The Fresh International Film Festival
Deadline for entries: 10 January 2025

Calling All Young Filmmakers: Submissions Now Open! The Fresh International Film Festival Returns for 2025, opening doors for aspiring filmmakers.

Could you be the next Fresh Film alumnus to reach global acclaim?

The countdown is on for submissions to the Fresh International Film Festival 2025 and the coveted Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year Awards!

The Fresh International Film Festival 2025 is now open for submissions, inviting Ireland’s most promising young filmmakers to showcase their talents. Celebrating 29 years of championing young filmmakers, Fresh Film continues to provide an inspiring platform for creativity and storytelling. Many past participants have achieved international success, including Oscar nominations and major industry accolades. This year, the spotlight could be on you.

The deadline for entries is fast approaching on Tuesday, January 10, 2025. Whether you’re an independent filmmaker, part of a school group, or part of a collective, this is your chance to showcase your talents. From heartfelt dramas to thought-provoking documentaries and eye-catching animations, your work could take centre stage in this dynamic celebration of youth filmmaking.

One of the highlights of the festival remains the regional screenings, held at Omniplex cinemas across the country from 10th – 21st March 2025. Every filmmaker who enters will have their work shown on the silver screen – an unforgettable experience for creators and audiences alike.

For submission details, visit: Fresh International Film Festival Submission 2025 freshfilm.ie

Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year, shines a spotlight on the best in youth filmmaking across three categories: Junior (ages 7–12), Senior (ages 13–18), and International (ages 7–18, for non-residents of Ireland). Winners are rewarded with exciting prizes, including monetary awards, filmmaking equipment, mentoring sessions with industry professionals, and the rare thrill of seeing their work screened theatrically.

In addition to these categories, the festival also features specialist awards, such as the Animation Ireland Award, the SPI – Sustainability Award, and the Bow Street Performance Award, alongside audience-voted prizes, documentary honours, and more, ensuring every facet of filmmaking excellence is celebrated.

Ireland’s Young Filmmaker Awards are open to films in both English and Irish (or with English subtitles) and welcomes submissions from: Independent young filmmakers, Groups and collectives, Primary and Secondary Schools

Mark Your Calendar

Submission Deadline: Tuesday, January 10, 2025

Regional Screenings: March 10–21, 2025, in Omniplex Cinemas Nationwide

Festival Week: April 7–13, 2025

Watch the trailer here:

Kerry County Council
Closing date for applications: 15 January 2025 at 1pm

Kerry County Council has announced funding opportunities for 2025 including Artists in Schools Scheme and Youth Theatre Grant Scheme.

Artists in Schools Scheme 2025

Kerry County Council intends to provide funding for a number of projects in Primary and Post-Primary Schools in County Kerry under its Artists in Schools Scheme in 2025.

The purpose of the scheme is to enable students and teaching staff to work collaboratively with a professional artist on a creative project over an extended period.

The scheme is designed to provide an opportunity for a school to carry out a project that nurtures both the child’s creative imagination and the skills of the teachers involved. For this reason, it is important that a school making an application under this scheme considers especially the opportunities of working in partnership with an artist in a ‘process led’ approach rather than setting out with a pre-determined end product as the primary goal of the project.

Projects can be in any art form, for example, dance, music, composition, drama etc. It is also possible for a project to include different disciplines, (for instance writing and film) provided the overall aim justifies such an approach.

A school awarded a bursary in previous years, must allow a lapse of 1 year before being eligible to apply again (e.g. successful in 2023, apply again for 2025).

Youth Theatre Grant Scheme 2025

Grant funding is available through the Kerry County Council (KCC) Arts Office in 2025 for the development of youth theatres in Kerry. The fund is intended to support the growth of youth theatres and youth theatre practice through a collaboration between the KCC Arts Office (co-funded by the Arts Council of Ireland) and Kerry Local Creative Youth Partnership (LCYP). This collaboration advocates that joining a youth theatre in Kerry should be accessible to all young people within a 45-minute drive from their residential location.

Youth Theatre, under the scheme, is considered as a place where young people can express themselves creatively, and in doing so, develop their interpersonal and communication skills. Applicants must outline an annual programme of activity which facilitates the creative interaction of their young membership.

The Youth Theatre Grant Scheme has an intended target focus of young people from the ages of 12-24, who are willing to take part in group supported drama and theatre practice in a fun and safe environment, and where they are supported by a not-for-profit organisation.

For more information on both funding opportunities, guidelines and application forms, see consult.kerrycoco.ie/en/applications

Creative Schools publishes ‘Youth Voice in Creative Schools – Reflections on Practice’
October 2024

Youth Voice in Creative Schools: Reflections on Practice is a collection of practice documenting and celebrating the work of children, Creative Associates and schools across the country, offering insights, case studies and reflections on their work elevating youth voice in the Creative Schools process. Creative Schools is particularly proud of the contribution made by participating young people to the design and visual language of the publication.

The intention of this publication is to:

Collect, preserve and celebrate innovative practice in creative youth consultation in the Creative Schools Programme.
Share this practice to a wider audience.
Surface and document trends, patterns, challenges encountered to inform future training and research needs.

Creative Schools is a flagship of the Creative Youth plan – led by the Arts Council in partnership with the Departments of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sports and Media , Education & Skills and Children & Youth Affairs. Since its inception in 2018, 462 schools including primary, post primary schools, DEIS and special schools have joined the initiative.

Creative Schools aims to give our children and young people the opportunity to experience creativity as an integral part of their education placing the arts and creativity at the centre of school life. The two year programme in each school develops as a three way partnership between teachers, creative associates and children and young people and places young people’s voices at the centre of the processes.

The programme has, in the words of an independent evaluation undertaken last year, ‘… been collaborating meaningfully with learners and educators to shift the focus of arts education from child-centred to child-led creative participatory practice’.

Youth Voice in Creative Schools – Reflections on Practice is available to download here

Mary Immaculate College and the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick.
Deadline: 16 December 2024

Call for Proposals
The 17th Cultural Diversity in Music Education (CDIME) conference will take place in Limerick, 30th September – 2nd October, 2025. The CDIME conference has provided a platform for the exchange of practices and research related to cultural diversity in music education since 1992. The conference is co-hosted by Mary Immaculate College and the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick.

The CDIME 2025 Conference invites presenters to reflect on ‘Living Diversity, Imagining Inclusivity: Practicing (Non-)belongings in Music Education’. The conference will explore the multifaceted, everyday experiences and expressions of diversity, and the factors that determine its plurality in terms of cultures/cultural repertories, i.e. race, class, religion, (dis)ability, gender, among others.

They invite proposals, panels, or arts practice presentations that consider the conference themes and questions posed. The conference welcomes from a wide range of academic disciplines and community collaborators, with intersections between music education and other disciplines such as ethnomusicology, community music, musicology, music therapy and performance studies, as well as broader transdisciplinary perspectives drawing on disciplines such as philosophy, sociology, psychology, anthropology, history, politics, or geography.

Proposals should be submitted via the conference Call for Proposals online form before 16 December, 2024.

For more information, submission guidelines and online application form see www.mic.ul.ie/CDIME2025

Poetry Ireland
Deadline: Ongoing

Call for Applications: Writers in Schools Scheme

The Writers in Schools Scheme part-funds visits by writers and storytellers to primary and post-primary schools throughout the island of Ireland. This scheme is co-funded by the Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and administered by Poetry Ireland.

Applications are open on an ongoing basis from poets, novelists, storytellers, teen fiction writers, children’s writers, playwrights and screenwriters to join the Writers in Schools directory.

Prospective applicants can find out more information on the scheme, including eligibility criteria and the online application form from the following link: poetryireland.ie/education/information-for-writers/

2025 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition
Closing date: 12 February 2025 at 5pm

Waltons New School of Music and RTÉ lyric fm are delighted to announce the 2025 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition!

About the Competition

Founded in 2012, the Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition is a non-profit national event celebrating and supporting music in Irish schools.

All primary and post-primary schools in the Republic of Ireland are eligible to enter the Competition, and schools from all 26 counties have participated in previous years.

The Competition’s objective is to promote the enormous benefits of creative music making for young people. Its open nature offers schools the opportunity to think and work creatively in any genre (or genres) of music and with any combination of students, developing an original musical project that has learning potential at every stage of the process.

Each year’s Competition culminates in a gala Finalists Concert in the National Concert Hall, in which twelve Finalist school music groups (six primary and six post-primary) perform before their peers and a panel of distinguished adjudicators. The entire concert is streamed live by RTÉ lyric fm and can be watched from anywhere in Ireland or around the world.

At the end of the Finalists Concert, the adjudicators announce six winning groups (three primary and three post-primary), which receive trophies and awards totalling €7,000 worth of vouchers for musical instruments and equipment from Waltons Music Ireland for their schools, including two First Prizes of €2,000 vouchers, two Second Prizes of €1,000 vouchers and two Third Prizes of €500 vouchers.

How It Works

Primary and post-primary schools put together instrumental, vocal or mixed student music groups (between 10 and 40 performers), which create ensemble pieces or songs that respond in some way to the year’s Competition theme. A group can be made up of any combination of singers or instrumentalists you choose. And this year’s theme is The Key of Life.
Schools submit an online entry form and send a video of the group’s performance as well as a jpeg photograph of the group.
The initial entries are judged by a team of first-round adjudicators, and twelve Finalist groups (six primary and six post-primary) are selected.
The Finalists are announced on RTÉ lyric fm. Groups not selected as Finalists but displaying real merit are designated as either Commended or Highly Commended. Certificates are produced for the schools and all student performers, and the groups are listed on the Waltons New School of Music website. Finalists’ entry videos are added to the Music for Schools Competition YouTube channel.
The twelve Finalist groups perform in a gala Finalists Concert at the National Concert Hall. Their performances are assessed by a panel of distinguished adjudicators, who announce the six winning groups at the end of the concert. Finalists Concert videos are later added to the Music for Schools Competition YouTube channel, and both videos and photos are added to the Waltons New School of Music website.

2025 Competition Calendar:

Wednesday, 12 February 2025, 5 pm
Deadline for schools to submit their entries.

Friday, 28 February 2025
The twelve Finalist schools are announced on RTÉ lyric fm.

Monday, 24 March 2025
Finalists Concert

For more information and entry forms, go to newschool.ie/musicforschools.

Clare County Arts Office – Artists in Schools
Closing Date: 8 November, 5pm

Clare Arts Office are inviting Primary and Secondary schools to submit their applications for the Artist in Schools Residencies Scheme 2024-2025. This year Clare Arts Office are awarding residencies to the value of €1,340.

Schools can select the following artists from the Artist in Schools 2023-2026 panel (External for the purpose of making the application). Application must be co developed and written JOINTLY with the artist of choice.

Aims of the Scheme
The Clare Arts Office Artists in Schools Programme is designed to create opportunities for artists and schools to work together over a specific duration of time. We favour projects that are innovative, unique and that foster creativity, skills development and an introduction to the language used in art making. We also encourage projects that allow children to experience the cross disciplinary nature of the arts as well as projects which connect ideas and art making to other subjects e.g. history, science, the environment, local, national and global cultures and traditions.

Projects can be collaborative and involve other creative practitioners and organisations but must be developed with the input of both the artist and the school.

Assessment Criteria
Projects will be assessed according to the following criteria

Quality and innovation of the concept/idea for the proposal. (30)
Quality of the artists work and track record as demonstrated by the support documentation submitted with the application, including the Artists CV. (30)
Feasibility of the proposed project, budget, time frame, number of students etc. (30)
Potential for the project to leave a creative impact on the school. (10)

For further information, Terms and Conditions and Application Forms, please visit: yoursay.clarecoco.ie/artists-in-schools-residency-award-2024-2025

Oide Creativity
Dates: various November 2024

The Creative Ireland Programme and Oide are delighted to present their Autumn/Winter 2024 series of professional development workshops for teachers to support engagement with the arts and learning.

The courses include:

STE(A)M SEAI Workshop
Making Connections: Energy within and across junior cycle specifications
Dates: Saturday 9 November 2024 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Location: Mount Lucas, Daingean, Co Offaly, R35 XW10
Online via Zoom: Tuesday 19 November 2024 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Online via Zoom

Oide Creativity, in collaboration with Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), presents a one-day or online STE(A)M elective workshop, open to teachers from all subject disciplines. For full details go here.

Crafting Connections
A creative writing workshop
Dates: Saturday 16 November 2024 10:30 a.m. – 3:30 p. m.
Location: Museum of Literature Ireland (MoLI), 86 St. Stephen’s Green, D02 XY43

Oide Creativity, in collaboration with poet and writer Colm Keegan, presents a one-day workshop, open to all teachers. This workshop will take place in the Museum of Literature Ireland (MoLI). For full details go here.

This workshop offers participants an opportunity to:

explore the Museum of Literature Ireland (MoLI) and use it as a stimulus and source of inspiration,
engage in an active listening process as a means to discussing the relationship between teachers and students in the classroom,
consider the written word and Joyce’s use of language,
discuss how words are mediated through multi-modal texts in the world today,
enjoy time and space to develop their own writing.

Introduction to Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS): Learning to look
Dates: Saturday 16 November and Saturday 30 November 2024
Location: Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA)

Oide Creativity in collaboration with artist Claire Halpin and the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA), presents a two-day elective workshop, open to all teachers. For full details go here.

This workshop offers participants an opportunity to:

look at and respond to a range of images utilising the VTS method of looking,
practice the VTS method of looking in a collaborative and supportive environment,
discuss how thoughtful and responsible image selection supports aesthetic development and critical thinking skills,
reflect on how the VTS method can be utilised to engage students in analysing imagery.

Spaces are limited for each workshop. A waiting list will apply.

For more information on full list of Oide Creativity workshops, dates and to book your place, please visit: www.creativity.oide.ie/

Good Vibes Project
Deadline: 15 December 2024

The Good Vibes Arts Calendar Project, associated with the Open Science Scenario Project at University College Cork, invites anyone with an interest in the arts, to get involved in the pilot 2025 Art Calendar Project. The project is open to individuals but is also an ideal project for primary or secondary school class groups to participate in.

You are invited to develop creative ideas in response to the question:

Have you perhaps come across a piece of art (song, poem, play, novel, painting, drawing, photograph, film, sculpture etc.) that resonates strongly with you? A piece of art that in the currently overwhelmingly crisis-ridden world might reassure people, give them hope and strengthen their sense that humans can do better?

The 2025 Arts Calendar Project pilot aims to inspire with a weekly online calendar featuring a selection of 52 pieces of art from submissions.

