The Creative Connection: Arts & Youth Development
For Teaching Artists & Youth Development Workers
2.5 hours of instruction time
Maximum number of workshop participants: 30

What is youth development as it relates to instruction in the arts? How do I incorporate principals of youth development in my instruction of an art discipline? 

The purpose of this workshop is to orientate arts instructors to a youth development approach and its implications for working with adolescents.  Youth development is not a new model of programming.  Instead, it is an approach; a way of understanding and thinking about youth that serves to guide action and adds breadth to any youth-serving organization or program. This approach seeks to promote the overall development of young people by emphasizing and building upon their strengths.

The workshop gives participants the opportunity to take part in a hands-on art experience and relate that experience in the context of youth development.  The workshop includes a review of the best practices in youth development and illustrates practical methods for how you can integrate youth development into your classroom arts instruction.  
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Objectives for the Workshop
  • Participants will understand the importance of the youth development approach and the importance of its impact upon young people.
  • Participants will describe the key opportunities and supports that promote youth development.
  • Have a better understanding of the arts experience as it relates to youth development
  • Recognize the importance of proper preparation for young people when either creating or viewing art. 
  • Understand that both art and youth development share common goals and attributes.
  • Know the factors that contribute to a well-designed arts experience or programming.
  • Gain some insight into how the arts experience can be used for the positive development of young people.
  • Participants will implement some of the key opportunities and supports that promote youth development in teaching their art discipline.

View the accompanying PowerPoint Presentation  - See Below

"When you give kids skills and competencies; they feel better about themselves, and when they feel better about themselves, they are more likely to make good decisions for themselves, because they feel they are worth it"

- Harlan Brownlee
Copyright S. Harlan Brownlee: No copying or other reproduction of this work allowed without the express written permission of the author, ©2014.