Arts Education

Arts education is essential for developing creative, well-rounded, and engaged learners.

MCOE is committed to supporting districts in bringing high-quality, standards-aligned arts instruction to every student. Grounded in the principles of the California Arts Education Framework, we recognize that an education in the arts (dance, media arts, music, theatre, and visual arts) is vital for fostering artistically literate citizens who are creative, expressive, and responsive contributors to their communities.

At MCOE, we provide guidance for educators and districts seeking to implement robust arts programs that inspire creativity and promote academic and social growth. Our team also offers support for effectively using Proposition 28—Arts and Music in Schools funds, ensuring equitable access to transformative arts experiences for all students. Together, we can build a future where the arts are an integral and celebrated part of every student’s educational journey.

• Professional learning sessions:
  • Arts Integration
    Workshops, thought partnership, and coaching for how to create an arts integrated unit that successfully meets the standards in all disciplines involved while inspiring joy and creativity.
  • Nature Journaling
    Creates a bridge between science, art, and environmental literacy that fosters skills of observation, expression and inquiry. Educators find nature journaling to be an excellent entry point for creating schoolyard field trips and student-led scientific inquiry outdoors. MCOE can provide an individual workshop or a series to familiarize educators with nature journaling. 
  • Social and emotional learning (SEL) & Art
    This workshop walks educators through a series of arts lessons that help students identify, explain and regulate their emotions.
  • Acting Right
    A program from Focus 5 Arts Integration that teaches students behavior management and group collaboration strategies through theatrical games and activities. MCOE can provide additional in-person support with a teaching artist. 
• Curriculum review, piloting, adoption and implementation support
• Thought partnership or support for Site Leaders
• Custom Requests: We’re here to assist with any additional needs

• Creativity at the Core Arts Modules
  Fully developed lesson plans and units that are all standards aligned and meant to be ready for use by educators with minimal prep and maximum student engagement.
• California County Superintendents Arts Initiative
  The California County Superintendents believe that all California students from every geographic region and at every socioeconomic level deserve in-depth arts learning as part of the core curriculum. The Statewide Arts Initiative works at all levels to strengthen and expand arts education in California Public Schools and increase student access to sequential, standards-based arts education through a full complement of services utilizing the statewide county office of education infrastructure. One of its key purposes is to build educator capacity to implement California Arts Standards and the Arts Education Curriculum Framework.
• The Arts Education in Rural Communities webpage
  While providing arts education in rural communities can come with economic, geographic, and staffing challenges, rural educators and leaders in these areas often work creatively to allocate resources and collaborate with their communities to ensure that students may access the minimum expectation in California Education Code Sections 51210 and 51220 which states that all students in grades 1 to 6 “shall receive instruction” and all students in grades 7-12 “shall have access to courses” in visual and performing arts.

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