[DOE-Arts] NEWSLETTER #19

Wed Oct 31 12:43:42 EDT 2007

ARTS NEWSLETTER # 19 – 30 October 2007

GREETINGS FROM ARGY’S CUBBY with a view of the STATE HOUSE DOME at  
the Department of Education

ARTS NEWS

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!  May your day be filled with goblins and ghosts!
The ringing of the phone and emails with questions and comments about  
the conference have slowed in my cubby, but the success of it  
continues.  I am so grateful for the collaboration of the  
professional arts organizations (MAAE, MAC, MAEA, MMEA, MDC, DEMS and  
VSA Arts) and want to give one last public THANK YOU to all the  
volunteers that helped make it the success it was.  I hope the  
positive energy that you returned to your schools with (if you  
attended) spreads throughout your school and community.  And, if you  
weren’t able to join us, I hope you take advantage of other  
opportunities to renew your commitment to arts education.
             Since our conference I have attended three other  
conferences and my appreciation for conference planning has increased  
greatly!
1)    New England Gifted and Talented conference held at the Holiday  
Inn, Portland.  Sally Reis gave the keynote speech and I was glad to  
hear her echo my sentiments of the importance of the relationship the  
teacher has with each student.  Also, when we connect kids learning  
with their passions, their test scores will inevitably increase.

2)    Maine Association for Middle Level Education at Sugarloaf.  The  
colors of the leaves were beautiful and it was great to hear keynote  
speaker Angus King summarize the impact of the one-to-one  
technology.  Let us not forget to continue to find ways to use this  
tool in arts education.  I presented a session with a colleague and  
guidance counselor Chris deGroff called: “Hip Hip Hazzah or “How  
to Have Fun Each Day in School!”

3)    Executive Director of the Maine Alliance for Arts Education,  
Carol Trimble and I presented at the Maine School Management

Association conference at the civic center with a session called: “A  
Place for Arts Education”.  We were encouraged by the school board  
members who attended that care a great deal about their visual and  
performing arts education programs.

NEWSLETTER

LARGE INCREASE…. this electronic arts education newsletter is going  
to 567 readers.  This is an increase of 27 from the last newsletter.   
You can read back issues by clicking on: http://mailman.informe.org/ 
pipermail/doe-arts/
I know there many NEW teachers so please ask them to contact me if  
they are interested in receiving the arts education newsletter:  
argy.nestor at maine.gov

ARGY’S ARTS BLOG

It has been a few months since I posted a new topic to the blog.   
Recently email and phone call questions have caused me to pause and  
ask “what is going on?”  Sooooooooo…. I am interested in hearing  
what you have to say.  PLEASE respond to the following topic:  There  
seems to be a decrease in a commitment to band programs, as we know  
them (especially at the elementary and middle school level).  Two  
examples:
1)  the level of involvement in District Festivals is down
2)  scheduling has become more difficult
Are you finding this to be true in your school?  If so, what is the  
reason for these changes?  Please take a few minutes and go to the  
Arts blog http://mearts.edublogs.org/ and give feedback on what you  
know is happening in your school district and give your opinion.

PORTA PORTAL

I have added several new sites to the porta portal, please free to  
use it as my guest.  Click on: http://portaportal.com  and on the  
right side of the screen under the words “Guest Access” type in:  
meartsed.   If you have any great sites you’d like to share please  
send them to me argy.nestor at maine.gov and remember it is a ‘work in  
progress’.

MLR’s and CROSS CONTENT CONNECTIONS

MAINE LEARNING RESULTS – CHAPTER 132

The Maine State Board of Education has officially approved Regulation  
132, Learning Results: Parameters for Essential Instruction.  The  
final changes are online AND they are in two formats, pdf and rtf  
(rich text format).  To download please click on: http:// 
www.maine.gov/education/lres/review/peigr.html

Also available at the same link is the “Cross Content Connections”  
document that shows some of the connections between the 8 content  
areas of the Maine Learning Results.  It is meant to serve as a  
starting point for teachers to identify the bridges.

AMERICANS for the ARTS

Research has shown that arts education has suffered as a result of  
the focus on mathematics and reading in NCLB.  Please click on:  
http://www.AmericansForTheArts.org/ArtsEducation/NCLB for the  
complete report of arts education’s recommendations.

CONFERENCES

“No Citizen Left Behind” one-day conference, two different  
locations,  Thursday and Friday, November 1st and 2nd.  For more  
information please go to http://www.maine.gov/education/calendar/ 
calendar-full.shtml

“Juice: Powering the Creative Economy” conference: November 16th  
and 17th in Rockland and Camden.  For more information please go to  
www.juiceconference.org

New England Art Education Conference, Friday, November 2nd- Sunday,  
November 4th, Sheraton Four Points Resort – Hyannis, Massachusetts.

