It's more than youth engagement - it's empowerment
About this program
Classroom to the Streets is a program that leverages the power of public art to deeply engage youth in learning. This program uses public art as a platform for youth to explore issues of interpersonal, social, academic, and historical understanding, inspiring pride in community, deepening engagement, fostering inclusion, and broadening exposure to the arts.
Framework for Outcomes
Students who participate in our lesson plans and programming engage with activities that align with the four main pillars of Classroom to the Streets:
Artistic literacy, self reflection, cultural competency, and civic mindedness.
Our ultimate goal for youth is to help them create a sense of belonging and self-efficacy, while also aiding them in developing civic-oriented mindsets. We believe doing so will help inspire future leaders in civic action and community engagement.
Lesson Plans
We have a a variety of lesson plans for Elementary and Middle School grades that we have created around our murals. These lessons are built to include public school curriculum frameworks such as Visual Arts, Social Studies, English Language Arts, Science and Technology, and others. These lessons also touch on Social Emotional Learning (SEL) outcomes and English Language Learner (ELL) outcomes. Our lesson plans include:
- Hands-on art making activities
- Virtual worksheets for students that can be emailed to teachers
- Unit guides for teachers that include in-depth background information and resources for particular topics
- PowerPoints for teachers to use as visual aids
- Videos of artist interviews
Mural Tours
As part of our education program, we also offer mural tours to school groups and after-school programs. We curate these mural tours to fit the needs and interests of a particular group, whether it is a focus on SEL skills or BIPOC representation.
On these mural tours, which last anywhere between an hour to an hour and half, youth get the opportunity to see and learn about 20-25 murals across downtown Lynn.
Project Partner Snapshot
Location: Lynn, MA
Community Partners: Breed Middle School, Marshall Middle School, Pickering Middle School, Kipp Academy, Girls Inc. of Lynn, Family and Child Services of Greater Lynn Inc., Lynn Youth Street Outreach Advocacy, SPUR, Demakes Family YMCA
Contributors: Cummings Foundation, Essex National Heritage, ECCF
Gallery