Individuals or groups who are interested in getting involved, please share your selected piece as follows:

In English, briefly introduce the piece of art you have selected (max. 150 words), explain why it has touched you personally and might have an uplifting impact also on others,
add any additional information (image, link, source/copyright etc.) that helps to convey a vivid impression of the selected piece of art,
submit and send your proposal by 15 December 2024 to: goodvibesproject@protonmail.com

Please also note:

You are welcome to send up to three proposals if you wish.
As cultural and linguistic diversity is valued in this project, contributors with a first language other than English are encouraged to provide a first language version of their proposal(s).
You can download a PDF with a few examples of the (bilingual) format in which the contributions can be submitted: Contributions to Project – Some Examples

For further information please email Project Coordinator (Manfred Schewe) at: goodvibesproject@protonmail.com

See full information about The Good Vibes Calendar Project here: www.ucc.ie/en/scenario/scenarioforum/specificprojects/goodvibesartscalendarproject/

Featured image: Street Art in Müllerstraße, Berlin, by HERA. Photo: MS streetartmankind.org/artists/hera/

Branar
Closing Date: 31st October 2024

Branar is accepting applications from schools for their Acorn Digital Arts Flag programme.

Branar’s Acorn Digital Arts Flag is a whole school initiative designed to promote and reward arts engagement in schools. Branar is proud to be partnering with Acorn Life Group to make this happen each year.

The Acorn Digital Arts Flag programme includes:

A series of 6 arts workshops in video format that teachers and pupils can do in the classroom (there is a version for junior classrooms and one for senior classrooms)
Suggestions for extending the workshop activities in the classroom
Documentation to support engagement with the workshops and to build on them afterward in the classroom

Completion of the Acorn Digital Arts Flag is intended to be a statement of achievement and intent with regard to the prominence and status of the arts in the school. It will be a visible beacon that indicates a commitment to the importance of participation in the arts for the students of the school, both within and outside their classrooms.

Further details about what’s involved, see Branar’s website branar.ie/en/schools or watch this introduction video:

This programme is free to apply for schools in Ireland so please share with any teachers/schools you think may be interested.

There is no cost to schools to participate.

To apply please complete and submit the form at this link: form.jotform.com/231153125616346

Baboró International Festival for Children

Closing Date: 6 November 2024
Opportunity for artists passionate about developing performances for young audiences
Baboró seeks two artists to participate in professional development workshops hosted by international European festivals.

Selected artists will:

Participate in two 5-day practical sessions in 2025 with a cohort of 11 other professional artists from across Europe;
Experience two European children’s arts festivals with their workshop cohort;
Receive a daily fee of €200 to cover workshop and travel days. The cost of all travel, accommodation and festival tickets will be covered.

This opportunity is made possible through Baboró’s partnership with BABEL, a 4-year Creative Europe project emphasising communication and multilingualism in Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA).

Is this opportunity for you?

Baboró strives to make sure that all children in Ireland see themselves and their stories reflected in the arts. They endeavour to deliver projects and present performances which reflect the diversity of the Ireland we live in today. They strongly encourage artists from currently underrepresented backgrounds to apply.

Information Session
If you would like to know more about this opportunity or the application process, please join the Baboró team at their online info session on Monday, 16 September at 2:30pm on Zoom.

RSVP here

Key Dates

Applications Open Wednesday, 11 September 2024
Information Session Monday, 16 September 2024
Applications Close end of day Wednesday, 6 November 2024 at midnight
All participants will be notified by Friday, 20 December 2024

For full details on he application criteria and how to apply go to www.baboro.ie/news-events/artist-opportunity-apply-for-babel-round-4.

The National Museum Of Ireland

Dates: Autumn / Winter 2024

The National Museum of Ireland has launched its latest programme of guided tours, workshops and resources for primary and post primary schools for the autumn/winter 2024 term.

Available from September 2024, the programme offers students an opportunity to explore priceless treasures, Ireland’s military past, traditional rural life, natural history and more through guided tours, workshops and classroom resources.

All of the activities are designed to complement the primary and post primary curricula and are offered free of charge to schools.

Schools can visit three Museum sites in Dublin and Co Mayo this year. Click on a location below to see what is on offer at each Museum.

The NMI – Natural History, also known as the ‘Dead Zoo’, closed on 2 September 2024, so a school visit is not possible at this location. However, teachers can still book a virtual session for your school and explore the fascinating Natural History Collections through a range of classroom activities and resources.

Creative Schools

The Arts Council announced this week that 184 new schools and Youthreach centres across Ireland will join its Creative Schools programme. This brings to 1,100 the number of Irish schools who have participated since the programme began in 2018. One in four Irish schools will have now been part of the Creative Schools programme.

This is a critical development for the arts and young people in Ireland and helps to fulfil the Arts Council’s aim for all children to have the opportunity to participate fully in a range of art forms within our education system. The Arts Council works to ensure that all children can fully enjoy their right to arts and culture.

There were 300 applications to the programmme this year, a significant increase on 2023 numbers. This year’s Creative Schools intake includes 53 DEIS schools and 23 Irish language schools as well as seven youthreach centres and eight special schools. The 184 schools chosen will each receive a €4,000 grant and will work with a professional Creative Associate for two years who will support them to develop and implement their own bespoke Creative School Plan.

Participating in the Creative School programme empowers children and young people to develop, implement and evaluate arts and creative activity throughout their schools and Youthreach centres. The initiative also enables schools to discover additional ways of working and uncover the impact of creativity on children and young people’s learning, development and well-being. Schools who take part explore creativity in all its forms and embrace how it can be celebrated in so many ways. From baking to creating and designing gardens, from photography to performance, from working with other community groups to transforming areas of their own schools, the impact of Creative Schools is already felt in every county.

Minister for Education Norma Foley TD said: “It is wonderful to welcome the 186 schools to the Creative Schools initiative 2024. I would like to personally welcome these new schools into this unique programme. I’m very excited to see how these creative and captivating projects will develop over the coming two years.”

Also speaking today, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media Catherine Martin TD said: “I would like to congratulate the 186 schools and Youthreach centres that have successfully applied to become a Creative School. This new cohort of schools and school communities have the opportunity to embark on a unique two-year journey of creativity and discovery. With this additional set of schools, it now means that, since inception in 2018, 1 in 4 schools in Ireland will have experienced Creative Schools. Again, this year sees a continuous increase in the diversity of settings in receipt of support. This is a testament to its impact and the strength of the partnership between the Art Council, the Department of Education and the all-of-government Creative Ireland Programme.”

Speaking about today’s announcement Director of the Arts Council Maureen Kennelly said: “We warmly welcome our new cohort of 186 schools to Creative Schools. Following the wonderful success of Creative February for schools this year, we are heartened to see a clear increase in applications for this incredible resource. By this stage of the programme, we’re delighted to say that 25% of all schools in Ireland have connected with us. We know that arts experiences with, for and by children can be transformative. Working with our partners in the Department of Education, and in the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and in Creative Ireland, we are looking forward to another school year full of exploration, creative thinking, discovery and most importantly fun”.

For further information on the Creative Schools initiative go to artscouncil.ie/creative-schools.

Baboró International Arts Festival for Children

Dates: 11 – 20 October 2024

Baboró International Arts Festival for Children returns to Galway this 11 – 20 October. Ahead of the September programme launch, organisers have revealed three exciting events for families and schools to look forward to. Festival highlights include a madcap musical from the Netherlands, a hilarious take on ‘grown-up’ life from Belgium, and Laura Angell’s colourful installation of textile tapestries and crochet.

“While we at Baboró prepare to share the full festival programme soon, I couldn’t wait to tell you about a few of my favourite events including two wryly comic theatre shows from Europe called BullyBully and Grown Ups. Alongside a beautiful and thought provoking exhibition of needlework and tapestries by local artist Laura Angell in Galway Arts Centre. Expect a host of stunning shows and participatory creative workshops for all ages and abilities across Galway city and county in October,” said Aislinn Ó hEocha, Executive Artistic Director.

The full programme will include visual arts, music, dance, theatre, literature, creative workshops and adult events, as well as many more performances for all ages. The festival programme has dedicated performances for schools, with subsidised tickets for students, and free tickets for teachers and SNAs. A dedicated Schools Box Office is provided to assist schools groups with their booking and festival experience.

How to Book Tickets

All schools and group bookings must be made via the Online Booking Request, available from Monday 26 August. Contact Schools Box Office Liaison Mars on schools@baboro.ie or 091 532 985 for assistance with show selection, online booking, bus subsidies and any other queries.

For further information see https://www.baboro.ie/plan-your-festival/festival-schools.

ASSITEJ Germany – OPEN CALL FOR DIRECTORS IN TYA GERMANY

22-29 June 2025

Every two years, ASSITEJ Germany organises the International Directors’ Seminar for Children’s and Youth Theatre, which has been known as “DIRECTORS IN TYA – An International Exchange” since 2018. The next edition of DIRECTORS IN TYA will take place from the 22nd to the 29th June 2025, at the FUNDUS THEATER | Forschungstheater in Hamburg.

About 25 directors from all over the world will come to Hamburg for an exchange on how intergenerational and international alliances can inspire TYA practice. Working in small groups will provide enough space and time to explore practically and from different perspectives. Theatre performances by the host theatre and other companies in Hamburg as well as leisure activities will complete the week’s schedule. The working language of the seminar will be English.

The theme is : ‘Reassembling the world: Intergenerational and international alliances in TYA’. The event will explore:

How can artistic practices connect audiences from around the world?
What message would the children from your local community send to a group of adult artists?
How can our audiences share our connections and benefit from them?
How can intergenerational and international alliances inspire our TYA practice?
How can TYA reassemble the world – one project at a time?

ASSITEJ Germany and FUNDUS THEATER will cover the costs for accommodation, catering, theatre tickets and leisure activities for all participants.

For more information see here.

Fighting Words

Deadline: Friday 30th August 2024

Fighting Words is looking for an Irish Language Project Coordinator who will be responsible for organising and providing workshops, projects, and more through Irish outside the Gaeltacht.

Fighting Words offers free creative writing workshops through Irish for children, young people and other groups throughout the country.

Workshops are held through Irish with Irish schools, other schools, youth groups and communities.

The vast majority of demand is in Dublin with the majority of workshops being delivered at the centre on Russell Street. Travel to another location is required from time to time.

This is a full-time position on a temporary contract – September 2024 to June 2025 – with the possibility of an extension depending on funding.

€3,141.17 will be paid per month, which is €37,694 pro rata as a gross salary per year.

If you are interested in this position, and the chance to work with a great team and an exciting organisation, send a CV to info@fightingwords.ie by Friday 30th August.

Further information can be found here: https://www.fightingwords.ie/news/taimid-ag-fostu/we-are-hiring-comhordaitheoir-tionscadail-gaeilge

Solstice Arts Centre

Winter Programme: September – December 2024

Solstice Arts Centre Autumn-Winter Visual Arts Schools Programme is now available. Workshops, tours and talks for Primary and Secondary level students, educators and artists explore two very different exhibitions between September and December.

Thresholds to the Unseen (7 Sept. – 1 Nov) a group exhibition featuring sculptural works by five inspiring Irish based artists Fiona Kerbey, Christopher McMullan, Joanne Reid, Katherine Sankey, Emily Waszak

SURVEYOR 2024 (16 Nov. – 21 Dec.) presents an overview of contemporary visual arts practice throughout Meath with over 50 artists working in all disciplines.

Visual Think Strategies School Tours run throughout exhibitions allowing students to investigate and reflect on multiple perspectives, using cross-curricular links to artistic processes. Junior/Senior Cycle students receive information and resources supporting Content Area 3: Today’s World.

Sensory Connections experience for small groups with additional need are pupil-led, relaxed tours with multi-disciplinary activities connected to artworks in each exhibition.

Coral-ations (Tue 17 Sept & Tue 8 Oct.) designed for small class or youth group aged between 9-17 years, is a two-day ceramic workshop with Thresholds to the Unseen exhibiting artist Katherine Sankey.

Introduction to the Gallery for Educators & Artists (4pm Thu 19 Sept.) is a networking opportunity to experience their spaces, and how to use them as a rich learning environment with students.

Construct (Thurs 26 Sept.) workshop for primary class groups takes a closer look at artworks and materials in Thresholds to the Unseen, responding through sculpture with exhibiting artist Joanne Reid.

Material Narratives (Fri. 4 Oct.) for second level class groups, explores the artists multi-layered themes, processes, theory and thinking within Thresholds to the Unseen, with visual artist Joanna Hopkins. Working collaboratively through interpretation and hands-on experimentation this workshop links to Content Area 3 – Today’s World.

For further information contact, the Learning & Engagement Coordinator Deirdre on 0469092300 or email Deirdre.rogers@solsticeartscentre.ie or see here.

Clare County Council Arts Service

Closing Date: Friday August 9

Following a review of their artists’ panel, Clare County Arts Office has issued a call for applications for Music, Dance and Drama/Theatre artists/facilitators for their Panel of Artists 2024 – 2026

Clare Arts Office is seeking applications from artists (Clare based and national) who are interested in delivering and facilitating projects as part of their:

Artists in Schools Residency programme
Embrace for Arts and People with a Disability Residency programme
Youth Theatre
Creative Places Shannon (and other socially engaged arts programmes that may arise over this period)

To this end Clare Arts Office is seeking applications from artists under the following categories only:
• Music (singer/musician/song writing/choir leader)
• Drama/theatre
• Dance

Applications can be found on Clare County Council Your Say Website .Deadline for applications is Friday August 9 at 5pm

For further information and link to application form see here:

Not so Happy Birthday by Clare Youth Theatre

Department of Education & The Arts Council of Ireland

The application deadline for the following Arts In Education initiatives are closing.

Creative Schools

Deadline: 2nd May 2024

Successful schools will receive €4,000 to implement their plans over the school years 2024–25 and 2025–26.

In addition to downloading and reading the guidelines, you can find out more about the Creative Schools Initiative here.

BLAST

Deadline: 10th May 2024

Minister for Education Norma Foley, TD, has invited primary, post-primary, special schools and YouthReach to apply for the BLAST – Bringing Live Arts to Students and Teachers – arts in education initiative 2024/25. The 2024 programme will enable 425 new arts in education residencies in schools over the course of the year.

BLAST aims to provide pupils in schools all over the country, time and the space to work with a professional artist/creative practitioner on imaginative and joyful projects. BLAST is a key Department of Education initiative of the Creative Youth Plan 2023-2027 which aims to foster creativity in schools focus and to provide young people with opportunities to learn and develop the key skills and competencies of collaboration, critical thinking, problem-solving, and innovation.

Innovative BLAST residencies are designed and developed between the artist/creative practitioner, teacher, students and the school community under the coordination of the 21 full-time Education Support Centres Ireland (ESCI) network.

Please see the following link for BLAST Application Guidelines and further details: https://www.gov.ie/pdf/?file=https://assets.gov.ie/288286/7c65be23-c08f-4dc0-9837-141b6345ad6c.pdf

Creative Clusters

Deadline: 10th May 2024

The Department of Education is pleased to announce the opening of a new round of Creative Clusters for the two years commencing September 2024. The programme is open to primary and post-primary schools, including special schools, as well as YouthReach centres.

Up to €575,000 has been made available this year for Creative Clusters and this will enable up to 210 schools to come together across 42 clusters.

Each Creative Cluster will receive grant funding of €3,000 per school over a two-year period to implement their project 2024–2026.

