Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts and Spoleto Festival USA have partnered to bring Wolf Trap’s customizable arts-based teaching and learning programs to early childhood classrooms in southeastern South Carolina. The partnership creates Lowcountry South Carolina Wolf Trap, Wolf Trap’s newest addition to a growing network of 29 affiliates across the United States and in Singapore.
Wolf Trap and its affiliates work collaboratively with schools to deliver vital in-person and virtual classroom residencies, professional development workshops for teachers, and family workshops that serve the unique needs of their communities. The affiliate program is operated under Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, a program of Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. Through Wolf Trap’s education programs, including the work of the Institute and its affiliates, Wolf Trap serves more than 100,000 children, families, and educators each year.
Lowcountry South Carolina Wolf Trap programs will be designed for children in preschool and kindergarten and their teachers and families. The program will introduce performing arts-based experiences that illustrate key curricular concepts such as literacy, math, and science, as well as 21st-century skills including communication, collaboration, problem-solving, and creativity. By incorporating song, movement, imaginative play, and musical instruments, these programs will equip teachers with skills to seamlessly integrate active, arts-infused learning into their daily instruction, enriching every child they teach.
“We’re excited to partner with Spoleto to bring dynamic arts experiences and professional development opportunities to early education communities in Charleston and the surrounding region through Lowcountry South Carolina Wolf Trap,” said Akua Kouyate-Tate, Vice President of Education at Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. “Throughout the school year, Lowcountry South Carolina Wolf Trap Teaching Artists will work with teachers and young children in early childhood classrooms to integrate arts disciplines like dance, music, theater, and puppetry into their curriculum. In doing so, they help educators meet their educational objectives, make learning more engaging and joyful for young children, and equip teachers with lasting skills that will resonate in their professional practice with young children for years to come.”
Through professional teaching artists trained in the Wolf Trap model, Wolf Trap Institute delivers customized, in-class professional development to early childhood educators using proven, arts-based strategies that reach across curricula and support development in key areas like language, literacy, math, science, and social-emotional learning. Teaching artists engage in multi-day residencies, where they meet one-on-one with teachers to create custom lesson plans that align with their curriculum objectives. They work in the classroom alongside the teacher to engage students in arts-based learning experiences, supporting the teacher to lead the lesson using these strategies.
To inquire about scheduling a Lowcountry South Carolina Wolf Trap Residency, contact Bailey Mann at [email protected].
For more information about Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, visit www.wolftrap.org/education.