ART

OVERVIEW

 Number of faculty: Three

The Art program at St. James Academy seeks to build the students' visual knowledge of themselves and the world around them.

 This program strives for a sequence of instruction based on the study of aesthetics, art criticism, art history, and, most importantly, art production that is relevant to students at each grade level. Whenever possible, activities are selected to make an interdisciplinary connection with other subject areas. Trips to the Walters Art Museum and the Baltimore Museum of Art supplement the Art program and Middle School Social Studies curriculum. 

Self-expression is encouraged while showing sensitivity to each child's needs and abilities. Art activities are designed to develop problem-solving skills while giving the child a feeling of confidence, security, and self-satisfaction in completing a task. The program provides a global perspective of art, presenting expressions representative of diverse cultures. Connections are made between values, ideas, experiences, and expressions of artists and individual students.

 GOALS:   KINDERGARTEN - GRADE EIGHT

Students will: 

• Strengthen the ability to perceive, discriminate, interpret, understand, and evaluate experiences in the visual arts;
• Learn appropriate technical and artistic use of materials, tools, and processes and develop requisite skills;
• Gain in the ability to effectively understand ideas and values in the language of imagery;
• Learn to constructively assess the value of their own works, as well as the work of others. Making such decisions helps them to understand preferences in clothing, architecture, and all the visual aspects of the environment. By developing the ability to identify, analyze, and apply criteria for making such judgments, the leaner becomes more able to make informed choices for themselves and their society;
• Understand that every civilization has conceived, produced, and cherished its own forms of art as an embodiment of values and beliefs;
• Gain knowledge and insight about diverse coexistent cultural heritage.

 * Goals for SJA students in Grades Kindergarten through Eight are aligned with the National Standards for the Arts and the Maryland Essential Learner Outcomes for the Visual Arts. Students knowledge, skills, and attitudes will be strengthened through the goals of the SJA Art program.