VSA arts of Texas offers "hands-on" training workshops that provide powerful tools for preschool, fine arts, and special education teachers - as well as parents and teaching artists - to engage and inspire Texas children through the arts, including those with disabilities and diverse learning styles. We also offer consulting for schools, districts, agencies, and community based organizations to incorporate inclusive, language-rich arts learning into existing activities, or to implement new arts-based programs.
The main focus of this project is two-day workshops in Start with the Arts, a multi-disciplinary arts resource in 54 lessons to assist with inclusive and integrated classroom teaching. Start with the Arts is fully aligned to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) in all subject areas, preK-3rd grade, and teachers are provided a searchable CD ROM along with the SWTA resource when they attend a two-day workshop. Use our online form if you are interested in participating in Start with the Arts.
Suitable for all early childhood learners, Start with Arts combines fun activities in music, dance/movement, drama and visual arts with a diverse selection of developmentally appropriate music and storybooks. Because the arts honor what is unique about every individual, they are perfect for inclusive learning inside and outside the classroom.
Since 1992, tens of thousands of young children in 16 states have experienced Start with the Arts, and the easy-to-use arts-based teaching techniques that enhance self-esteem, concentration, cooperation, and reading readiness. In Texas, training has been conducted in Austin, Abilene, Beaumont, El Paso, Edinburg, Del Rio, Laredo, San Antonio, Midland/Odessa, San Angelo, Houston and Fort Worth. Find out what teachers have to say about Start with the Arts.
The Start with the Arts project is made possible through funding by the national office of VSA arts, under an award from the U.S. Department of Education. However, the content does not necessarily reflect the policy of the U.S. Department of Education and endorsement should not be assumed. Additional support comes from the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts. The Start with the Arts project was launched in part with federal funds available to the Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities from the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Developmental Disabilities.
Visit Start with the Arts at Home on the VSA arts International site for more information.
A Start with the Arts Training participant completes a hands-on visual art activity.