University students interested in working in education or many other fields may want to attend this weekend’s workshop on teaching mixed-ability groups of children in an accepting environment.
“Arts for Everybody,” a free workshop on teaching the arts to children of all abilities, will be held in the Erb Memorial Union Fir Room on Saturday at 9 a.m.
The day-long workshop will be followed by a free performance by Joint Forces Dance Company’s DanceAbility at the Dougherty Dance Theater in the Gerlinger Annex at 3:15 p.m.
Presented by Sparkplug Dance and the City of Eugene’s Adaptive Recreation Services, the workshop is designed for teachers, University students and anyone interested in learning how to teach inclusion-based arts, which focuses on creating an open environment in which children of all abilities can participate.
Saturday’s event will include a morning workshop on creative movement and using visual arts as a tool for inclusive learning for preschool through grade five, said Rachel Carnes, founder and director of Sparkplug Dance, who will be an instructor at the workshop.
Carnes said she believes University students, especially education majors, can benefit greatly from this.
“As teachers heading into the field, they need to be aware of what a typical classroom looks like,” she said. “It takes it out of the textbook and into a different realm.”
Sparkplug Dance, a nonprofit organization, focuses on teaching children as young as six weeks (with their caregivers) to express themselves through movement.
“We are looking to engage children in the excitement of the artistic process so that we can use that as a way to enhance other ways of learning,” said Carnes.
“Physical communication, for most of us, is very strong. We read body language all day long,” she said, adding that children with behavioral problems or cognitive learning disabilities can sometimes express themselves more easily through dance.
DanceAbility, a dance group designed for people with full and limited abilities, has toured the world with the mission that anybody who wants to dance should be able to.
“We believe that by showing some of the work, we can break down the barriers that have been created by assumptions of other people,” said Alito Alessi, the artistic director.
Alessi, who has received choreographer’s awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and Oregon Arts Commission, said that the dancers are able to “create images that go beyond what people assume,” by using wheelchairs in unconventional ways, for example.
DanceAbility will perform four pieces including a tango and an excerpt from their upcoming show in May.
Andy Fernandez, manager of Adaptive Recreation Services, said he believes DanceAbility provides the opportunity for people to adopt the right frame of mind and use inclusion in areas other than art.
“In a perfect world we wouldn’t need an ‘Arts for Everybody’ workshop, but it’s not,” Fernandez said. “Including people with disabilities isn’t specific to dance or art.”
During lunch, keynote speaker Carolezoom Patterson will talk about her experiences as an artist living with muscular dystrophy.
“She’s a fierce advocate for the arts,” Carnes said of Patterson, who uses a wheelchair and has a machine that breathes for her.
From 1 to 2:30 p.m., facilitators will conduct a cross-disciplinary dialogue about what was taught in the morning workshop.
“It’s a way to get people from different backgrounds on the same page,” Carnes said, adding that this will also provide an opportunity to build networks with providers and families of children with disabilities.
To register for the event, call the Hilyard Community Center at (541) 682-5311. The event is free, but you can reserve a boxed lunch for $10.
“Arts for Everybody” is funded by grants from the Lane County Cultural Coalition, the Lane Arts Council and an in-kind contribution from the Cultural Forum.
Contact the people, culture and faith reporter at [email protected]