This retreat is over, but please check out the upcoming retreat!
Three Days of Inspiration!
The Inspired Classroom is happy to announce its 5th annual Teacher Art Retreat
August 10,11 & 12, 2015
Masks~Storytelling~Music~Book Making~Visual Arts
Get Inspired ~ Be Inspiring
Register now! Download the flyer.
Join other Retreaters on Facebook!
Want to know what a Teacher Art Retreat is? This video will give you a taste of the inspiration that occurs. Includes footage from TAR12 and TAR13.
An amazing 3 days of creativity and professional development
that truly feeds our souls.” Amy M.
Finishing off a project at the Retreat
Click on the heading for more details.
The Basics
What is a Teacher Art Retreat?
Building books at the retreat
Hands-On Arts-Based Teacher-Centered Yes, you read that right! This is professional development that was created with the TEACHER in mind. Our philosophy at The Inspired Classroom is that teachers need to get inspired so that they can be inspiring to their students.
So,
First and foremost, this retreat is for YOU.
The Teacher Art Retreat is a place where you can relax, create and discover with other like-minded educators. This is what sets the retreat apart from other professional development you’ve had. Our goal is for you to interact with a variety of art forms so that you can get ideas to bring back to your teaching. The workshops are hands-on and accompanied by discussions of how to apply your new knowledge and skills to what you do with students every day.
Who Attends Teacher Art Retreats?
Our professional development is taken by pre K through high school teachers including those who teach special education, art, music, guidance, ELL, technology, ELA, science, and general ed, as well as school nurses, reading specialists, behavorialists, speech therapists, home school teachers, long term substitutes, veterans and first year teachers. We’ve even had administrators attend! Time each day will be spent discussing how the things we learn apply to what you do with students every day. Part of the power of the arts is that they transcend subjects and age levels. Not to mention, YOU will get something personally out of this too… The arts touch us all! Get the PDPs or Grad Credit You Need
Lodging Options
The Hampton Falls Inn is also a good option and is less than 5 minutes from our retreat site and is conveniently located on route 1 with quick access to route 95, 495 and 101. They also have a wonderful pool and Jacuzzi to use. Call 1-800-356-1729 to make your reservations and go to the Hampton Falls Inn website for more information.
If you have any questions or run into any trouble, please send Elizabeth an email.
It is so fun to meet people from various places who share an appreciation in arts in education! If you are coming from far away, you will certainly enjoy your time in and around Hampton, NH. It has a nice downtown with many restaurants and shops to explore. Not to mention, you will be a very short drive to the ocean! In addition, Hampton is 60 minutes to Boston, Massachusetts and less than 15 minutes to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. These are both wonderful and exciting cities to visit while you are here!
Registration Information
Registration is OPEN Register early – get a deal. Register with a friend – get an even better deal! Register here online or download this flyer and registration form and send a check to The Inspired Classroom, PO Box 303, Hampton Falls, NH 03844.
If you don’t want to register through PayPal, download our flyer and registration form and send a check to The Inspired Classroom, PO Box 303, Hampton Falls, NH 03844. Come to the retreat with a friend! Tell your colleagues about this great event and get special pricing! Start asking around now, so you won’t miss out!
Best take away from the retreat? The people, interactions, sharing, laughter; the information and the chance to grow.” ~ Judy L.
Retreat Workshops
Focus Project – Mask Making
Local artist and teacher, Renee Schneider (presenter from TAR13) is back to lead us through this year’s focus project – Mask Making. (The focus project is one we will work on each day for the three days of the retreat.) Masks have been a part of human culture from the earliest days of human civilization to the present. They have served many purposes from the sacred to the practical, as a form of expression, ritual, storytelling, communication, rebellion, and celebration of life and of death, to name a few.
It goes without saying that creating masks in the classroom can support just about any history lesson, but don’t stop there. In this workshop you will learn the basics of many mask making styles and ideas of how to use them across the entire curriculum. You will construct your own plaster mold of your face and decorate it as well as craft some other styles of masks with some creative writing also thrown in. This focus project is for you to relax and create on your own – go through your own creative process. It is a wonderful experience each year.
Renee Schneider has a BFA in Graphic Design, and a Master’s of Education in Creative Art & Learning. She worked as a graphic artist and then as a kindergarten teacher for several years incorporating her belief in tapping into a child’s creativity through integration of the arts in the classroom. Now, combining her love of art, and teaching, she owns and operates Colorful Kids, providing private art lessons to children while she continues to develop her own art. Her latest endeavors include writing and illustrating Swing Time, her first published children’s book.
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Workshop 1 – Inspired by Words of Peacemakers
Julie will introduce us to famous quotes and lead us through a viewing of brief clips of people who changed the world: Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Malala Yousafzai and Nelson Mandela before we begin to interpret the words that are most meaningful to us. Retreaters will create a personal piece using mixed media that has profound meaning to their lives and to their teaching. They will leave with copies of the social justice word wall, famous quotes, and other writing pieces that go along with a social justice unit on peacemakers. They will take away the idea that everyone, no matter how big or small, has the power to be a peacemaker and an agent of change in their classroom and beyond.
