Crayola has just launched the ‘Champion Creatively Alive Children’ program to emphasize creativity as a 21st century skill and address the need for arts-infused education in schools.
The program is aimed to empower art teachers to become the ‘chief creative officers’ in their schools and ensures that principals have the tools to develop the originality in every child throughout lessons.
For this reason, the company teamed up with the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP), the National Art Education Association (NAEA) and the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21).
Within the program the U.S. Department of Education is hosting a professional development event at its national headquarters to let the Department staff co-work with teachers and principals in the classroom. Crayola professionals will show the participants how art activities build critical thinking and collaboration skills in students. The participants were told remind their childhood and «don’t come as you are, come as you were» .
«Creativity is a skill that every child needs,» said Mike Perry, Crayola President and Chief Executive Officer. «We started this program asking ourselves ‘What if every principal and teacher championed creatively alive children in their schools?’ Imagine how ready these children will be to face 21st century challenges with a strong foundation in creative thinking.»
The ‘Champion Creatively Alive Children’ professional development program features the 4Cs abbreviation, each C stands for critical thinking, collaboration, creativity, and communication.
The program includes videos showcasing how arts-infused education builds these skills. Each video tells the story of a school that was awarded one of 20 ‘Champion Creatively Alive Children’ mini-grants from Crayola and NAESP for the innovative ways they are integrating art in classes. Five facilitator guides accomplish the video series to provide principals and teachers with information on how to lead workshops and staff and parents’ meetings around art.