OVERVIEW
Dysart provides students the opportunity to explore their artistic side through a rigorous and relevant comprehensive fine art program aligned with Arizona state and national standards. All students will participate in a progressive, performance-based curriculum that encourages students to reach their academic, creative and expressive potential.
Arts education plays an integral role in a child’s development. Arts education refers to the education in the disciplines of music, dance, theatre, and visual arts. The arts cannot be learned through occasional or random exposure any more than math or science can. Education and engagement in the visual and performing arts are an essential part of a school curriculum and an important component in the educational program of every student in Dysart.
Arts education not only inspires and motivates students to enjoy learning. It also supports the creative and critical thinking skills that are so highly valued in today's economy. The arts build self-confidence and self-awareness, enhance communications skills, and improve cognition. These are just a few of the reasons for Dysart’s three-pronged focus (Academics, Arts and Athletics) including the arts.
ARTS CALENDAR
Featured Video
Dysart Schools is celebrating Arts in Education Week by showcasing the amazing talent of our students. In this video students from the Shadow Ridge High School Band talk about the importance of arts in high school education.
DISCIPLINES
General Music
Music education provides an opportunity for artistic expression that a student could not experience on his/her own. Music stimulates the creative, curious, and imaginative mind- the mental building blocks for critical thinking and self-motivation. In Dysart, our goal is to provide students with the skills they need to enjoy music for a lifetime. Our general music curriculum is designed to develop a greater understanding and love of music through singing, reading, playing instruments, moving, listening, analyzing, and composing, helping to support the academic success and development of the whole child.
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Instrumental Music
Through the study of instrumental music and playing in ensembles, students learn countless lifelong skills that help them develop into intelligent, creative leaders. Students learn leadership, organization, dedication, and teamwork, and also develop an interactive awareness of what is occurring around them through ensemble playing. In Dysart, our instrumental program curriculum is designed to develop skills and understand the aesthetics of music, achieve instrumental competency, develop a proficient level of reading music, explore and perform a variety of literature, and help students understand their role within an ensemble.
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Vocal Music
Choral music education provides students the opportunity to not only gain musical skills but also a life-long appreciation for music. Students develop individual skills and strategies that will help them be successful in all academic areas throughout their lives. In Dysart, the vocal curriculum is designed to teach students the fundamentals of singing, reading music, breath support, diction, vowel formation, ear-training, and afford students many performance opportunities. Our programs allow for student growth as advanced performance groups offer an environment in which ear-training, music theory, and vocal technique are challenged.
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Visual Arts
The visual arts provide a unique and necessary understanding of human expression, assists in the development of creativity, builds problem-solving skills, and provides an opportunity for verbal and nonverbal communication. The visual arts offer another form of self-expression to students. In Dysart, our K-12 Visual Art curriculum is designed to build on students' knowledge, aesthetic awareness, art appreciation, and age-appropriate skills. Our programs introduce and reinforce art concepts, skills, techniques, media, technology, and processes. Students are given a multitude of opportunities for creative expression within a structured framework.
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Theatre
Theatre teaches critical 21st-century skills- collaboration, communication, creativity, and critical thinking. In Dysart and our theatre program, each student will be afforded the opportunity to develop a greater appreciation for the aesthetics of the dramatic arts, and the criteria of an effective performance, along with an awareness of the historical influences of the theatre. Dysart’s theatre curriculum includes exposure to various acting techniques, script analysis, directing, movement, technical theatre, and design.
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Dance
Our dance program curriculum is designed to engage students in the collaborative creative process, exposure to multifaceted dance techniques, gain an understanding of the aesthetics and approaches to performing, and integrate an understanding of cultural context with the artform. Students will study the development of movement quality and performance skills with an emphasis on alignment, control, awareness of style, and phrasing in dance.
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FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS
The Dysart Unified School District holds an annual Dysart Festival of the Arts. The festival will takes place at Valley Vista High School. This event showcases the visual and performing arts programs from 16 elementary schools, four middle schools, four high schools, and a preschool in the Dysart Unified School District.