→ Depends on skill level and capacity that you have</p>

<p><strong>What to think about when planning an exchange:</strong></p>

<ul>
	<li>Age: the age of the exchange partner’s youth should be similar to your participants</li>
	<li>Gender: depending on context, might be most appropriate and easiest to organize exchanges between boys and girls separately.</li>
	<li>Time difference: for exchanges such as video conferences the time difference should be checked in advance.</li>
	<li>Language: if the exchange partner speaks another language than your participants, the exchange material has to be translated which takes extra time</li>
	<li>Privacy: Should the content be password-protected so only exchange partners can see, or is content fine to share publically?</li>
	<li>Appropriate content:&nbsp;
	<ul>
		<li>Lots of options but exchanges about skateboarding, language or culture are always good starting points.&nbsp;</li>
		<li>Content has to be appropriate to the age, gender, economic status, education level (literate or illiterate) and cultures of the students. &nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
		<li>As a facilitator, be ready for questions/discussions about politics, religion or culture that can be sensitive to navigate.&nbsp;</li>
	</ul>
	</li>
</ul>

<p><strong>Choosing Exchange Partners:</strong></p>

<p>Be aware that multimedia exchanges can be pretty time consuming. It is very important to choose exchange partners. Connect with those where it is worth the time/effort and which show real interest in the exchange. Before deciding if you want to go ahead with an exchange, try to get as much information as possible about the potential exchange partner and what their expectations are. Here are some key things to keep in mind:</p>

<ul>
	<li>Establish expectations early</li>
	<li>Set goal and timeline</li>
	<li>Ensure genuine interest</li>
	<li>Look for reliability</li>
	<li>Get feedback from participants</li>
</ul>

<h4>De-brief</h4>

<p>At end then of every educational activity you do, take 5-10 minutes to ask participants how the lesson or exchange went for them. This feedback can help you to make future lessons better, and encourages participants to reflect on what they’ve learned. You can ask questions like:</p>

<ul>
	<li>What did you learn?</li>
	<li>What did you like best about the lesson/exchange?</li>
	<li>What didn’t you expect?</li>
	<li>Did you have fun?&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Would you like to learn more about this topic (or a specific artistic skill, ie. photography)?</li>
</ul>

<h4>Preparing and Running Lessons</h4>

<p><strong>Planning Lessons</strong></p>

<ul>
	<li>Classroom activities can focus on any social theme or environmental issue, or can be used for the sake of self-expression or learning a new skill.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Curriculum should be planned out to meet particular learning goals, with a rough timeline in mind.</li>
	<li>Make sure students are being challenged</li>
	<li>Tailor activities to varying abilities</li>
	<li>Have weekly instructor meetings to discuss new ideas and what is or is not working</li>
</ul>

<p><br />
<strong>Teaching Tips</strong></p>

<p>Everyone has an approach that works best for them when it comes to teaching. There is no single best approach – some like to be stricter and some are okay with a bit of chaos. Whatever your style, these pointers below are good guidelines to start off with:</p>

<ul>
	<li>For classroom activities clearly introduce the topic and the agenda for the day, to help keep students engaged and on track.</li>
	<li>It takes time to build the relationship between student and teacher, and it should be worked at from the beginning. Be aware of possible issues or power dynamics. eg. female staff when possible for female groups, use skateboard in new ways with disabled class, etc.</li>
	<li>Be aware of the needs of each group by checking in with staff from partner NGOs, and be willing to adapt.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Adapt to the situation of each student</li>
	<li>Always encourage them and be sweet&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Be very clear with the students, don’t give complicated directions or talk too much, let them learn at their pace.</li>
	<li>Encourage everyone equally no matter the level</li>
	<li>Teaching style adapts to the student and teacher&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Being firm and having high expectations can help motivate students</li>
	<li>Listen to students’ feedback for what they are interested in learning</li>
	<li>Be flexible in the classroom, feel free to move to a new activity if the class isn’t engaged, or extend a project if it seems to be working well.</li>
</ul>

<h4>Getting Community Buy-In</h4>

<p>Many parents would like their children to get free English or Computer lessons and don’t see the value initially in arts-based education lessons, often because they don’t know what their kids are actually are learning.</p>

<p><strong>How can you get support for your creative education programs from parents/community?</strong></p>

<p>Tips:</p>

<ul>
	<li>Show parents what their kids are learning:
	<ul>
		<li>At registration: explain what the Create classes are and why they are beneficial (problem-solving, confidence, life skills)</li>
		<li>Each semester, send a letter home&nbsp;</li>
		<li>Include arts projects where participants are able to take their work home (plants, photos, drawings, puppets)</li>
		<li>Host regular where parents and other community members are invited.</li>
	</ul>
	</li>
	<li>Include community input (suggestions/needs): topics, challenges, arts activities they’re interested in</li>
</ul>

<p>Ideally you are connecting with community members regularly anyways, and taking those opportunities to share information on the creative education lessons you are doing with participants. See the Community Engagement Toolkit for more info.&nbsp;</p>

<h4>Next steps:</h4>

<ol>
	<li>Ask your participants what they’d be interested to learn about.&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Make two lists:&nbsp;
	<ol>
		<li>The challenges facing the community you work in</li>
		<li>Resources you have access to</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
	<li>Make your own Creative lesson plan! Use our Lesson Plan template.</li>
</ol>
