Log in

education

Mesa announces launch of 'Learning ReimaginED'

1-stop portal for educator resources

Posted 11/20/20

The Mesa Arts and Culture Department has a new Learning ReimaginED, a virtual portal to the educational community providing one-stop, easy-to-use access to learning resources in STEAM education …

You must be a member to read this story.

Join our family of readers for as little as $5 per month and support local, unbiased journalism.


Already have an account? Log in to continue.

Current print subscribers can create a free account by clicking here

Otherwise, follow the link below to join.

To Our Valued Readers –

Visitors to our website will be limited to five stories per month unless they opt to subscribe. The five stories do not include our exclusive content written by our journalists.

For $6.99, less than 20 cents a day, digital subscribers will receive unlimited access to YourValley.net, including exclusive content from our newsroom and access to our Daily Independent e-edition.

Our commitment to balanced, fair reporting and local coverage provides insight and perspective not found anywhere else.

Your financial commitment will help to preserve the kind of honest journalism produced by our reporters and editors. We trust you agree that independent journalism is an essential component of our democracy. Please click here to subscribe.

Sincerely,
Charlene Bisson, Publisher, Independent Newsmedia

Please log in to continue

Log in
I am anchor
education

Mesa announces launch of 'Learning ReimaginED'

1-stop portal for educator resources

Posted

The Mesa Arts and Culture Department has a new Learning ReimaginED, a virtual portal to the educational community providing one-stop, easy-to-use access to learning resources in STEAM education — Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics.

With the ongoing health crisis and many school field trips on hold, Mesa Arts Center, Arizona Museum of Natural History and i.d.e.a. Museum, and partners Mesa Historical Museum and Southwest Shakespeare Co. wanted to ensure their programming and resources are accessible to educators and home-schooling parents, according to a release.

“We are thrilled that these five institutions have come together to support Arizona students during these challenging times,” Cindy Ornstein, director of arts and culture for the city of Mesa and executive director of Mesa Arts Center, said in the release. “The programs offered should be able to help enliven classrooms, engage students’ critical thinking and creativity, and help motivate students to stay engaged with learning. The lion’s share of these resources are offered free of charge.”

Go to mesaartscenter.com/learningreimagined.

The portal will open students to a variety of worlds and discoveries, spanning all ages and a wide array of subjects. Young explorers will take flight with their imaginations, discern how the scientific method helps us separate fact from fiction, journey back in time to the pioneer days of Arizona, and gain a new appreciation for the power of story and the joy of self-expression. Students will discover the power of image and metaphor through works of art and the works of Shakespeare, experience the joy of great music, and learn about the ancient civilizations of our region, and the dinosaurs that roamed this state over sixty million years ago, the release states.

The learning resources can be used in any learning environment, from traditional classrooms to kitchen tables, with in-person or online learning. Offerings from Mesa’s Department of Arts and Culture are divided by target age groups, and a Community Partners page features programs from Mesa Historical Museum and Southwest Shakespeare Company.

Mesa Arts Center will host several virtual and in-person programs including Project Lit, a program that uses poetry, spoken word and hip hop to promote literacy and activate social and emotional learning. Also, the Classical Music Inside Out program will feature Grammy Award-winning cellist Zuill Bailey, performing and engaging students virtually in 45-minute virtual “informances.” Finally, the Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum will host virtual gallery tours and discussions on topics ranging from Tradition and Innovation to Behind the Scenes, a look at what it takes to curate a museum art exhibition.

Arizona Museum of Natural History’s programs will target students in third- through fifth-grades. The educator resources cover a variety of topics including dinosaur teeth, fossil detectives, science of sauropods and paleo art and diets. All educator resources align with (specific grade level) Arizona state science standards.

i.d.e.a. Museum’s programs will target students from pre-school through sixth grade. The first program, called Art of the Story Virtual Guided Tour, is aligned with Arizona Academic Standards and features a virtual guided tour complete with hands-on activities including one art-making activity. The second program, Artful Tales Experience is aligned with Arizona Early Learning Standards and includes a link to video of a themed book, age-appropriate artwork viewing and discussion, one art-making activity and an interactive video and presentation by i.d.e.a. Museum’s Gallery Educators.

In addition to the programming by the Mesa Arts and Culture Department, Southwest Shakespeare Co. will offer virtual performances of Much Ado About Nothing, Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream with study guides for each show, and opportunities for live interactive workshops. Finally, the Mesa Historical Museum will host virtual field trips to their Women in Aviation and Mesa & Arizona Pioneer History exhibitions, accompanied by additional learning resources for each exhibition.