3 schools would receive €9,000
5 schools would receive €15,000

In addition to financial support above each cluster will also receive:

A Creative Cluster Facilitator
Teacher Substitution to attend workshops and meetings
Room hire, travel & subsistence

Please see the following link for more details: Creative Clusters 2024 Department of Education Guidelines

MTU Crawford College of Art & Design

Application Deadline: 24th April 2024

Applications are now open for the Level 9 Certificate in Arts & Wellbeing in MTU Crawford College of Art & Design. This is the first course of its kind in Ireland. The course is designed to offer professional development that guides you through the most up to date theories in Wellbeing and Positive Psychology. You will develop your own personal wellbeing at the start of the course, finishing with a resource toolkit of tried and tested arts and wellbeing activities and workshops, developed with your peers.

Completing this course has the added bonus of being an elective on the MA in Arts & Engagement in MTU Crawford, should you wish to continue your studies. Applications for the Certificate in Arts & Wellbeing and the MA in Arts & Engagement are now open through the Crawford and MTU websites.

This course is part-time over the duration of one year.

One Academic Year (Part-time. 1 day twice a month in person, 1 evening online every 2nd week)

Fees €1700

Department of Education: BLAST Initiative

Application Deadline: 10th May 2024

Applications for BLAST are now open.

Minister Foley is delighted to confirm that BLAST will be running in 2024 for the fourth time. The 2024 programme will enable 425 new arts in education residencies in schools over the course of the year.

Minister Foley said: “I am extremely proud to announce the launch of BLAST 2024, which builds on the great success of the BLAST 2021, 2022 and 2023 Programme.”

Please see the following link for BLAST Application Guidelines and further details: https://www.gov.ie/pdf/?file=https://assets.gov.ie/288286/7c65be23-c08f-4dc0-9837-141b6345ad6c.pdf

BLAST Arts & Creativity in Education Residency 2024/2025 apply online here: LINK

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership

Kids’ Own have published two books by children and young people from the Roma and Traveller community Cork. They are offering complimentary copies of these books, together with the accompanying teacher learning resource, to schools and educators.

Explore the lives of Roma children with The Real Us. This publication shares their voices, experiences, and ambitions, challenging stereotypes and fostering empathy.

Discover insights from Traveller children with Grow Up Strong. Through narratives and artwork, this publication celebrates their experiences, highlighting the significance of their voices.

Developed by teachers, artists, and educators, the teacher resource supports the use of these books in classrooms. With a focus on fostering creativity and meaningful discussions, it aims to cultivate cultural understanding by centring children and young people’s experiences.

Tailored for upper primary and post-primary levels (Junior Cycle), these resources provide valuable perspectives and insights for your students’ educational journey.

Follow the link to read more and request copies for your school. https://kidsown.ie/educators-free-copies-of-grow-up-strong-and-the-real-us-books-and-teacher-resources-available-now/

Education Support Centres Ireland (ESCI)

Education Support Centres Ireland are offering a selection of CPD courses for teachers. Highlights of courses available are as follows:

Cork Education Support Centre

Course Title: Enriching Learning Through Play – The Power of Drama Games in your Classroom
Location: Online
Date: 10 April 2024
Level: Primary

Drama can sometimes feel like a strain for teachers! Join Debbie Cullinane for an enlightening, informative webinar, where you’ll delve into the magic of drama games for all ages and the positive impact they can have in your classroom. A huge bank of games & resources will be shared, along with practical ideas to seamlessly integrate drama games into your classroom.

Read more and register here: https://www.cesc.ie/primary-courses/3022-24-5938-spr-enriching-learning-through-play.html

Wexford Education Support Centre

Course Title: Senior Cycle Poetry
Location : Online
Date: 30 April 2024
Level: Post primary

Join facilitator Deidre Carroll in this CPD Course by Wexford Education Support Centre.

Looking at Language – What is required in a Comprehension exercise? Writing style – what is it? How to write an impactful piece. The composition – what to choose, what to write.

Drumcondra Education Support Centre

Course Title: Let’s Play
Location : Online
Date: 30 April 2024
Level: Primary and Post primary

Join multi-disciplinary artist Kajsa Kinsella for an exciting webinar titled “Let’s Play!” In this session, learn how to transform everyday objects into simple, cost-effective toys, games, and even musical instruments. Imagine the joy on your students’ faces as they learn to create, replicate, and share these fun projects, fostering a love for learning that lasts a lifetime.

This is a great opportunity to bring hands-on, interactive learning into your classroom.

Blackrock Education Centre

Course Title: Sensory Arts for SEN
Location : Online
Date: 07 May 2024
Level: Primary, Special Education

Join Blackrock Education on this webinar where you will learn to create captivating educational, safe and sensory arts and crafts for and with SEN classes. Speaker Kajsa Kinsella will show you how to utilise everyday items to create educational material for children of different abilities, sensitivities and preferences.

Cork County Council Library and Arts Service

Deadline: Friday 15th March 2024 at 5pm

Cork County Council’s Library and Arts Service is seeking creative facilitators and musicians to work with them over the next two years.

This is an invitation for

Musicians who are interested in performing in community settings, including schools, libraries, care homes etc. as part of the Council’s Arts Activity Programme.
Arts Facilitators working in any medium, for example visual arts, literature, or crafts, interested in delivering workshops and co-creating once off and medium-term quality arts projects with people of all ages, as part of the Council’s Arts Activity Programme.

In 2022, the Arts Office established a panel of enthusiastic, experienced, and skilled arts facilitators in various arts disciplines. Selected panellists have worked in a range of different engagement settings throughout the county including National Play Day, Cruinniú na nÓg, library workshops, and arts and health projects.

Cork County Council’s Arts Office is now updating this panel for arts facilitators, also extending the call to musicians.

Department of Education

Deadline: 10^th May 2024

Up to €575,000 has been made available this year for Creative Clusters and this will enable up to 210 schools to come together across 42 clusters.

Each Creative Cluster will receive grant funding of €3,000 per school over a two-year period to implement their project 2024–2026.

3 schools would receive €9,000
5 schools would receive €15,000

In addition to financial support above each cluster will also receive:

A Creative Cluster Facilitator
Teacher Substitution to attend workshops and meetings
Room hire, travel & subsistence

Please see the following link for more details: Creative Clusters 2024 Department of Education Guidelines

Creative Clusters 2024-2026 Flyer

Eligible Schools – The following schools are welcome to apply to participate in Creative Clusters:

Schools that have not yet participated in Creative Clusters.
Schools that have not yet participated in Creative Schools and those who will complete Creative Schools Year 2 in the 2023/24 school year.
Schools that will complete Creative Clusters Year 2 in the 2023/24 school year. However, they must apply as part of a cluster who have not yet participated in the initiative. In this instance, it is required that this school applies to lead a cluster of schools that are new to the initiative.

The local Education Support Centre will have a key role in identifying and supporting a Creative Cluster for their local area. 42 Creative Clusters will be selected nationally – 2 per Education Support Centre.

In announcing this new round of Creative Clusters, Minister Foley said:

“This is a wonderful opportunity for schools to work together on a creative project of their choice. Schools are given complete freedom to design and develop their own project, with support from a local facilitator and their local education centre.”

Applications are to be completed online, and can be made in English or Irish, by 10th May 2024, please visit: https://www.edcentretralee.ie/creative-clusters.html

Any queries, please contact your local Education Support Centre or email National Arts in Education Administration artsineducation@traleeesc.ie

Creative Clusters is an initiative of the Department of Education, led by and in partnership with the 21 full-time Education Centres (Education Support Centres Ireland – ESCI) and funded through the Schools Excellence Fund.

Children’s Books Ireland

Children’s Books Ireland are delighted to announce the 2024 Junior Juries’ scheme – part of the KPMG Children’s Books Ireland Awards – is now open for registration! Junior Juries is a unique programme for schools, libraries and book clubs, designed to encourage reading for pleasure and appreciation for a wide variety of books for all ages.

Participating classes make their own selection of suitable titles from the KPMG Children’s Books Ireland Awards shortlist, which will be announced on 7th February online and at Crescent Arts Centre, Belfast. Each group will be provided with a specially designed digital resource pack so participants can engage with the chosen books by taking part in quizzes, debates, discussions, research projects, creative writing, and visual art activities which will enhance their reading experience. At the end of this process, each group is asked to collectively score the books they have read.

Registration is completely free, all groups will receive:

A digital resource pack
Bookmarks
Poster

As part of the Junior Juries scheme registered groups can apply for the following free opportunities*:

An online or in-person author or illustrator visit to your school March – April 2024
A visit from a KPMG volunteer on 21 March 2024
Copies of the shortlisted books
A chance to be part of a short online video about the Junior Juries
Attending the in-person awards ceremony on 22 May 2024

‌*These opportunities are limited and based on need. Applications for books or author/illustrator/volunteer visits will be given to those groups who show most need.

‌‌Register online here:
2024 Junior Juries’ Registration Form

Further information about the awards and the Junior Juries scheme can be found here:
https://childrensbooksireland.ie/what-we-do/kpmg-childrens-books-ireland-awards/junior-juries-programme

‌Registration for the Junior Juries is ongoing. However, if you’d like to apply for an author visit or visit from a KPMG volunteer please ensure to register your class no later than 1 March 2024.

The Arts Council of Ireland

Dates: 1st-29th Feb

The Arts Council is inviting all schools across Ireland to get involved in their first ever Creative February, a celebration of art and creativity in schools with a focus on fun, festivities, imagination and innovation. This initiative will run from the 1st to the 29th of February.

Creative February will recognise and affirm that our schools are truly creative places, filled with very creative people. From primary to secondary to alternative settings, all children and young people will be encouraged to MAKE, SEE, DO.

Make any style of art you choose – paint, draw, dance, knit, design, sculpt, code;
See art – visit a museum or gallery, attend a theatre or spoken word performances, dance shows, music gigs, or see architecture and local art in your town or city!
Do a creative project – as a team, as a class or as a school.

To help inspire, guide and motivate everyone taking part, the Arts Council will host a series of online workshops in collaboration with Monaghan Education Centre and Wexford Education Support Centre. These workshops will be divided: half will be catering for school staff and teachers, with the remainder dedicated to students.

The underlying theme for Creative February is Spring. Creation from new growth, the seeds of inspiration, this theme hopes to encourage students and school communities to reflect on where creativity begins in our lives, in every class, in every school and how it can grow and flourish.

Ongoing updates and details of webinars will appear across the Arts Council’s social media platforms and Creative February website.

Run by the Creative Schools team within the Arts Council, Creative February is open to every school in the country, and all are warmly invited to take part. A welcome pack, with posters and details has been distributed to each school across the country.

The Arts Council of Ireland

The Arts Council has warmly welcomed the publication of a landmark report which shows the impact, reach and influence of the Creative Schools Programme. Creative Schools is led by the Arts Council in partnership with the Department of Education, the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and Creative Ireland.

The report by Dr Regina Murphy and Dr Eemer Eivers (Dublin City University) presents an evaluation of the first four years (2018-2022) of the initiative and provides information on the experiences of children and young people, teachers, educators, arts practitioners and artists. To date 971 schools, nearly a quarter of all schools in the country [~24%], have participated in the programme.

Participants in schools and centres, including children, students, teachers, principals, Creative Schools Coordinators and their supporting Creative Associates have been overwhelmingly positive in their overall attitudes towards the programme and in their reports of experience. 99% of participating schools said they would recommend the programme to other schools.

Schools from every county in Ireland have participated in the programme and all school types including 27 Youthreach Centres, have been well represented. The Creative Schools programme has successfully prioritised participation by DEIS Schools, small rural schools, Special Schools, Irish Language medium schools and Youthreach centres in response to interim findings from this report.

In many instances, changes to how students perceive their place in the school as well as improvements to the physical face of the school (e.g. an art installation or a student co-designed garden), can be directly attributed to the programme. The report also highlights that the Creative Schools initiative has been successful in promoting and infusing creativity in schools and drawing attention to the increasing importance of creativity in education.

Creative Schools has opened up a very broad range of experiences for students and pupils and each participating school has had a unique journey. The wide variety of activities undertaken by schools during their engagement in Creative Schools have included circus, architecture, heritage, music, comedy, literature, coding, traditional arts, science, horticulture, film, design, craft, drama, visual arts and dance.

The researchers Dr. Murphy and Dr. Eivers conclude:

“The overall Creative Schools initiative has transformed a very broad range of Irish schools in the Irish educational landscape more than any other initiative heretofore in placing learners in every county at the heart of the process, valuing and validating their perspectives and experiences, collaborating meaningfully with them while shifting the focus of arts education in particular from child-centred to child-led participatory practice.”

Maureen Kennelly, Arts Council Director said of the report:

“…By placing young people at the heart of decision making, we have been able to support schools to fully embrace the creative possibilities within their community and their locality…”

Catherine Martin TD, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media said:

“Creative Schools, a key programme under the Creative Youth Plan, has gone from strength to strength since 2018, particularly in its reach to schools and those under the DEIS programme, in alternative settings and special schools. This report highlights positive impacts that Creative Schools has had on students and their school communities…”

Minister for Education, Norma Foley TD added:

“I welcome DCU’s Creative Schools report which highlights the success of the programme in putting the arts and creativity at the centre of education. It has given students the opportunity to develop creative projects on their own school grounds, to take part in workshops and performances and to visit galleries, theatres, heritage sites, cinemas, museums, libraries and local arts centres…”

Two Sixth Year students from Mungret Community College, Limerick who participated in the Creative Schools programme also gave their views about their experience.

Aaroh Jain: “I think Creative Schools had a profound impact on me, because it was a chance to exercise autonomy in our school, a platform to see if we could bring our own ideas to life.”

Eve Adedirann: “Creative Schools is a great way to explore interests you may have thought you never had.”

The full report is available to read online from the DCU DORAS website: https://doras.dcu.ie/29450/

Fresh International Film Festival

Deadline extended: Friday, 1st February 2024

Fresh International Film Festival is accepting entries for Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year 2024. Open to all young budding filmmakers and school groups, between 7 – 18 years of age, encouraging young people from Ireland and overseas to create, exhibit, and share films. Submissions are welcome across comedy, horror, drama, documentary, experimental, music video, animation.

The 28th annual Fresh International Film Festival will take place in April, showcasing hundreds of short films from Ireland’s future screen talent. A highlight of the festival is Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year, an awards programme which acknowledges and celebrates the highest standards of youth filmmaking across three categories: Junior (7-12 years), Senior (13-18 years) and International (7-18 years). The awards include a prize fund, filmmaking equipment, mentoring sessions with creative professionals, and the opportunity for young people to have their work screened theatrically.

Dublin student Max Hendrickson (17) was named Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year 2023 at the Fresh International Film Festival. His short animated film, The Tell-Tale Heart is a re-telling of Edgar Allan Poe’s famous short story and it scooped the top prize for the amazing young Director.

