Building Strong Foundations
A Creative Art Works art class integrates with the Foundations program at A. Philip Randolph Campus High School to prepare incoming freshman for academic and personal success.
APRCHS student in the CAW Foundations class works on an integrated art project
Stepping back to ask the big questions: Making the transition from middle school to high school can be overwhelming. Students suddenly have a lot more choices and a lot more responsibility. Even the logistics of navigating a new school building and a complicated class schedule can be daunting. On top of everything else, there is the culture shock of so many new faces, different rules and customs, and higher expectations. Students can become so focused on getting through each class that they never stop to think about why they are going to school in the first place. The Foundations class at A. Philip Randolph Campus High School is intended to address these very issues. This program was implemented two years ago, but it is even more important to this year’s incoming freshman, who have experienced so much disruption to their adolescent development due to the pandemic.
The goal of the Foundations program is to prepare freshmen to be successful in their academic lives and to become active members of their high school community by helping them develop self-awareness and a long-term vision for their future. This language arts course focuses on two essential questions: First, how do our values and beliefs shape what we deem a priority? Second, what is the relationship between priorities and necessities? Creative Art Works is providing a digital arts curriculum that integrates with the Foundations program and offers students an alternative point of entry to these essential questions.
Making it a habit: Required reading in this program is The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. More than just a how-to manual, this book challenges students to be mindful about how the choices they make contribute to their daily and long-term success. The text also provides the basis for CAW’s integrated art projects. Building upon the students’ experience of discovering and writing about their interests, inspirations and core values, they are creating digital works of art.
For the first project, the students made visual representations of themselves that reflect their strengths and skills through the combination of symbols and colors that have significance for them. Guided by CAW Teaching Artist Cali Banks, students worked with Pixlr, a free but robust digital image editing software, and applied fundamental design concepts, such as composition, color theory, negative space, and contrasting size, shape, and color.
First Project: Represent your strengths and skills through a combination of symbols and colors.
“I always encourage my students to articulate why they are doing something. Let’s say a student draws a purple circle, and it looks really cool. I’m going to ask, why purple? Maybe purple evokes some feeling, or maybe it reminds you of your mother or something like that. I want them to be mindful of what they are doing, not just in the Foundations class, but in everything.”
Students work in small groups that encourage sharing ideas and inspiration
In the second project students will visually represent what they define as their vision/mission in the world, by creating posters that combine image and text.
In addition to art-making, students will complete a written component during each class. This writing may take the form of notes, brainstorms, timed “free-writes,” and will include artist statements that explore their creative process, the formal aspects of their work, and its content. Students will present their work in a culminating event at the end of the semester.
This program was made possible, in part, by the West Harlem Development Corporation, and by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council.