This activity can be a kick-off activity or culmination activity for a biography or social justice unit of study. It can be modified for all ages – Julie’s 3rd grade students, originally created the word art after an extended study of Martin Luther King, Jr, that was a focal point to an integrated social justice/biography unit. This unit began with an in-depth discussion on the meaning of the word “adversity,” – it included a social justice vocabulary word wall, and intensive study of the lives of various peacemakers, with an emphasis on their character traits that helped them overcome adversity and how the power of words can change the world. Retreaters will examine the lives, words and actions of various world peacemakers, discuss famous quotes by them, play a game called “The WORD”, and create a visual piece illustrating a powerful word of their choosing with mixed media. Julie O’Neill wrote her first paper on Gandhi and Martin Luther King, infusing it with the lyrics from the Beatles’ Let It Be, over 25 years ago, and she has been studying peacemakers ever since. Julie holds a BA in Social Sciences from New College of Hofstra University, and a Masters in Teaching from Simmons College. She has taught at the early childhood, elementary, and middle school levels in Boston Public, Lawrence Public, and Sparhawk School, and was an instructor at the Museum of Science for many years. Julie is a practicing Responsive Classroom teacher, and she currently teaches 3rd grade at the Cashman School in Amesbury, MA. Wanna hear a story? In this workshop we will experience storytelling, a triad in the arts – visual, kinesthetic, musical. Gail will bring her percussion folk instruments so participants can explore ‘hearing’ between the lines as she tells. She will lead us through a variety of vocal and movement explorations for character creations. Fun! Yes. We will participate in the retellings of several folktales and then hear a few of Gail’s own family stories as well as those stories students wrote. She will take us on story-finding activities to discover how we can find our own and inspire students to write theirs. We will mine and mime written stories to make tellable tales. Gail will describe the student performances and show samples of books of students’ stories that have been “published” for library and family reading. “Gail is so full of enthusiasm. She’s inspirational. I appreciate the multi-cultural aspect of the class, and the use of music, instruments, and other realia. Even with my 26 years of teaching experience, I learned valuable things to add to my curriculum. Presenter is both knowledgeable & interesting. Time flew by!” “I learned many great Strategies to take back with me and incorporate in my class.” “Thank you for everything. It’s been great fun, learned many practical things that I can apply easily. I never tell stories but read to my students. After your workshops I feel more comfortable doing movement and storytelling in my classroom. I will use the Noun Rondo, Opposite Machine, and the Adverb Mime Game first thing in the fall” And here’s a list of the amazing instruments Gail is bringing with her for us to share and play! ———————————————————————————————————————————————— Whether you have content to process or a story to tell, bookmaking can be an exciting way to interact with information. Retreaters will have the opportunity to see examples of a variety of student/presenter created books, including altered books and hear about ways these have been integrated into classroom curriculum. Using templates and our creativity, we will use creative folding, create pull-outs, doors and other interactive elements to create our own books! Retreaters will come away with a new perspective on how to approach student products or learning materials in all subjects. They will also acquire new ideas for creating books in subjects that would not typically present this opportunity. Leave with new ideas and your own book of a self-chosen style and topic. Many models and ideas will be explored. If you encounter any old, falling apart, or grimy books that would otherwise be thrown away (especially baby board books) please bring those to explore an opportunity to create altered books. More info
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Workshop 2 – A Trunkful of Stories
Gail N. Herman, PhD is a storyteller and educational consultant who specializes in integrating the arts. She taught in public schools (primary and middle grades and g/t) for 10 years and then in various colleges where she taught Storytelling, Speech, Movement, Early Childhood, Visual Imagery, and other education courses. She has given many performances and teacher/student workshops based on her book Storytelling: A Triad in the Arts and has performed on four continents. Her book Kinetic Kaleidoscope: Exploring Movement and Energy in Visual Arts was the basis for her workshops at MICA, George Mason University, as well as at NAEA and for docents in several museums. She will teach again this summer at The University of Connecticut’s Confratute, in Storrs, Connecticut. www.gailherman.netGail is quite a find! Click to see what other workshop participants have said about her!
Workshop 3 – Interactive Bookmaking for All AgesClick for more pictures!
Jaclyn Karabinas spent 12 years in the elementary school classroom before shifting gears to serve as an instructional coach and consultant. She earned her Master’s Degree in Curriculum & Instruction with an Arts Integration Specialization and has extensive experience in the world of Educational Technology integration. She loves experimenting with visual media, both hands-on materials and digital.
Listening to instructions before it’s time to play.
Follow-up Links and Additional Information
Keep in mind, this retreat is not just about the workshops, it’s about building a community of like-minded passionate teachers. We will be busy with other activities too: movement, brain gym, collaborative art work, discussions, drumming. When you register, you will get more info on all this other fun stuff!
For general information about the retreats, visit the Teacher Art Retreats page.
Teacher Retreat 2011- A Success!
What it means to Feed Your Flame Happy Teachers, Happy Kids Arts Integration Summer Grad Course For ALL the posts about our TEACHER ART RETREAT go to this link.
Come to the retreat with a friend! Tell your colleagues about this great event and get special pricing! Start asking around now, so you won’t miss out!
Check out our location!
We have a wonderful location! It’s bright, it’s quiet (it’s ACed) and it will be a wonderful place to retreat!
St. James Lodge in Hampton, NH 77 Tide Mill Rd Hampton, NH 03842 
This is a lovely site for our Retreat! Cancellation Policy
Paid registrants may send a substitute. If for any reason you can’t attend, 100% of your paid registration will be refunded when you notify The Inspired Classroom at least 48 hours in advance. Notifications after this time will be refunded less a $25 service fee.