“I have been submitting to the Fresh International Film Festival since I was 12, and it has consistently provided the inspiration and motivation for me to keep making movies. It has been absolutely amazing to attend every year and meet other young filmmakers, and I urge all aspiring filmmakers to submit their work to Fresh”. – Max Hendrickson, Dublin; Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year 2023.

Are you a school group who produced an original film work since January 2023? Closing date for entries is Friday, 1 February, 2024 and are welcomed in English (or English subtitles) and Irish.

A full set of criteria and submission forms are available at https://freshfilm.ie/fresh-international-film-festival-submissions/.

This article was edited to amend the deadline date which was extended from 19 Jan to 1 Feb

It’s all in the planning.

We are all starting to wind down for Christmas so it’s a good time to start thinking about any future TAP+ or Blast projects that may be on the horizon in the New Year. Maybe reach out to any partners that you may be working with in January or February, have a coffee or arrange a Zoom meeting for an initial meet and greet. It’ll just be great to have touched base before signing off this term.

How do you do your actual planning? Do you record on an app? Do you take notes old school in a diary? I do a combo of both. I use the Goodnotes app on my iPad and a bullet journal. For the bullet journal, I like to use a Leuchtturm 1917 notebook. I divide every double spread into a week and keep a double spread spare for listing monthly activities. I love how it’s flexible, I can draw or use pages at the back for longer notes. For detailed notes, I use my Goodnotes app. I highly recommend it if you have an iPad. You can hand write notes or type, record audio from lectures and you can insert images. When I’m working in a school, I would take photos then insert them into the notes to remind me of what happened that day. I use the 2 systems to keep me on track.

Maybe ask Santy for some new notebooks? Or an iPad if he’s very generous!

I recently worked in a secondary school, Colaiste Mhuire in Ballymote on a BLAST Residency. Both Oona McGrath and I spent a lot of time planning to maximise my time with the students and it really paid off. We decided to do a two day intensive session with the students. We had a coffee in August and then had a studio visit. Oona discussed what she wanted to get out of the residency, she really thought about what her students needed so that was brilliant. Once we figured out what we were going to do, we were able to make a detailed materials list. I recorded this in my bullet journal and then screen shot it into my Goodnotes app to have a permanent record of it. Everything from what print paper to how we were going to protect the tables in the art room. It was very specific and it really worked. We checked in with each other coming closer to November and then it was smooth sailing when I turned up into the class as everything was perfect. I had visited the room beforehand and we had planned how the room needed to be rearranged before we started. It just made everything so much easier to work on the day, everything was in place and the focus was on the students as it should be.

Have a peaceful, restful time on your break and a Happy New Year.

An Cumann Scoildrámaíochta

Dates: February – March 2024

An Cumann Scoildrámaíochta, which is under the patronage of the Department of Gaeltacht and Rural Affairs, organises schools drama festivals on a countrywide basis to promote Irish medium drama in schools at both primary and post-primary level.

The festivals are organised on a local, provincial and national basis. These festivals give young people from every part of the country the opportunity to be directly involved in all aspects of drama production. As well as being a hugely enjoyable experience, participation also helps to build self-confidence, self-esteem and an overall fluency in the Irish language. Part of the fun is the competition element with the standard rising year after year.

The programme begins with the local festivals which are usually held in February and early March each year, provincial festivals follow in March and the national festival is held in April.

There are separate competitions and divisions based on school level, the size of school, age groups, operas/musicals and for primary schools that are not Irish-medium or Gaeltacht schools.

A repository of scripts translated into Irish are available in pdf format to download from An Cumann Scoildrámaíochta website.

If you are a drama producer involved with primary or post-primary students or if you are a teacher who would like to try producing a play for the first time ever, this is your chance to take part.

Further information is available on An Cumann Scoildrámaíochta website, please see the relevant sections:
Local festivals dates & venues: https://www.scoildramaiocht.ie/feilte-aitiula-2024/
Competition categories: https://www.scoildramaiocht.ie/na-comortais/

If you are interested in taking part, contact the representative listed for the festival nearest you or send an e-mail to eolas@scoildramaiocht.ie.

The Arts Council recently announced that offers have been made to 141 schools and centres across Ireland who applied to be part of the Creative Schools initiative.

The Creative Schools initiative gives opportunities for children and young people to build their artistic and creative skills. Each of the 141 schools taking part will receive a grant and work with a professional Creative Associate who will support them to develop and implement their own bespoke Creative School Plan over a two-year period.

The 141 new Creative Schools comprise 97 primary schools, 25 post-primary schools, 4 special schools and 10 Youthreach centres. Joining the programme this year are five schools in Alternative Settings who cater for young people with severe emotional and behavioural challenges. St Paul’s YEP, Dublin; St Laurence O’Toole’s Special School, Dublin; Henrietta Street School, Dublin; St Kevin’s School, Cork; and St Augustine’s Special School, Limerick will join the programme and receive enhanced supports.

Catherine Martin TD, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media said:

“I am thrilled to see the continued success of the Creative Schools initiative and warmly welcome the 141 new schools and centres. Since 2018, Creative Schools has been a testament to the pivotal role creativity plays for children and young people across Ireland; in their education and for their school communities. I hope that the Creative School initiative continues to flourish and empower our young people as these new schools and centres embark on the programme.”

Norma Foley TD, Minister for Education said:

“I am pleased to see that 141 new schools and centres are now joining the Creative Schools Programme. Creative Schools puts the arts and creativity at the heart of children’s and young people’s lives. Over 970 schools and Youthreach centres have been invited to participate since it was set up in 2018. We are increasingly embedding the arts into the education system, which includes the development of a new subject – Drama, Film and Theatre Studies – which will commence in schools in 2025.”

Maureen Kennelly, Director of the Arts Council, said:

“We extend a warm welcome to the 141 new schools joining Creative Schools. The demand nationwide is a testament to the programme’s impact, and we’re excited even more schools in Ireland are now part of this creative journey. Collaborating with our partners in the Department of Education, the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport, and Media, as well as Creative Ireland, we anticipate another school year filled with creativity, consultation, and exploration.”

Participation empowers children and young people to develop, implement and evaluate arts and creative activity throughout their schools and centres. Creativity stimulates additional ways of working and has a positive impact on children and young people’s learning, development and well-being.

National Council for Special Education

Deadline: Friday 12th January 2024, 5pm

The European Federation of Associations of Teachers of the Deaf (FEAPDA), National Council for Special Education (NCSE) and British Association of Teachers of Deaf Children and Young People (BATOD), with support from BATOD Northern Ireland, invite all interested parties (teachers, professionals, lecturers, researchers, developers and manufacturers of technical devices, service providers, service users, policy makers, students etc) to present their work at the 27th FEAPDA Congress.

Deaf children and young people form a diverse group with varying experiences of hearing loss but who are also affected by other aspects of their lives. Additional medical and/or educational needs, cultural and social backgrounds and every individual’s own life experience will influence their experience of deafness.

This year’s congress will explore the diversity of deaf learners in their many lives: implications for our knowledge and practice.

Papers and presentations may consider issues such as:

Meeting the needs of children who are deaf with additional needs;
Meeting the needs of children whose deafness is not their primary need;
The experience of deaf children from minority communities;
How deaf individuals experience and define their own identities

Abstracts for paper presentations (30 min), workshops/interactive presentations (60 min) and poster presentations are welcomed.

The 27th Federation of Associations of Teachers of the Deaf (FEAPDA) Congress is in partnership with British Association of Teachers of Deaf Children and Young People (BATOD), with support from BATOD Northern Ireland, and National Council for Special Education (NCSE). It will take place from 26th to 27 April 2024 in The Grand Hotel, Malahide, Co. Dublin, Ireland

For further information on the submission process and criteria for selection please visit: https://ncse.ie/batod-feapda-ncse-joint-conference-2024

Léargas

Date: 18th January

Do you have ideas for an Erasmus+ project, but not sure where to start? Wondering how to promote inclusion in your Erasmus+ project?

Don’t miss this information session on 18th January for those working in primary and post-primary schools in Ireland and who are interested in learning about funding opportunities under Erasmus+. The event will be led by Inclusion and Impact Officer, Vasiliki Psarra, and will be a good opportunity to connect with other schools, share experiences and challenges and learn about additional supports.

This session will focus on the range of opportunities for pupils and staff in school education and the inclusions supports available. This session will cover pupil mobility, staff mobility, and how to apply. There will be time to answer any questions you may have.

This free in person session will take place at Radisson Blu Hotel, Athlone. Registration can be made via Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/support-inclusion-for-erasmus-opportunities-for-schools-tickets-765578966297

Waltons New School of Music and RTÉ lyric fm

Deadline: Friday, 23 February 2024, 5pm

After four long years without it, Waltons New School of Music and RTÉ lyric fm have announced the launch of the 2024 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition!

Founded in 2012, the Music for Schools Competition is a non-profit national event celebrating and supporting music in Irish schools.

The Competition is open to all primary and post-primary schools in the Republic of Ireland, and hundreds of schools from all 26 counties have participated in previous years. Music groups of up to 40 members formed by schools will work together to produce a piece or song in response to this year’s Competition theme, Music Moves.

Groups can be made up of any combination of instrumentalists and singers that schools choose, and all music genres are welcome. (Past entries have included classical, Irish traditional, jazz, pop, rock, rap and folk). Schools are also encouraged to promote diversity and inclusiveness in their groups.

Twelve Finalist groups (six primary and six post-primary) will be selected to perform before their peers and a distinguished panel of adjudicators in the National Concert Hall on 8 April 2024. And at the end of the concert, the adjudicators will announce this year’s six winning groups (three primary and three post-primary), which will win awards totalling €7,000 worth of vouchers for musical instruments and equipment from Waltons Music to expand and enhance their schools’ music programmes. The entire concert will be streamed live by RTÉ lyric fm and can be watched from anywhere in Ireland or around the world.

The Music for Schools Competition offers schools the opportunity to think and work creatively with any combination of students, developing a creative and original musical project that has learning potential at every stage of the process.

Important Dates

Friday, 23 February 2024, 5 pm • Entry Deadline
Friday, 1 March • Announcement of Finalists on RTÉ lyric fm
Monday, 8 April • Finalists Concert, National Concert Hall

For more information and entry forms. go to www.newschool.ie/musicforschools.

European Education and Culture Executive Agency

The diversity of the educational landscape is increasing; however, learners from disadvantaged backgrounds and those who experience discrimination or unequal treatment disproportionately underachieve in schools. Equality, equity and inclusion are fundamental principles of the European Union. They have also become key topics of the educational science discourse and a policy priority across Europe.

Promoting diversity and inclusion in schools in Europe report investigates existing national/top-level policies and measures that promote diversity and inclusion in school education in 39 European education systems including Ireland.

It focuses especially on learners who are most likely to experience disadvantage and/or discrimination in schools, including students from different migrant, ethnic and religious backgrounds, LGBTIQ+ students, girls/boys and students with special educational needs or disabilities. The report highlights existing targeted policy initiatives promoting the learners’ access to quality, inclusive, mainstream education.

It provides a comparative overview of policies and measures across 39 European education systems and presents many country examples, which showcase some of the most recent initiatives taken across Europe.

To view and download a copy of the full report, please visit the report page on the Eurydice website

Eurydice is a network whose task is to explain how education systems are organised in Europe and how they work. They publish descriptions of national education systems, comparative studies devoted to specific topics, indicators and statistics in the field of education.

The European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) manages funding for education, culture, audiovisual, sport, citizenship and volunteering.

In Ireland, Léargas manage international and national exchange programmes in education, youth and community work, and vocational education and training. To find out more about iniatives and programme offered through Léargas, visit their School Education page here for more information: https://www.leargas.ie/explore-school-education-opportunities/

Solstice Arts Centre

School Gallery Tours using VTS

DATE : Tuesdays – Fridays, various times available during exhibitions.

Broaden creative thinking through oral and visual literacy by exploring works in the Solstice Art’s Centre gallery spaces.

Using Visual Thinking Strategies, this is an opportunity for students to investigate, analyse and reflect on multiple perspectives, and assist in the development of imaginative and innovative ideas. Using cross-curricular links and learning through art, these sessions support the Junior and Senior Cycle, placing students at the centre of the learning process. Upon visiting Solstice, Senior Cycle students will receive specific information that embraces the three strands – Research, Create and Respond (visual and written responses), with particular focus on Content Area 3: Today’s World of the New Appreciating Art

Encouraging peer-to-peer discussion, this is an opportunity for children and teachers to focus and reflect on multiple perspectives, enhancing engagement and enjoyment of learning through art. To conclude, learn about the artist and her work, inspiring you to create artworks back in the classroom.

Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) is an inquiry-based method of visual processing – looking, describing and discussing what we see in a work of art. It is about listening to others, responding and expanding thoughts and new possibilities revealed within group engagement. VTS improves oral and visual literacy, problem-solving and collaborative interactions among peers. Suitable for all ages, VTS tours are best with groups of 5 or more.

Booking: free, booking essential, duration: 60mins. For all queries & booking please contact Deirdre: deirdre.rogers@solsticeartscentre.ie

Department of Education

Minister for Education Norma Foley recently announced the latest updates to BLAST (Bringing Live Art to Students and Teachers) and Creative Clusters as part of the Creative Youth Plan 2023 – 2027. 425 schools have been selected to take part in the BLAST 2023 initiative and 40 new Creative Clusters were created.

The aim of the BLAST scheme is to give students in schools all over the country the opportunity to work with a professional artist on unique projects to be planned and developed between the artist, the teacher and the school under the co-ordination of the Education Support Centres Ireland ESCI network of 21 full-time education centres.

Announcing the creation of 425 new BLAST Arts in Education Residencies, Minister Foley said:

“The initiative will provide additional opportunities for schools to collaborate with established artists and creatives, supporting our children and young people to collaborate and engage in creative and critical thinking – all crucial skills for their futures… Each residency is worth €1,100 which is fully funded by the Department of Education and the local Education Centre will pay the Artist for a 20-hour residency which will be delivered throughout the academic year, commencing from September 2023. I look forward to seeing how these exciting artist in residency opportunities in schools develop over the coming year.”

With the creation of 40 new Creative Clusters, Minister Foley said:

“Now more than ever, it is important that our students are supported to develop their creativity and given flexibility to express themselves in a variety of exciting new ways. Today I am proud to announce the 140 schools that are coming together to form 40 new Creative Clusters. I look forward to seeing how these exciting projects develop over the coming two years. This year has once again seen a very significant level of interest from schools applying to participate in the 2023 Creative Clusters initiative across the country.

Each Creative Cluster will receive grant funding of €3,000 per school over a two-year period to implement their project in the 2023–2025 school years (e.g. a cluster of 3 schools would receive €9,000 over two years while a cluster of 5 schools would receive €15,000 over two years). Clusters will receive 50% of the total grant funding in Year 1, with the second 50% being provided in Year 2. In addition, but separate to the grant funding, all successful clusters are further supported with: A fully paid Creative Cluster Facilitator; paid Teacher Substitution to attend training and meetings; room hire, travel & subsistence.

