Through YEAR-LONG RESIDENCIES DreamYard artists teach collaboratively with classroom teachers for 90 minutes per week and meet for planning sessions for 45 minutes per week. Yearlong residencies last 32 weeks from September to June and disciplines include theater, dance, visual art, film/video, music and creative writing.
BRONX WRITeS, a yearlong poetry slam residency program, uses standards-based literacy methods and curriculum to teach students how to write and perform original poetry. A biannual, school-to-school poetry slam competition is facilitated through videoconferencing technology, engaging hundreds of students in a series of compelling events that culminate in an Open Mic celebration at Lehman College.
The BRONX ARTS LEARNING COMMUNITY (BALC) is a model community partnering DreamYard with 14, K-12th grade Bronx public schools dedicated to building sustainable, continuous art service programs designed to reach 100% of each school’s students. BALC schools engage in the full range of DreamYard’s offerings. Through the BALC, 5,000 students are directly impacted through year-long, multidisciplinary artist residencies, the Bronx Writes poetry program, specially designed professional development and an Annual BALC Festival of student work ranging from performances to exhibitions. The majority of DreamYard’s OSP students are recruited from BALC schools.
The OUT OF SCHOOL PROGRAMS (OSP) offer after-school, Saturdays and summer opportunities for teens. The OSP include the following: the ACTION Project, arts and community engagement; the Bronx Acting Ensemble, pre-professional theater training; the Bronx Art Collective, visual arts and curating; and the Bronx Poetry Project, performance poetry.
www.dreamyardactionproject.com
DreamYard leads PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT for public school educators to increase knowledge in a range of art forms, develop strategies for effective arts integration, share best practices and examples of outstanding student work, practice and identify quality arts education and build capacity to evaluate and assess student work and one’s practice.
DreamYard is a recognized cultural presence in the Bronx through its series of free and accessible public exhibits and performances that are attended by thousands of Bronx students, educators and families each year. DreamYard showcases high quality student artwork and hosts performances at venues such as Pregones Theater, Lehman College Stages and Art Gallery, Bronx Museum of Art, Sotheby’s and The Public Theater.
DREAMYARD PREPARATORY SCHOOL (DY PREP) is a New York City Department of Education public high school with a mission to cultivate scholarship, artistry and character within its students to develop successful individuals and effective participants in the wider social and professional world. The school provides a rigorous, arts-integrated curriculum that emphasizes inquiry and critical thinking while deepening understanding of the core content areas.
