December 2020 School Partners Newsletter
Dear Educators,

Ever since the pandemic lockdown, the DC Collaborative team immediately pivoted our work. We opened our virtual doors. We convened our community. We helped navigate how to best support our member organizations and virtually provide arts and humanities resources to our educators and students. We pivoted our Arts and Humanities for Every Student (AHFES) legacy program to virtual experiential learning, we analyzed and collected data, and we developed the DC Collaborative Distance Learning Resource Database now populated with 200+ digital and downloadable materials from DC Collaborative cultural institutions and teaching artist members.

We place our children in the center of our work. And now that this year is coming to a close, our team sincerely wishes our educators and students a joyful holiday season, and a healthy and happy new year! We are sharing lots of new opportunities for you to look forward to in the new year to come.
December 2020 Newsletter:

  • AHFES News
  • Teacher PD Opportunities
  • Student Opportunities
  • Activism Through Art: Black Lives Matter
  • Distance Learning Resource Database
AHFES News
Registering for our Winter Arts and Humanities For Every Student Program?
Teacher Professional Development Opportunities
The DC Collaborative announces new Professional Development (PD) experiences from our partner organizations. PD opportunities are open to all educators in the DC public education system. Please peruse DCCollaborative.org/PDRegistration to view experiences from our members.
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Free, Interactive Humanities Workshops

SAAM's Wednesday afternoon workshops include topics aligned with the DCPS Scope and Sequence for just-in-time ideas for virtual instruction:



All workshops are free, interactive, and 90 minutes or less.
Student Opportunities
The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities (CAH)
2021 Poetry Out Loud!

The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities (CAH) is looking for high schools to participate in the 2021 Poetry Out Loud program! Poetry Out Loud is a national arts education program for 9-12 grade students across the country that encourages the study of great poetry by offering free educational materials and a dynamic recitation competition. This program helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about literary history and contemporary life. Poetry Out Loud is a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts, Poetry Foundation, and state and jurisdictional arts agencies. CAH is currently accepting high school registrations, please complete this form. For questions, contact Alorie Clark, alorie.clark@dc.gov

The Kennedy Center
Calling All Young Artists!
Art Under a Minute

The Kennedy Center is commissioning a series of short-form videos for young audiences. These are brain breaks from at-home learning—moments to interact and shift our thinking. A chance to move or shift perspective.
Prompt: Depict the future. Show us what’s to come, as you see it. What happens on the other side—of 2020, the pandemic, or beyond?
The future is uncertain, but is there something you hope for—or something to you want others to know? Is there a new world that you know about that we haven’t imagined yet? What do you have to look forward to and what makes you want us to keep moving forward? Share it with us. 
Tell us a story in one minute or less (use a platform like TikTok, Instagram Reels, Snapchat—get creative, but use a platform you already have experience in). Think of your audience. Young people have the most to look forward to. How do you tell your story to those younger than yourself?
  • Interact with viewers. Teach us a movement or make us detectives—give us a problem to solve.
  • Under a minute is quick—so no need to draw a conclusion—but what can be suggested with an open ending?
  • Who are you making the video for—a younger sibling? A neighbor? Your younger self? Design for them.
  • Is this video a small part of a larger project you’re working on?
The National Theatre Corporation

The National Theatre has upcoming Children's Theatre performances that take place virtually via Facebook Premiere. The second series of shows, Gonzo's Multiverse has its final episode premiering on Dec 19th at 9:30 AM. And there will also be a third series of shows starting on January 16th.
Girls Rock! DC

Girls Rock! DC's After-School Program (GR!ASP) is happening February 1 - March 27, 2021. GR!ASP is a low-/no-cost 8-week virtual after-school music education program for young folks ages 8 to 18 in the DC area. GR!ASPers learn to play an instrument, form a band, write an original song, and perform it at a big virtual concert! You can read all about GR!ASP and apply here: girlsrockdc.org/programs/grasp/
Participant applications closed December 31, 2020.

GR!ASP is led by local artists and educators, and Girls Rock! DC is looking for performers, coaches, instructors, and facilitators for our Spring GR!ASP session. All volunteers are offered a monetary gift for their participation and receive training and technical support throughout the program. Volunteers can learn more at girlsrockdc.org/volunteer/ and apply directly at https://forms.gle/kmmo9SkL6U1Mx9xy9
Volunteer applications close December 20, 2020.
Golden Haiku Poetry Contest

Calling all aspiring poets from around the neighborhood and around the world: The Golden Triangle BID’s eighth annual Golden Haiku poetry contest will begin accepting entries on January 6, 2021, at 9:00 a.m. EST.
This year’s theme is “Daydreams & Musings,” inviting poems that offer a sense of escape and reflection from many perspectives. A submission form will appear on this page on January 6.
Poets are invited to submit up to three original, self-authored haiku until February 7, 2021. Winning poets will receive prizes and recognition, and winning haiku will be shared on social media and displayed in the neighborhood beginning in March 2021.
National Cherry Blossom Festival Student Art Gallery

The annual National Cherry Blossom Festival Student Art Gallery will take place not in the form of a competition, but a public gallery exhibition in 2021! We had splendid artwork submissions from 2020 that we hope will encourage even more participation in the new year.

Each year, the National Cherry Blossom Festival and DC Collaborative jointly invite grades K-12 students from DC public, public charter, and Japanese schools to participate. The theme is “Home is Where the Blossoms Are”, with a special focus on Friendship. What better way to celebrate the season? The annual Festival commemorates the 1912 gift of over 3,000 cherry blossom trees from then Mayor of Tokyo, Japan Yukio Ozaki to the city of Washington, DC as a gesture of friendship, diplomatic collaboration, and creative international exchange.

Please stay tuned for more participation information in January 2021!
Activism Through Art: Black Lives Matter
Imagination Stage Student Art Contest
Earlier this Fall, Imagination Stage organized a student art contest calling all K-12 students to submit a visual art design to help design their theatre window. Students created artwork that aligns with the theme of Black Lives Matter. Congratulations to all of the meaningful and powerful work done by our students in the District.
Distance Learning Resource Database
View Our Distance Learning Resource Database
On the DC Collaborative's Distance Learning Resource Database, you will find a compilation of online and printable arts and humanities learning resources for students, teachers and families. It is our hope that materials on this database will be used to equitably enhance arts and humanities education, equitably, inside or outside of the classroom.

The database will be continuously updated with curricular guides, virtual field trips, and other educational activities to enhance students’ at-home learning experiences as well as Professional Development for educators. These resources are free and accessible anytime.

Follow us @DCCollaborative on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to see featured listings!
Ways to Give
Donate to the DC Collaborative online or remit payment by check to:

DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative

The DC Collaborative is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. All gifts are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

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The DC Collaborative is a recipient of an FY20 General Operating Support Service Grant from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities.
The DC Collaborative is proud to receive a grant for its Collective Impact work supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.
The DC Collaborative is the backbone support organization that leads members of the Any Given Child DC program, part of The John F. Kennedy  Center for the Performing Arts.