To read the full statement from the Department of Education, visit: https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/27bc3-minister-foley-announces-425-new-blast-arts-in-education-residencies-in-schools-and-40-new-creative-clusters-commenced

Riverbank Arts Centre

Secondary Schools – Monday 6th November, Monday 4th December 2023 at 10.30am

Primary Schools – 27th November, 11th December 2023 at 10.30am

Riverbank Arts Centre, Newbridge is the Kildare Partner of Fighting Words. They are hosting creative writing workshops for primary and secondary schools. Fighting Words workshops are always free of charge to the participating schools.

Their volunteer mentors work with the young writers to identify key elements of a story and help them write the first half of their story together as a group. The students work together to choose their characters and plot the group story sentence by sentence, editing as they go. In the second half of the workshop, students can opt to continue the group story or write a new story of their own.

These workshops will be conducted in Riverbank Arts Centre by an experienced Fighting Words Kildare coordinator, Pierina Campbell, and supported by 2-3 writing mentors from Riverbank’s Fighting Words team. The workshop will last 2 hours and they require that the teacher is present throughout.

Please contact Theresa 045 448327, or email boxoffice@riverbank.ie to book your workshop.

Solstice Arts Centre

Solstice Arts Centre have a number of upcoming events and opportunities for teachers, artists and schools.

Opportunity; An introduction to the gallery for educators & artists

Date: 3rd October 2023 at 4pm

Solstice Gallery are offering teachers, lecturers, teaching artists, youth workers or community leaders an opportunity to learn more about the gallery and what it can offer your class or group.

Over a relaxed tea/coffee, you can discover how to use their gallery as a rich learning environment. Through the exploration of contemporary artists and their work, experience the Solstice Arts Centre’s VTS (Visual Thinking Strategies) tours and resources, discover their artist-led workshops created especially for schools and plan a visit for your students with their Learning & Engagement Coordinator. Embracing cross-curricular links, this rich environment for learning supports all students in primary, secondary and 3rd level.

School Gallery VTS Tours

Dates: Tuesdays – Fridays, various times available.

Exploring contemporary artworks in Solstice’s gallery spaces using VTS (Visual Thinking Strategies), this is an opportunity for pupils and teachers to investigate, analyse and reflect on multiple perspectives. With cross-curricular links, these sessions support pupils in primary and post-primary, placing them at the centre of the learning process. While visiting Solstice, Senior Cycle students will receive specific information and resources that embrace Content Area 3: Today’s World of the New Appreciating Art Visual Studies curriculum. Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) is an inquiry-based method of visual processing. Responding and expanding thoughts revealed within group engagement, VTS improves oral and visual literacy, problem solving and collaborative interactions among peers.

Price: free, booking essential, duration: 90mins

Sensory Connections

Dates: Wed 6, 13 Sept/4, 11, 18, 25 Oct, 8/ 15 Nov/ 6, 13 Dec.

These relaxed gallery tours and short workshops designed for small groups with additional needs and their teacher/carers follow a slow pace of engagement. Tailored to individual needs participants can engage in a multi-disciplinary, sensory activity that connects to an artwork on display. All levels of capability are welcome. The gallery will be closed during your visit and guidance from teachers and carers will be discussed prior to the session.

Read more about the event here: https://solsticeartscentre.ie/event/sensory-connections-1

For all queries and bookings email Deirdre: deirdre.rogers@solsticeartscentre.ie

Creative Schools

Deadline: 31st August 2023

Creative Schools have launched a call out for Teacher Creative Associates. Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools is a flagship initiative of the Creative Ireland Programme to enable the creative potential of every child. Creative Schools is led by the Arts Council in partnership with the Department of Education.

It is expected that the Creative Associate will work in partnership with up to one school to develop expertise and approaches that will develop and sustain arts and creative practices in their schools. Creative Associates will draw on the range of opportunities within the school and wider community to stimulate and support creative practices as part of the school’s plan.

Creative Associates are educators with their own arts practice and a deep understanding of creativity and its potential to transform the lives of children and young people. They are dynamic agents for change uniquely placed to form sustainable partnerships between teachers, school staff, learners and other partners.

They are original thinkers who will match the needs of schools to creative opportunities in their locality. They can identify potential areas for improvement and will inspire, energise and drive schools forward in addressing these. Through this pioneering initiative, Creative Associates will have the chance to shape the place of the arts and creativity in Irish schools.

It is expected that up to 10 to 15 Teacher Creative Associates will be engaged to deliver services. Each associate will be partnered with one school within one the following regions:

Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Monaghan, Sligo
Mayo, Roscommon, Galway
Laois, Longford, Offaly, Westmeath
Kildare, Louth, Meath, Wicklow
Dublin
Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Waterford
Cork, Kerry,
Clare, Tipperary, Limerick

Follow the link to apply: https://form.jotform.com/232194890105354

For more information please visit: https://www.artscouncil.ie/creative-associate-opportunities/

Arts Council of Ireland

Application Deadline: Thursday 15 June 2023 at 5.30pm

Maximum Award: with €4,000

Applications are now open for the Creative Schools Initiative! All Department of Education-recognised primary and post-primary schools and Youthreach centres that have not already participated in a previous round of Creative Schools are eligible to apply.

Creative Schools supports primary and post-primary schools and Youthreach centres across Ireland to put arts and creativity at the heart of children’s and young people’s lives.

It supports schools/centres to provide opportunities for children and young people to build their artistic and creative skills, and to develop additional ways of working that reinforce the impact of creativity on their learning and wellbeing.

Schools and Youthreach centres that join the programme take part in a two-year guided journey to develop a Creative Schools Plan unique to their own school, and to put it into action. Children and young people’s involvement in planning, decision-making and reflection is central to the journey.

Participating schools/centres will be provided with a package of supports that includes working with a Creative Associate, training and networking to support them to create their Creative School Plan, as well as seed funding to begin to implement their Plan. Successful schools will receive €4,000 to implement their plans over the school years 2023–24 and 2024–25.

Application guidelines 2023

The application guidelines are available  here.  All applications to the Arts Council are made through the Arts Council’s online services system. To access the application form and make an application, please set up an organisation account for your school or Youthreach centre on the Arts Council’s online services system here.

Information clinics

Please join one of our online information clinics to find out more.

Monday 15 May 2023 at 16.00-17.00. Book tickets here.
Tuesday 16 May 2023 at 16.00-17.00. Book tickets here.

The Hunt Museum

Dates: Ongoing

Join The Hunt Museum for a range of options of tours and workshops in the museum, and online resources for learners of all ages including lesson plans, videos and activities.

Some highlights of the workshops include:

Primary:

Life in the Bronze Age

Duration: 60 minutes

This workshop encourages pupils to thematically explore the objects and practices of Ireland’s Bronze Age people. It enables them to investigate and use as evidence the Bronze Age collections on display in the Hunt Museum. The handling of replica prehistoric artefacts will provide additional opportunities for inquiry-led learning. Pupils also get to try out some simple prehistoric technologies. This workshop walks the students through the prehistoric timeline as they learn how technologies emerged and advanced from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age.

Animal Hunt Online Programme

Date: Watch video to your schedule

This 20 minute video workshop introduces Primary School students to animal based collections at the Hunt Museum. Students learn how artists throughout history have depicted animals in their art, and why certain animals are important to different cultures. Students will be introduced to the online research tools that will help them complete the Animal Hunt 3D online activity.

Post-Primary

800 Years of Fashion Workshop

Duration: 60mins

€3.50 euro per student. Teachers go free!

In this workshop, students will learn about clothing from eight different periods (between 1200 and 1920), and these societies. These resources, and objects in the permanent collection, will be used as historical evidence to better understand the evolution of fashion over time, and how these shifts in style relate to changes in society.

To book, email educationoffice@huntmuseum.com

To see all workshops and tours for schools visit: https://www.huntmuseum.com/schools/

Creative Futures Academy

Date: Wednesday, 10th May 2023

Creative Futures Academy at IADT invites you to join their upcoming webinar on creative uses for immersive technology.

Are you looking to explore how immersive technologies can be used to enhance learning and creativity? Join their upcoming webinar, Immersive Technologies Use Cases for Learning and Creativity.

Learn about the potential of these technologies and how they can be applied in education and creative activities. Their panel of experts will be showcasing their work in utilising immersive technologies. Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to gain insight into the latest trends and innovations in immersive tech! Register now for their webinar.

Book your place now via Eventbrite or by emailing iadt@creativefutures.ie

Find out more about the speakers here: https://creativefuturesacademy.ie/events/webinar-immersive-technologies-use-cases-for-learning-and-creativity/

Department of Education: BLAST and Creative Clusters

Deadlines:

BLAST: 19th May 2023

Creative Clusters: 12th May 2023

The Minister for Education Norma Foley TD has invited primary and post-primary schools to apply for the arts in education initiative, Bringing Live Arts to Students and Teachers (BLAST) 2023 and Creative Clusters.

BLAST – Bringing Live Arts to Students and Teaches

BLAST will be running in 2023 for the third time. The 2023 programme will enable 425 new arts in education residencies in schools over the course of the year.

The aim of BLAST is to provide pupils in schools all over the country, time and the space to work with a professional artist on creative, imaginative and fun projects.

For Applications in English and Irish, please visit: https://www.edcentretralee.ie/blast.html

The deadline for receipt of applications is 19^th May 2023.

Watch the promotional video for the TAP+ and BLAST initiatives: https://vimeo.com/825074868

Creative Clusters

For Applications in English and Irish please visit: https://www.edcentretralee.ie/creative-clusters.html

The deadline for receipt of applications is 12^th May 2023.

For more information on both initiatives please visit: https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/5e9e9-minister-foley-announces-call-for-applications-from-schools-for-blast-2023-and-creative-clusters-initiatives/

Watch the promotional video for theCreative Clusters initiative: https://vimeo.com/825072944

Creative Ireland

Creative Ireland have released their 2022 progress report A Creative Future, highlighting their initiatives throughout the year, including progress made under the Creative Youth Plan. Published in December 2017, the aims of the Creative Youth Plan are to give every child practical access to tuition, experience and participation in art, music, drama and coding by 2022.

Catherine Martin TD, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, was delighted to announce the project will be extended until 2027.

Under the project 185 new schools and Youthreach facilities joined the Creative Schools programme. This includes the addition of four schools in alternative settings which will receive enhanced supports: Oberstown Children Detention Campus School; Ballydowd High Support Special School; Crannog Nua Special School, Portrane; and St Canice’s Special School, Limerick.

Other highlights include :

153 new schools joined 42 Creative Clusters around the country.
629 new school artist residencies were awarded under BLAST (Bringing Live Arts to Students and Teachers) for the 2022/2023 school year

To read the progress report in full see : https://report2022.creativeireland.gov.ie/

To read more about the first 5 years of Creative Youth, see https://www.creativeireland.gov.ie/app/uploads/2022/08/Creative-Youth-Plan-2017-2022.pdf

Webwise / PDST Technology in Education

Deadline: Friday, 21st April

The Safer Internet Day Awards are back and this year a special new category has been added for budding creatives.

NEW: Art Competition with special guest judge; Irish artist – Maser. Be in with a chance to have your work exhibited in a gallery! Simply design a poster under the Safer Internet Day theme Respect and Empathy Online.

Entries will be judged by International Irish Artist Maser.
Open to Primary and Post-Primary Schools.
Closing date March 31st.

Categories for Primary:

1st and 2nd Class | 3rd and 4th Class | 5th and 6th Class

Categories for Post-Primary:

1st and 2nd Year | Transition Year | 5th and 6th Year

How to submit your entry:

Post your entry to: Webwise / PDST Technology in Education, Innovation House DCU Alpha, Old Finglas Rd, Dublin 11, D11 KXN4

Include the following information: Name, school, teacher’s contact details, category you are entering, and a brief description of the poster.

For full details on the competition see https://www.webwise.ie/saferinternetday/competition/art-competition/

National Museum of Ireland (NMI)

The National Museum of Ireland (NMI) is inviting schools and teachers across Ireland to spring into culture and heritage with a new programme of tours, activities and resources for onsite and online engagement.

The museum has just launched a diverse range of events across four public sites in Dublin and Mayo. Activities include virtual tours, guided tours, self-guided visits, workshops, classroom resources, video resources, wordsearches, arts and crafts and more.

The curriculum-linked programme aims to spark curiosity, stimulate discussion and encourage cultural and heritage engagement through our national collections.

All schools visits are free but must be booked in advance as capacity is limited and varies from site to site.

Primary level: Browse the full spring 2023 programme
Post Primary level: Browse the full spring 2023 programme

Here are some of the highlights of the upcoming schedule.

Orienteering Workshop / Post Primary

Learn some basic map reading and navigation skills and complete an orienteering course around the grounds of the National Museum of Ireland – Country Life at Turlough Park in Co Mayo. Booking is required.

PRIMARY / Classroom activity: Ice Age Ireland – Cool Fossils

Use these curriculum-linked activity sheets and video resource to learn more about Ice Age Ireland. In this museum activity, find out about Ice Age Ireland, learn about fossils and the different kinds of animals that lived on your doorstep thousands of years ago.

For the full programme of activities go to https://www.museum.ie/en-IE/News/Schools-programme-2023

Call for Applications: Writers in Schools Scheme

Deadline: ongoing

The Writers in Schools Scheme part-funds visits by writers and storytellers to primary and post-primary schools throughout the island of Ireland. This scheme is co-funded by the Arts Council in the Republic of Ireland and administered by Poetry Ireland.

Applications are open on an ongoing basis from poets, novelists, storytellers, teen fiction writers, children’s writers, playwrights and screenwriters to join the Writers in Schools directory.

Over the past 22 years, the scheme has given more than 500,000 children the chance to work closely with writers in the classroom. A comprehensive professional development and support programme for successful applicants is delivered by Poetry Ireland before they are enlisted to the directory of writers.

Prospective applicants can find out more information on the scheme, including eligibility criteria and the online application form from the following link:

https://www.poetryireland.ie/education/information-for-writers/

Solstice Arts Centre

11th February – 31st March 2023

Solstice Arts Centre have a number of events in their spring programme for schools, teachers and artists.

Primary School Gallery Tours using Visual Thinking Strategies

Look, listen and respond to artworks by Sinéad Ní Mhaonaigh in her current exhibition ‘Deep Mapping: Unseen Landscapes ‘. Encouraging peer-to-peer discussion, this is an opportunity for children and teachers to focus and reflect on multiple perspectives, enhancing engagement and enjoyment of learning through art. To conclude, learn about the artist and her work, inspiring you to create artworks back in the classroom!

Secondary School Gallery Tours using Visual Thinking Strategies

Broaden creative thinking through oral and visual literacy by exploring works in our current exhibition by Irish artist Sinéad Ní Mhaonaigh . Using Visual Thinking Strategies, this is an opportunity for students to investigate, analyse and reflect on multiple perspectives, and assist in the development of imaginative and innovative ideas. Using cross-curricular links and learning through art, these sessions support the Junior and Senior Cycle, placing students at the centre of the learning process. Upon visiting Solstice, Senior Cycle students will receive specific information that embraces the three strands – Research, Create and Respond (visual and written responses), with particular focus on Content Area 3: Today’s World of the New Appreciating Art Visual Studies for Leaving Certificate curriculum.