MAINE ARTS TEACHERS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM – DEADLINE EXTENDED
Maine Alliance for Arts Education and the Maine Community Foundation  
has extended the deadline for their second round of the fellowship  
program.  Teachers of dance, music, theater and visual arts are  
eligible one of eight $5000.00 awards to pursue personal artistic  
development.  For more information please go to  
www.maineartseducation.org MAAE will accept preliminary project  
proposals until November 30th, 2007. Interested teachers please  
contact David Lamon, the program’s coordinator by November 30th at  
fellowship at maineartseducation.org

MMEA WEBSITE

The Maine Music Educators Association website has a brand new look.   
Webmaster Barbara Packales has just announced the updating of the  
site and has included an RSS feed.  Please check it out http:// 
www.mainemmea.org

THINKING OF BLOGGING?

If you are thinking about blogging with students I suggest you check  
out Winthrop Middle School’s Talking Wall project that was done with  
grade 6-8th grade students, art teacher Lisa Gilman and children’s  
book writer Margy Burns Knight.  It contains photos and text… please  
check it out at http://wmsart.blogspot.com/

JOB OPENING

Art teacher, grades 6-12, Millinocket School Department.  For more  
information please contact Sara Alberts at 746-3500.

POETRY OUT LOUD: NATIONAL RECITATION CONTEST

The Maine Arts Commission in partnership with the National Endowment  
for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation encourages high school  
students to learn about great poetry through memorization,  
performance and competition.   To learn more please go to http:// 
mainearts.maine.gov/news/release.asp?ID=7780

or email tina.p.mann at maine.gov

COMPANIES

An art teacher recently emailed asking for suggestions of companies  
to order art supplies from.  With the help of teachers who responded  
to my email I have created the attached list.  If anyone has other  
companies please email them to me and I will add them to the list.

MAINE BAND DIRECTORS FORUM

John Morneau, Band Director, from Great Salt Bay Community School is  
organizing an opportunity once a month to discuss a variety of topics  
including repertoire, rehearsal and performance techniques and  
commissioning projects, to name a few. The first gathering is  
scheduled for Sunday, November 11th, 2-4:00pm at Bowdoin College.  If  
you are interested in participating in this professional development  
opportunity please contact John at jmorneau at u74.k12.me.us and he will  
send you more details.

ALL STATE MUSIC INFORMATION

Reminders:

No pay/no play
Adult chaperone needs to accompany students
Fee must be paid before students register
Please check the website to see if your school is up to date
Any circumstances that are unclear or any questions please contact
Kim Mathieu: kimma at gorhamschools.org

ELECTRONIC MUSIC COMPOSITION COMPETITION

MENC and the National School Board Association (NSBA) is sponsoring  
an electronic music composition contest.  Winning students will be  
honored at the NSBA conference, October 28-30, 2008 in Seattle,  
Washington.  Applicatoin deadline is April 14th.  For more  
information please go to http://www.menc.org/contest/contests.htm

PAINTING CLASS

Artist Barbara Hathaway, Painter of Sunsets, is organizing a woman’s  
watercolor retreat at the Maine Audubon Borestone Mountain Wildlife  
Sanctuary in Elliotsville Twp. On July 18-20, 2008.  For more  
information please email Barbara at bhaway at prexar.com

LICENSE PLATES REQUESTED

Union 74 music teacher, Bunny Stanley, started a handbell program  
last year (as part of a teacher exchange program she participated in)  
at the International School in Estonia.  The family she stayed with  
on a home visit are collecting license plates from each US state.  If  
you’d like to help with this project by donating a license plate  
please contact Bunny at bstanley at u74.k12.me.us

GRANT AVAILABLE FOR WASHINGTON COUNTY ARTISTS IN SCHOOLS
Maine Community Foundation announces that the Minsky Fund for Arts  
Education will be offering five $1,000 grants to Washington County  
teachers in grades 3-5 for an artist in residence to work with the  
students and teachers to integrate their art into the curriculum. Art  
is defined as the visual and/or performing arts.  The deadline is  
January 15th.  Please contact Pamela Cleghorn at 761-2440 or  
pcleghorn at mainecf.org. The guidelines and application are available  
at http://www.mainecf.org/grants/availablegrants/minsky.aspx

CELLO QUARTET TO VISIT US

In December an excellent quartet from Instanbul, Cellistanbul, will  
be coming to tour the US.  They will perform a piece that was written  
by Dr. Joseph Packales of USM.  Dr. Packales is married to Barb who  
is a music teacher in Gardiner and webmaster for the Maine Music  
Education Association website.  A place to stay and $1000.00 is  
needed to help with this trip.  If you know of an organization or an  
individual who might help with this endeavor please contact Barb at  
packalesb at aol.com

REALLY COOL WEBSITE

Please check out this website I just learned about from the math  
specialist at the Maine Department of Education: http:// 
songsforteaching.com/

PORTLAND HARBOR MUSEUM

The museum has a photography retrospective exhibit of Portland Harbor  
and Portland from the 1800’s.  You can see the display until  
November 25th.  Please learn more at www.portlandharbormuseum.org

QUOTE OF THE NEWSLETTER

  “It is no longer good enough for schools to send out students who  
know how to do what they were taught.  The modern world needs  
citizens who can do what they were not taught.  We call this  
“learning learning.”
Seymore Papert

Make it a great Halloween,
Argy
Argy Nestor
Visual and Performing Arts Specialist
Maine Department of Education
23 State House Station
Augusta, ME 04333-0023
207-624-6825
fax: 207-624-6821
argy.nestor at maine.gov

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