At Gardner Street School, our students learn to think like artists. They engage with a variety of media, techniques, and concepts through play and exploration in a way that enables them:

• to feel that art is accessible

• to be creative thinkers

• to tell stories that are important to them

Students use school-wide “throughlines” to guide their thinking as they construct their own understanding about their place in the world - What is art? What is an artist? How am I an artist? What is the relationship between art, justice, and action (or, how can I use art and creativity to make positive change in the world)? Students revisit these throughlines throughout the year, gradually constructing deeper and richer responses to these questions.

Each grade level has its own “big ideas” and guiding questions that gradually move students toward a deeper understanding of the artist’s role in society. Our students use the Studio Habits of Mind framework as they engage with the 4 domains of the artistic process: creating, presenting, responding, and connecting (National Core Arts Standards).