For all queries and bookings email Deirdre: deirdre.rogers@solsticeartscentre.ie

Arts Council of Ireland

Creative Schools Week 2023

The Creative Schools Team at The Arts Council is delighted to invite your school to join Creative Schools Week 2023 which will run from the 8 – 12 May. Creative Schools Week is a celebration of creativity in schools within curricular subjects or in separate projects and activities.

The theme for Creative Schools Week 2023 is ‘Creativity Lives Here! / Tá Beocht na Cruthaitheachta Anseo!’. The theme encourages school communities to pause and reflect on where creativity is evident in our lives, in every class, in every school and in the experience of every student.

Creative Schools Week is open to every school and we warmly invite all schools to join in. Visit
https://www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/creative-schools-week-2023/ to learn more.

There will be a Teacher Drop-In informational session on 8 March 4:30pm-5:30pm via Zoom. If you are a teacher interested in participating in Creative Schools Week 2023, please join us by registering for the session here: https://buytickets.at/creativeschools/858237.

Creative Schools 2023 online information clinics

The Creative Schools team is running a series of online information clinics in March for teachers and Principals in schools and Youthreach centres who are curious about joining the Creative Schools programme in autumn 2023. The team will explain the programme and how to apply, and there will be plenty of time for questions.

Clinics take place online on 20, 21 and 22 March at 16.00-17.00. Further information and the link to book your place is available here.

This article was updated March 2nd 2023 to add details of the Teacher Drop-in session for Creative Schools Week.

National Gallery of Ireland

Thursday, 9 Feb 2023, 6pm

Find out more about the National Gallery’s Teachers & Schools programme and network with colleagues over a glass of wine.

Jennie Taylor, curator of the Zurich Young Portrait Prize, and artist Grainne Moloney Minehan will lead a tour of the exhibition and discussion on supporting students entering the prize.

Explore My Primary School is at the Museum, our special project with 4th class students from John Scottus National School, the latest school in residence.

This is a free event hover booking is advised: https://nationalgallery.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/873631124

National Gallery of Ireland Teacher Network Facebook Group

This online group is an active place for collaboration, peer learning and idea exchange. Meet teachers from across Ireland and beyond, and help shape the National Gallery’s schools programme, connect here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/NationalGalleryIRLTeacherNetwork/.

Schools Programme

The National Gallery offer onsite and online experiences for schools including guided tours and online sessions. Schools can also arrange to visit the Gallery as a self-guided group. Full details on their current programme can be viewed from the following link:

https://www.nationalgallery.ie/explore-and-learn/schools/schools-programme

Children’s Books Ireland

Tuesday 24th January, 10am.

Children’s Books Ireland will host their first virtual artists’ coffee morning of 2023 on Tuesday, 24th January. This is part of a recurring series of informal yet informative gatherings on Zoom where artists creating work for children and young adults can hang out, learn from experts about something pertinent to their work and meet others in their creative area.

At this free coffee morning, hear from Executive Librarian with Kildare Library & Arts Service Amye Quigley. In what promises to be a practical and informative session, Amye will give an overview of programming strands within Kildare Library & Arts Services, detail what she looks for in a facilitator or artist and outline their funding, invoicing and accounts procedure.

If you would like to attend please email aoife@childrensbooksireland.ie by 5pm on Monday 23rd January.

For more information visit https://childrensbooksireland.ie/news-events/childrens-books-ireland-artists-coffee-morning-16.

The Minister for Education Norma Foley recently announced the awarding of BLAST residencies to 629 schools in 2022-2023, the second year of the BLAST (Bringing Live Arts to Students and Teachers) programme. Minister Foley also welcomed the creation of an additional 21 Creative Clusters for 2022-2024, comprising a further 77 primary and post-primary schools. This doubles the number of participating schools and clusters this year, up from 21 clusters announced already in September 2022, in response to the demand from schools.

The BLAST programme has seen a significant increase in residencies from the 489 primary and post-primary schools that took part in the programme in its first year and demonstrates the strong interest and engagement from schools in working with creative professionals through this programme.

Minister Foley said:

“Creative thinking and creative expression benefit our students both by providing opportunities for learning and through enhancing wellbeing. Engaging in creative projects enables children and young people to express themselves, provides them with opportunities for connection and collaboration, and gives them the space to explore new ideas and learn new skills.”

School Clusters in this year include, for example, one cluster of schools that cater for students with autism, which aims to create tactile and interactive outdoor play areas, and another cluster of primary schools working together to create a shared interest and knowledge of coding. Such varied themes reflect the local experience and unique perspectives of each cluster, and demonstrate how students can benefit from creative engagement in multiple ways.

The Minister has also welcomed the publication of the research and evaluation report, Creative Clusters: A Collaborative Approach to Cultivating Creativity in Schools. This report, commissioned by the department, provides a valuable assessment of the strengths of the programme and contains recommendations to further strengthen the design, delivery and reach of Creative Clusters.

To read the full statement from the Department of Education, visit: https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/8a543-minister-foley-welcomes-hundreds-of-additional-schools-to-creative-clusters-and-blast-arts-programme/

Cork ETB

Cork ETB recently launched their Arts in Education Strategy 2022-2026. The Strategy outlines the importance of the arts and provides a framework for arts education and the promotion of the arts and supporting their implementation throughout Cork ETB.

Minister for Education, Norma Foley attended Nano Nagle Place in Cork City on Friday 2nd December where she launched Cork ETB’s Arts in Education Strategy 2022-2026.

The Arts in Education Strategy outlines the importance of the arts and provides a framework for arts education and the promotion of the arts and supporting their implementation throughout all of Cork ETB’s primary, post primary and further education and training facilities.

The implementation plan includes the following five key points and their respective objectives:

Awareness: develop and create a space for the Arts in all its forms
Inclusivity: to promote and deploy Arts Education as a valuable tool for promoting social inclusion, community engagement, well-being and fostering lifelong learning
Partnership: develop existing relationships while nurturing the development of new partnerships and joint ventures
Value: to foster and promote creativity by encouraging schools and centre’s to give parity of esteem to creative subjects
Quality: provision of appropriate supports and resources to provide for quality teaching and learning in the Arts

Speaking at the launch, Minister Foley praised Cork ETB for their efforts to enable better integration and promotion of the arts in their education entities.

She said: “It was a joy for me to be invited to launch the Cork Education and Training Board’s Arts in Education Strategy 2022 – 2026. I strongly believe that inclusive access to the arts can nurture, inspire and innovate all our students and young learners. The Arts in Education Strategy today clearly identifies Cork ETB’s commitment to the arts and provides a framework for the way forward for all stakeholders. It was a pleasure to officially launch this milestone strategy in the presence of such vibrant performers and talented musicians.”

A copy of Cork ETB’s Arts in Education Strategy 2022-2026 can be viewed online here: https://www.corketb.ie/cork-etb-arts-provision/

Irish Film Institute School Programme 2022/23

The Irish Film Institute is delighted to offer a brand new programme of films selected for students across primary and post-primary levels, available in-cinema at IFI Dublin or regional venue and online through IFI@Schools. This year includes exciting collaborations with the Irish National Opera, IMMA, the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland/BAI and An Chomhairle um Oideachas Gaeltachta & Gaelscolaíochta/COGG.

IFI@Schools supplements the in-cinema programme, offering further ways of incorporating film into your teaching, including rewatching key scenes or choosing from a wider range of content for other subjects such as history, geography, music, art, Gaeilge, English and more.

Screenings for the French language selection include Mes Fréres et moi (My Brothers and I) and King in partnership with the Ambassade De France en Irelande. Screenings for the German language selection includes Der Pfad (The Path) and Klammer in partnership with GEOTHE Institut.

Details of the full programme list and regional venue screenings can be found here.

To book tickets visit the Irish Film Institute at Irish Film Institute (ifi.ie) or contact Amy Louise or Holly at schools@irishfilm.ie

Butler Gallery

19 November 2022 – 29 January 2023

Butler Gallery continues its successful partnership with the Kilkenny-based and five time Oscar© nominated Irish animation studio Cartoon Saloon, in an exhibition response to their new animated film My Father’s Dragon, directed by Nora Twomey.

The film is based on a beloved 1948 fantastical children’s novel by Ruth Stilies Gannett about Elmer Elevator, a boy who runs away from home to rescue Boris, a captive baby dragon trapped on a wild island.

The exhibition combines the expertise of Butler Gallery’s exhibition team with Cartoon Saloons worldwide reach and distinctive style to develop an immersive, sensory and child-centred exhibition experience that will captivate audiences of all ages.

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Learning and Public Engagement Programme:

As with previous collaborations with Cartoon Saloon, Butler Gallery will deliver an extensive programme of public engagement for children and adults that will include themes such as children’s resilience and problem solving, addressing mental health issues while coping with a crisis, and celebrating the films art and artists. Learning and Public Engagement events will include: tailored inclusive activities for children and young people; interactive visits for schools and groups that encourage creativity through hands-on making; a talk series and masterclasses with Cartoon Saloon animators, editors and directors; and an animator-in-residence programme.

To book an interactive visit for your school* contact Butler Gallery at:
learning@butlergallery.ie or +353 (0)56 7761106

*Bookings for groups of over 5 is essential.

The exhibition is also complemented by the screening of The Making of My Father’s Dragon which is on view in the Digital Gallery (duration 5 mins 24 secs)

For further information visit: https://www.butlergallery.ie/whats-on/my-fathers-dragon-cartoon-saloon

Fighting Words

Fighting Words in partnership with DCU Institute of Education, has launched Creativity and Creative Writing in Education, an online course to equip educators with the methodologies, evidence and resources to build your understanding of the importance and benefits of creativity for learners, and to strengthen your confidence and interest in creative engagement and creative writing.

Presented in six 40-minute sessions, the course focuses on the Fighting Words creative writing model as an approach, looking at the associated development of communication skills, critical thinking, self-efficacy and resilience in the young people.

The online course is hosted on The Loop, DCU’s online teaching environment, full details on how to access and enrol for this free course can be found here:
https://www.fightingwords.ie/news/creativity-and-creative-writing-education-exciting-new-online-module-fighting-words-dcu.

Enrolment is open on an ongoing basis; participants can complete the course in their own time and a certificate of completion is provided from Fighting Words.

Collaboration between Fighting Words and the DCU Institute of Education started in the early days of Fighting Words and has only grown and expanded over the years. In 2018, the relationship evolved to a formal partnership between Fighting Words and Institute of Education, funded by the Department of Education. The purpose of the collaboration is to progress creative writing and creative engagement in education through teacher education and research.

Arts Council announces 186 new schools will join its Creative Schools initiative

The Arts Council recently announced that offers have been made to 186 schools and centres across Ireland who applied to be part of the Creative Schools initiative. The very high level of applications to be part of this 2-year process reflects the importance that schools and Youthreach centres put on creativity and their ambition to celebrate and put creative thinking at the very heart of what they do.

Speaking at the announcement Director of the Arts Council Maureen Kennelly said: “We warmly welcome our new cohort of 186 schools to Creative Schools. We are delighted that demand for the programme is so strong across the country and we are thrilled to say that by this stage of the programme, 20% of schools in Ireland have connected with us. Working with our partners in the Department of Education, the Department of Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media and Creative Ireland, we are looking forward to another school year full of creativity, consultation and exploration”.

Minister for Education Norma Foley TD said “I am delighted to welcome the 186 schools that are coming together to join the Creative Schools initiative 2022. I would like to welcome these new schools into this exciting initiative, and I look forward to seeing how these creative, colourful and captivating projects develop over the coming two years. Through Creative Schools the Department of Education supports critical thinking, cognitive and emotional wellbeing, encouraging a creative environment, without boundaries within the educational space.”

Also speaking, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media Catherine Martin TD said “I would like to congratulate the 186 schools and Youthreach centres that have successfully applied to become a Creative School and now have the opportunity to embark on a two-year journey to place creativity at the heart of their school communities. With the addition of this new cohort, 1 in 5 schools in Ireland will have experienced Creative Schools since the programme commenced in 2018 and this year sees an increase in the diversity of settings in receipt of support. This is a testament to its impact and the strength of the partnership between the Art Council, the Department of Education and the all-of-government Creative Ireland Programme.”

The Creative Schools Initiative is designed to provide opportunities for children and young people to build their artistic and creative skills, each school taking part receives a grant and works with a professional Creative Associate who supports them to develop and implement their own bespoke Creative School Plan. Participation empowers children and young people to develop, implement and evaluate arts and creative activity throughout their schools/centres and stimulate additional ways of working which reinforce the impact of creativity on children and young people’s learning, development and well-being.

Creative Schools received applications from counties throughout the country to be part of the initiative and they were assessed on how Creative Schools would benefit learning and development in the school and how children and young people would play a central role in leading the process.

The programme was established in 2018 and more than 650 schools have been invited to participate to date. With this latest round of offers it means that 1 in 5 schools in Ireland will have / will be taking part in the Creative Schools initiative. Recipients range from large schools in major cities to smaller schools on islands including Inisboffin, Achill, Inis Oírr and Inis Meain. Creativity truly lives everywhere.

This year 131 more primary schools, 35 more post primary schools, 11 Special Schools and 5 Youthreach centres have been sent offers to join. Also joining the programme this year are four schools in Alternative Settings who cater for young people with severe emotional and behavioral challenges. Oberstown Children Detention Campus School, Co. Dublin, Ballydowd High Support Special School, Dublin 20, Crannóg Nua Special School, Portrane, Co. Dublin and St Canice’s Special School, Limerick will join the programme and receive enhanced supports.

The full list of the 186 Schools selected to participate in the Creative Schools programme in 2022-23 can be viewed on The Arts Council website at https://www.artscouncil.ie/schools-2022-23/.

Schools who have been taking part to date have explored creativity in all its forms and embraced how it can be celebrated in so many ways. From baking to creating and designing gardens, from photography to performance, from working with other community groups to transforming areas of their own schools, the impact of Creative Schools can be seen around the country.

Riverbank Arts Centre

Riverbank Arts Centre are delighted to offer events for Primary and Secondary Schools over the coming months. These include live theatre, comedy, IFI School Screenings and more.

Riverbank Arts Centre is a multi-disciplinary venue in Newbridge, County Kildare, with a dedicated children’s gallery and programming of high quality theatre and workshops for younger audiences, Riverbank is also committed to promoting early engagement with and access to the arts.

Primary Schools

This season Riverbank Arts Centre are delighted to offer shows that travel to your school, highlights include:

UP CLOSE
On 17 & 18 November
UP CLOSE is an energetic dance piece where two strangers meet, connect and celebrate their new friendship. A 25 min performance, followed by a 15-minute Q&A and 15-minute movement workshop. Recommended capacity is up to two classes. For 1st to 4th Class.

Exhibition: FIBRE Felted by Artist Tamzen Lundy
12 November – 23 December.
Workshop in your classroom: 13th December (Suitable for 1st Class – 6th Class.)
FIBRE Felted introduces young people to the wonders and possibilities of felt making, the oldest textile making process in the world. The woollen textiles in FIBRE Felted are playful and experimental, the only tools required to create them are the artist’s hands. Riverbank Arts Centre offer guided tours and activity sheets for all those who attend.
Tours/Workshop can be booked with Theresa at boxoffice@riverbank.ie

Secondary Schools

Highlights from the programme for post-primary schools include:

Exhibition: Dētrīmentum by artist Katie Whyte
12 November – 22 December
A Latin word meaning harm, loss, or damage,
Dētrīmentum is an exploration of the journey of an object from an intact historical/archival
piece, to an object that has fallen into disrepair and out of the collective memory. This installation focuses on presenting hidden and lost historical narratives in photographic form.
Guided tours and an education pack aimed at senior cycle students are available.

WhistleBlast Quartet Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky
Tuesday 22 November, 12pm.
This unique performance of Mussorgsky’s wonderful symphony Pictures at an Exhibition, musically arranged by the quartet’s own Dr. Kenneth Edge, is accompanied by a multimedia video of paintings relating to each movement. An
accessible performance especially created to inspire young main stream and special-needs secondary school students and anyone to enjoy a gripping, dramatic masterpiece through live music performance and visual art.

To view the full schools programme of events, visit https://www.riverbank.ie/education-and-outreach/

Please contact Theresa on boxoffice@riverbank.ie or call 045 448327 to book an event or exhibition tour.

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative

Deadline: 12 noon 10 November 2022

Creative Schools is delighted to announce an exciting opportunity for artists, creative practitioners and individuals working in organisations in the arts and cultural sector.

Creative Associate Services for 10 Locations 

The Arts Council wishes to engage 14 CAs to work in up to 32 schools across 10 counties (Cavan, Donegal, Kerry, Limerick, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Tipperary and Waterford) for up to one year.  Individuals or organisations that wish to nominate an individual may apply.

Completed applications should be emailed to creativeassociates@artscouncil.ie by 12.00 hours (local time) on Thursday 10 November, 2022 with ‘Application: CA Services for 10 Locations’ in the subject line of the email.

For further information and links to download the information booklet and application form, please see: https://www.artscouncil.ie/creative-associate-opportunities/

National Museum of Ireland (NMI)

The National Museum of Ireland (NMI) is delighted to invite teachers and students across the country to reconnect with culture over the coming school term with an in-person visit to one of its sites.

The Museum has launched its autumn/winter 2022 programme of tours, events and activities, which educators can use to get up close to history, spark curiosity, encourage learning, and promote enjoyment of culture.

Much of the NMI’s school programme was offered virtually over the past two years due to pandemic restrictions. Many schools enjoyed engaging with the Museum online so there will also still be elements of the programme available to access directly from the classroom.

Primary level: Browse the full autumn/winter 2022 programme
Post Primary level: Browse the full autumn/winter 2022 programme

There are four public sites of the National Museum of Ireland now open to the public and available for school visits.

School visits are free but booking is essential for all school groups. Continue reading for some selected highlights from the programme:

Onsite guided tour: Recovered Voices: Stories and Experiences of the Irish at War: 1914-1915

This tour at the Museum of Decorative Arts & History, Collins Barracks is available at primary and post primary level, focuses on the people involved in World War One and how the war impacted their lives.

View more details here.

What’s the Sceál: Objects and Stories

A mix of traditional and contemporary stories linked to artefacts in the National Folklife Collection at the Museum of Country Life, Turlough Park with some of Ireland’s premier traditional storytellers, in collaboration with Poetry Ireland. Available online and onsite for primary and post-primary levels.

View more details here.

New Onsite Workshop: Go Extinct

Discover amazing extinct Irish animals in the Museum of Natural History, Kildare Street in this primary level workshop led by a Museum Educator.

View more details here.

Leaving Certificate Art Tours

An onsite tour at the Museum of Archaeology, Merrion Street specifically designed to cover key objects that appear on the History of Art Leaving Certificate specification and traces the development of art in Ireland from the Neolithic to the 12th century.

View more details here.

For full programme details go to www.museum.ie/en-ie/museums/archaeology/engage-and-learn

Tell us the story of your project – What was the impetus? What was it about? Who was involved? How did you begin?

This project was a visual arts residency with artist Shona McGillivray, teacher Michelle O’Halloran and the young people from the Sycamore, Poppy, and Buttercup classes, their class teachers, and support staff. The classes involved in this project are part of the specific ASD classes of the school and often the main challenge with children with ASD can be communication and expression of self. This project was an opportunity for the children to express their interests and individuality through art. Shona has built up a good relationship with the school’s community and has worked with Michelle and some of the children before thanks to the awards and support given for residencies by Clare Arts Office’s Embrace Programme and Artist in School.

We were all delighted to be able to have visitors again to the classrooms after the long restrictions and Shona started sessions in early January. The activities we were hoping to engage the young people with were open ended explorations of paint, print and collage. The resulting expressive pieces would then become the content of individual artist’s books. Participants were encouraged to express their own thematic interests, and we then provided them with relevant resources, ideas and material choices. Tunnel books are inspired by theatrical stage sets and Shona identified this format as a suitable backdrop to their creative stories. An end product that could also be handled, played with, and a visual prompt for further storytelling or written work within the classroom. Shona has been considering ways to engage audiences of visual art in a more tactile and meaningful way through the direct handling of the art. These physical books are designed to get close to, to peer into, just as you might gaze into the miniature staged life within a doll’s house, with curiosity and imagination. They create a 3-dimensional scene that tells a story.

How were the ideas developed and how did the young people, artist and teacher work together?

We began with a choice of different tactile tools, found objects, papers, paint and a heavy board surface to work on. This starting point became the back page of many of the books as well as acting as the getting to know each other stage. Shona could inquire about participants’ interests and this sparked some individual divergences of theme and approach for the following sessions. Those with verbal skills could communicate their own interests, and for some it was prompted by the teacher’s close knowledge of the young person. Honing into specific individual interests, sensory needs and creative strengths appealed to the participants emotions and led to a deeper engagement of the task in hand.

To assist with visualizing the end product a tunnel book template was made, and also the book’s blank pages or panels for each participant to work directly on to. Shona constantly responded to the children and their sensory seeking needs, often anticipating. One child became excited by the paint brushes alone and Shona responded by incorporating the tangibility of the fibers of the paint brush into the process. It was this meeting of their sensory needs in such a structured and meaningful way that made this experience so learner friendly and enjoyable. It was early in the school year and teaching and support staff were still getting to know the children so it was an insightful learning opportunity for those who were focusing on the children’s individualised learning targets. Each child has Individualised Educational Targets that are specific to their learning and overall progression. This creative process fulfilled many of the targets. One child who uses a communication device being motivated to choose colour, fabric, theme etc. meant that he had meaningful opportunities to communicate. For another child the targets are specific to him engaging in a meaningful way at a table top activity, our target was 3 minutes he often engaged for 15 minutes or more with Shona. Not only did the project incorporate oral language opportunities but it really incorporated very focused and targeted learning opportunities for the children.

It was important to the success of this project that everyone involved had an idea of the various stages of the project, so we could all work together in supporting the young people to be as actively engaged as they wished to be. The teachers gauge the young people’s moods, attention limits, when a break was needed, and used communication methods individuals would respond to. For Shona the teacher is the guide as to whether the creative road we are about to go down is positive or appropriate for that particular individual to take. We made suitably chaotic mess alongside the artwork and support staff were very efficient at restoring the environment back to its comfortable atmosphere for everyone in the class.

The finished art books were all different from one another, a few had front closing pages, some moving (hiding) parts, some have accompanying written stories and poems. They are all mini stages for tiny stick puppets, photographs of the participants that interacted and acted out their own stories within the different scenes. In each book you can take yourself down to eye level, peer in and enter its miniature layers, illusion of depth and story.

What was your personal experience of the project in terms of successes and challenges?

Shona MacGillivray, Artist

I know never to walk into an art space with too many preconceived ideas, but with a bag full of prompts and an open mind, however I still I get amazed at the creative crossroads that present themselves and the new processes I find myself gleefully jumping into! The Buttercup class was brilliant at this. One lad, who thinks so wonderfully outside of the box, took off on a very unexpected direction and I just had to, quickly, find a way to capture and share his ephemeral and spontaneous art. He took a literal interpretation of what was being asked, and was thoroughly enjoying the process in a way we hadn’t yet seen. I found myself responding creatively to his actions, and collaborating with him on what eventually became a series of 5 professionally printed images, mounted under Perspex with hand painted frames. This series for me represents enquiries into verbal and non- verbal communication and the pure enjoyment of painting.

Michelle O’Halloran, Teacher

Having worked in SEN for many years this was the first time I have worked specifically in an ASD setting with some older children. The age range in the class is 7 – 14 so catering for different levels of ability and making activities motivational and age appropriate can often be a challenge. Working with children who are challenged to express themselves in the “conventional sense” presents its own challenges, we are always seeking ways to engage with learners and share in their experience. The boys in Class Buttercup were so motivated and inspired by their project. The telling being the length of time spent engaged in the process itself. There are days when our class table top activities can present as a challenge but not when Shona arrived – the boys engaged in the sessions for the full length of time and not only were they engaged but extremely relaxed. Seeing the students initiate the lesson by getting what they needed for the project, for example baskets of animals when they saw Shona was really positive. It spoke volumes. It was amazing to see the associations and recognition of the project made as soon as Shona arrived. That was a success in itself.

To see the finished projects was so insightful too, each project was so individual and personal to each student and such a reflection of who they are. One of the greatest challenges of working with children who are deficient in the area of conventional communication is to enter their world, share their experience, understand their ways of thinking, the Inside Stories for me as a teacher became such an insight into each child it was amazing to get such a peek into each individual personality.

This project was so enjoyable from start to finish. Working with Shona is always really inspirational and she always informs my practice as a teacher. I just wish we had more opportunities to work together.

What was significant for you about the project that is worth sharing?

Shona MacGillivray, Artist

Coming into one of the classrooms on the fourth visit I saw one of the boys go into the side room and carry out the basket of toy farm animals, placing it on the table we were to work from. No one had asked him to do this, and his gesture was an unexpected acknowledgment of his understanding, his personal interest, excitement and his expectations for the activity to come. He was showing ownership of his project. I was delighted!

Each completed art book became more of a communication of a personal story than I had anticipated. In each book we get to see a little inside view of the young person’s passions, thoughts and humour. A view that can often go unseen.

Michelle O’Halloran, Teacher

For me it became about actually realizing the artist potential of one of my children, he never expressed interest in art up until this but I think that was because Shona recognized his creativity and that there was a process in what he was doing and she responded to this. I found that really inspirational so much so I challenged him in curricular learning and found he had more ability in other areas than I had first realized. He is now typing rather than writing and using ICT far more than I initially thought he could and this was down to seeing him engage in this project. He had only joined the class having been transferred from another and I didn’t really know him so to get to know him through this project was so insightful and such a positive experience for all of us. It also inspired my teaching and it was a different perspective as well so this for me was a massive learning experience.

Has anything changed in your work as a result of the project?

Shona MacGillivray, Artist

I am looking to develop directions of my own studio work into artist books. To create content that is more tangible and impactful through the format of a book and the handling and the “ reading “of it.

I would like there to be more physical connection to art through sensory and kinetic play. To look for book forms that will be opened by others led by their sense of curiosity, that they will puzzle over them, and find joy in discovering its hidden contents.

Michelle O’Halloran, Teacher

I am now more about the process than the product – as teachers we can often become focused on the outcome and having a uniformity when it comes to art. But this project presented the doing as being such a sensory and enjoyable experience for the children that I really saw the stripped back benefits of the process.

Also seeing Shona allowing the child to lead and going with them rather than directing them that has inspired my own teaching this year, it’s her artistic response. As I mentioned working with children that are challenged in a communicative sense we are trying to share their experience but following the child’s lead is an invitation to enter their world.

“It was really awesome… I got to use my favourite book Diary of a Wimpy kid.”
– Shane

“It was so cool… Olaf is my favourite… It was amazing, so fun.”
– Issac

“I love cooking… I loved the tunnel book.”
– Maeve

Crooked House Theatre Company

Crooked House Theatre Company are delighted to invite applications from youth work organisations and schools in County Kildare to participate in a new drama and film making project ‘Adúntas’. Providing eight free programmes for young people, the project will focus on maintaining wellbeing and developing emotional resilience after COVID-19.

Through ‘Adúntas’ eight young people will also receive training in youth drama facilitation.

“We recognise the importance of allowing our young people to process the experience of Covid-19 in their own way and at their own pace”, Oguzhan Sahin, Outreach Manager with Crooked House.

This project is funded by the RTE Toy Show Appeal Grants for 2022 by the Community Foundation for Ireland. for more information about the RTE Toy Show Appeal go to www.rte.ie/eile/toy-show-appeal/.

About Crooked House Theatre Company
Crooked House is a theatre-making organisation established in 1993 in Newbridge in County Kildare, Ireland. We make theatre with, for and by young people from the ages of 11 to 24. Participation in all our activities is free and open to anyone. Young people can join our weekly workshops in Newbridge anytime. Visit www.kildareyouththeatre.com to find workshops for your age group. Our work is inspired by tolerance, equality, social justice, compassion, and empathy. We aim to create theatre that is ambitious, challenging, aesthetically engaging, and relevant to our audiences.

For further information and application details go to www.crookedhouse.ie or email info@crookedhouse.ie.

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative

Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools is a flagship initiative of the Creative Ireland Programme to enable the creative potential of every child. It is being led by the Arts Council in partnership the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.

Creative Schools is delighted to announce two exciting opportunities for artists, creative practitioners and individuals working in organisations in the arts and cultural sector.

1. Creative Associate Services for Alternative Settings

Creative Schools seeks to engage up to four Creative Associates, with relevant experience, to support the delivery of a project for schools in alternative settings from autumn 2022 for up to two years. This project will focus on schools from particular types of educational contexts that have not yet participated in the Creative Schools initiative.

2. Creative Associate Services

Creative Schools seeks to engage a number of Creative Associates, with relevant experience, to work with schools in Mayo from autumn 2022 for up to one year.

Individuals or organisations that wish to nominate an individual may apply for these opportunities by 12.00 hours (local time) on Thursday 7, July, 2022.

All information and application forms are available at www.artscouncil.ie/creative-associate-opportunities/.

Creative Schools
Deadline: 17.30, 16 June 2022

The Arts Council are delighted to announce that applications have opened for schools to apply for the Creative Schools 2022/ 2023 programme.

Creative Schools 2022 welcomes applications from schools and Youthreach centres across the country who would like to join the programme. The deadline has been extended to 17.30, 16 June 2022.

The purpose of Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools is to support schools and Youthreach centres to put the arts and creativity at the heart of children’s and young people’s lives. Participating schools/centres will take part in a guided journey over two years to develop a Creative Schools Plan unique to each school, and begin to implement it. Key supports offered by this award include up to nine days per year of expert support and advice from a Creative Associate assigned to each school/centre, and a €4,000 grant towards activities and projects arising.

All applications to the Arts Council are made through the Arts Council’s online services system. Schools and Youthreach centres interested in applying to Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools 2022 can register an account on the Arts Council’s online services system here.

All Department of Education-recognised primary and post-primary schools and Youthreach centres that have not already participated in a previous round of Creative Schools are invited to apply.

Online information clinics for schools and Youthreach centres about how to apply for Creative Schools 2022

The Arts Council will be holding online information clinics in May about the Creative Schools programme and how to apply for 2022. The clinics are for representatives of Primary and Post Primary Schools, Special Schools and Youthreach Centres who are interested in participating in Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools for the academic years 2022/2023 and 2023/2024.

The online information clinics will take place as follows:

Wednesday 18 May 2022 at 16.00-17.00 – English language – Book a ticket here
Thursday 19 May 2022 at 16.00-17.00 – Irish language – Book a ticket here

The application deadline for Creative Schools has been extended to 17.30 on 16 June 2022. The reason for the new deadline is to facilitate schools at this busy time to complete their applications successfully.

For application guidelines and information about the Creative Schools please see www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/schools-opportunities/. If you have any questions at all please contact us at creativeschools@artscouncil.ie.

BLAST Arts-in-Education Residencies
Deadline: 30 September 2022

Minister for Education Norma Foley invites primary and post-primary schools to apply for the arts-in-education initiative, BLAST 2022.

Minister Foley is delighted to confirm that BLAST – Bringing Live Arts to Students and Teachers – will be running in 2022 for the second time. The 2022 programme will enable over 400 new arts-in-education residencies in schools over the course of the year.

The aim of BLAST is to provide pupils in schools all over the country with the time and the space to work with a professional artist on creative, imaginative and fun projects.

These innovative classes are designed and developed between the artist, teacher and the school under the coordination of the Education Support Centres in Ireland (ESCI) network of 21 full-time education support centres.

Minister Foley said:
“I am extremely proud to announce launch BLAST 2022, which builds on the great success of the BLAST 2021 Programme.

“When I launched BLAST last year, I had hoped that it would open up the minds and the hearts of our children by providing new and creative collaborative experiences and opportunities for our children and young people and for our schools. The evidence over the past year has shown that school communities have embraced BLAST beyond our expectations.

“In 2021, BLAST enabled over 480 new arts in education residencies in over 480 schools, ensuring over 12,000 students could benefit from this experience along with teachers and schools. Some of the trained artists available to schools covered topics such as multimedia, fine art, mosaics, stained glass sculpture/animation and performance art.

“BLAST has shown that school is a fantastic environment for children to have new and different experiences, to make new friends, to be creative and importantly to have fun while learning.

“I am delighted also to launch today the new BLAST logo, following a nationwide competition. The winning logo was chosen by a panel of judges including Louis Walsh, and Brenda Dermody of TU Dublin.

“The winning entry is both creative and practical, and does an incredible job of bringing different aspects of the alerts to life, in line with the spirit of BLAST. Well done to Lily Fleming from sixth class in Bunscoil Rinn An Chabhlaigh, Rushbrooke, Cobh, Co Cork.

“Lily will receive a go-pro camera, and their logo has now been adopted as the official logo for the BLAST programme. I hope they enjoy seeing it proudly adorn all BLAST activity in future!”

The winning entry was selected from over 1,411 entries from primary and post-primary schools all over Ireland. 5 runners-up were highly commended by the judges for their entries. All entrants will receive a BLAST certificate.
The runners-up were:

Tayla–Jae Morcombe, Mercy Mounthawk Secondary School, Mouthhawk, Tralee, Co Kerry
Louise Corry Galvin, St. Joseph’s secondary school, Spanish Point, Co Clare
Szymon Krzyzanowski, Wexford CBS, Thomas St, Co Wexford
Grace Hilliard, Coláiste Eoin, Hacketstown, Co Carlow
Julia Bartecka, Holy Family Secondary School, Newbridge Co Kildare

Applications will open on 25 May 2022. The closing date is 30 September 2022.

This initiative will be supported by the ESCI education centre network, Teacher Artist Partnership CPD programme, Arts in Junior Cycle, NAPD Creative Engagement Programme and the Arts in Education Portal.

For further information on the programme and to download the appliucation forms go to https://www.gov.ie/en/service/69096-blast-arts-in-education.

Teacher-Artist Partnership (TAP)
Dates: 4 July – 8 July 2022

Teacher-Artist Partnership (TAP) Programme invites teachers to register for their Face-to-Face CPD this summer. The Teacher Artist Partnership Residency programme 2022 – 2023 will be available to eight participating schools in all 21 full-time Education Support Centres. Only schools whose teachers participated in the summer course 2022 will be eligible for a residency.

The Teacher-Artist Partnership (TAP) CPD and Residency Programme is a unique Department of Education led initiative for supporting and enhancing arts and creativity in education in primary schools. It is funded and supported under the Creative Ireland Programme – Creative Youth. The initiative includes CPD Summer Courses and subsequent funded Artist in Residency opportunities in which TAP trained teachers and artists and the children work together in partnership during the following academic year. For more on TAP see: edcentretralee.ie/27-teacher-artist-partnership.html

Dates: 4 July – 8 July 2022

Register on your local full-time Education Support Centre’s website. Find your local Education Support Centre here: esci.ie/

Download a PDF version of the TAP Face-to-face callout 2022 here

Teacher-Artist Partnership (TAP) & Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership
Video resource

The Teacher-Artist Partnership (TAP) Programme in partnership with Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership are delighted to launch a video series developed as part of a special initiative aiming to support teacher-artist pairs in documenting and engaging collaboratively online.

This video resource explores 4 different questions: Why is the Teacher-Artist relationship important, why is it important to document your projects, what is the value of the arts in the classroom and lastly, what does a child-led process look like? The four videos feature the Teacher – Artist pairs who participated in the TAP Special Initiative Project which took place over 2021.

These videos form part of a wider programme facilitated by Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership. Participants took part in a 5-session online documentation training programme. These in-depth workshops covered topics such as what is creative documentation, digital tools for creative collaboration and documentation, documenting as part of your process, presenting your creative self and work and lastly, editing and curating your work.

Watch the videos here:

What does a child-led process look like: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/706103042
What is the value of the arts in the classroom: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/706105556
Why it is important to document your projects: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/706107812
Why is the Teacher – Artist relationship important: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/706110192

The Teacher-Artist pairs also took part in 6 mentoring sessions, choosing a mentor that best suited their project from a curated panel. During these mentoring sessions, the pairs got the chance to delve deep into their practice together, offering a space for reflection. The final element of the Special Initiative will consist of a digital publication sharing the learnings of this documentation training programme.

TAP Face-to-Face 2022 runs from Monday 4th July – Friday 8th July. The Teacher Artist Partnership Residency programme 2022 – 2023 will be available to eight participating schools in all 21 full-time Education Support Centres. Only schools whose teachers participated in the summer course 2022 will be eligible for a residency.

Register on your local full-time Education Support Centre’s website. See link to find your local Education Support Centre https://esci.ie/

Hawk’s Well Theatre
Dates: Monday 25 or Tuesday 26 April 2022

Hawk’s Well Theatre is bringing Super Paua to Sligo to deliver three different in-person workshops in local primary and secondary schools. Super Paua is an Irish artist-led collective whose workshop programmes encourage young people to question what they know and how they’ve come to know it, creating space for them to harness their creative ideas and to come together to connect in a new way.

There are three workshops: ARTificial; Is Peace Possible? Zine Workshop; and Getting Lost- Ag Dul Ar Strae – Multilingual/Super Paua Stories Workshops.

ARTificial
This art and science workshop explores artificial intelligence, machine learning and fake news. Using practical, creative, and discussion based activities, Super Paua explore with the young people the impacts that technology and fake news have, and could have on our world and future.

Is Peace Possible? Zine Workshop
In 1957, Kathleen Lonsdale wrote her book Is Peace Possible? Kathleen was a pioneering chemist, crystallographer and activist who was extremely aware of the social and political impacts science can have. In this zine workshop, participants will develop your artistic and storytelling skills to create your own zines based on the question Lonsdale poses in the title of her book. What would peace look like to you? What do young people, scientists, artists and citizens need to engage with to make peace a possibility?

Getting Lost- Ag Dul Ar Strae
In this workshop, you will be playing with idioms and proverbs to create stories together, and to celebrate different languages (Irish, English and the other languages in your class!). Participants will use drama, images and conversation to create imaginative stories from unique poetic phrases in our native languages, chosen by the children. This workshop is based on Lara ar Strae from Scéalta Super Paua, a bilingual podcast for children.

Dates: Monday 25 or Tuesday 26 April 2022

For more information, visit www.hawkswell.com/events/event/super-paua-school-workshops. To book, call the Hawk’s Well Theatre box office on 071 9161518 (Mon – Fri 10am – 2pm) or email boxoffice@hawkswell.ie.

Highlanes Gallery
Dates: April – Nov 2022

Highlanes Gallery are offering both primary and post-primary school programmes running from April – November 2022 that engage your students with art & ideas.

The primary school programme involves 4 free sessions where teachers will explore art with your class, looking, thinking and making, focusing on Highlanes’ current exhibitions.

Facilitated by artist Claire Halpin, you and your class will visit Highlanes Gallery in-person in Session 1 to view the exhibition where Claire will use Visual Thinking Strategies methodology to activate reflection and discussion. Session 2 and 3 are practical and involve Claire visiting your classroom where you and your class group will work with ideas and materials liked with the exhibition. Session 4 concludes with a reflection and discussion session back in the gallery and with the other class groups (2) who will also have taken part in the programme.

Recent Acquisitions (Summer)
Wed 11th May Gallery Visit
Wed 18th May Classroom Session
Wed 25th May Classroom Session
Wed 1st June Gallery Feedback Session

Eithne Jordan Solo Exhibition (Autumn)
Wed 7th Sept Gallery Visit
Wed 14th Sept Classroom Session
Wed 21st Sept Classroom Session
Wed 28th Sept Gallery Feedback Session

Brian Fay – The Most Recent Forever (Winter)
Wed 12th Oct Gallery Visit
Wed 19th Oct Classroom Session
Wed 26th Oct Classroom Session
Wed 9th Nov Gallery Feedback Session

Also on offer are post-primary guided tours of Highlanes’ current exhibition ‘We are here’. This exhibition which was co-curated by a group of artist-art teachers and lecturers continues until 16th April. The guided tours will focus on the Leaving Cert Curriculum and/or other approaches that are of interest to your students.

Dates: April – Nov 2022

Both programmes plus materials are free to teachers and their students. To book your place, or get more information, please email Simon Colfer at info@highlanes.ie

RTÉ and Creative Ireland Programme
Deadline: 1 May 2022

Calling all artists of all abilities – This Is Art! Competition is back. RTÉ and Creative Ireland Programme are inviting artists aged 18 and under who live anywhere on the island of Ireland to create and submit an original piece of visual art with the theme ‘This Is Extraordinary’.

Snap or scan a digital version of the artwork and upload it, together with a brief artist statement, to an online art gallery where it will be shown for for generations to come.

There are five categories: Age 7 and under, age 8 – 11, age 12 – 15, age 16 – 18 and a group category. A prize fund of more than €10,000 will be awarded across the different categories for further education and art related vouchers. The competition aims to promote artistic practice among young people and encourage and support creativity, originality and self-expression. All visual art disciplines are welcomed.

Deadline: 1 May 2022

For further information go to: www.rte.ie/thisisart/competition

National Gallery of Ireland
Date: 4-5pm, 11 May 2022

National Gallery of Ireland invites teachers to an online CPD for Teachers: Mindfulness & Art. Join Maria Broderick, gallery tour guide and primary-school teacher, for a practical workshop that will equip you with tools and ideas for including mindfulness in the classroom.

The session will support teachers using the National Gallery of Ireland’s schools resource Art & Mindfulness, and will include peer learning via group work to enable you to develop cross-curricular creative strategies.

This is an online event via Zoom. A link will be sent via email to all ticketholders before the event. Booking closes an hour before the event is scheduled to begin.

Date: 4-5pm, 11 May 2022

For more information or to book, see www.nationalgallery.ie/whats-on/online-cpd-teachers-mindfulness-art#na

Creative Clusters
Deadline: 13 May 2022

The Minister for Education Norma Foley TD invites primary and post-primary schools across Ireland to apply for Creative Clusters, an initiative taking place as part of Creative Ireland and under the Schools Excellence Fund. The Department of Education’s budget for Creative Clusters in 2022 is €595,000.

Under this scheme to support schools to build capacity in creativity, schools in each cluster will enjoy access to a specialist facilitator, artist or creative expertise in whatever their chosen area of interest or theme might be. These resources will help the schools to build a project of learning and activities tailor-made for their students. As part of this funding allocation, a cluster may receive up to €15,000 funding to help bring their plans and ideas to fruition in 2022-2024.

Minister Foley said:

“This is a wonderful opportunity for schools to work together on a project of their choice. Schools are given complete freedom to design and develop their own project, with support from a local facilitator and their local education centre. I hope that this exciting initiative will help schools to further enhance creativity in their classrooms. It is important that our children are enabled to express themselves and learn to adapt and collaborate. ‘Creative Clusters’ gives students of all ages the opportunity to develop these essential skills, enjoy and explore artistic and creative expression.”

To date, the Creative Clusters initiative has seen schools around the country work together to develop creative projects and collaborate on new ideas based on their local experience and unique perspective. The Schools Excellence Fund of the Department of Education sets out to encourage and recognise excellence and innovation in our schools. This initiative will help deliver on the Creative Youth pillar of Creative Ireland, which sets out a commitment that every child in Ireland has practical access to tuition, experience and participation in music, drama, arts and coding.

Application Deadline: 13 May 2022

Each Creative Cluster will receive grant funding of €3,000 per school over a two-year period to implement their project in the 2022–2024 school years (e.g. a cluster of 3 schools would receive €9,000 over two years while a cluster of 5 schools would receive €15,000 over two years). Clusters will receive 50% of the total grant funding in Year 1, with the second 50% being provided in Year 2. In addition, but separate to the grant funding, all successful clusters are further supported with: A fully paid Creative Cluster Facilitator; paid Teacher Substitution to attend training and meetings; room hire, travel & subsistence.

Please see the following link for more details: Creative Clusters.

Schools can apply as part of a cluster which may be an existing network of schools.
A school nearing the end of year 2 of an existing Creative Cluster can reapply to be in a new cluster where the other schools in the new cluster have not participated before.
Schools nearing the end of 2 years with Creative Schools are eligible to apply.
The local Teacher Education Support Centre will have a key role in identifying and supporting a Creative Cluster for their local area.
A total of 21 Creative Clusters will be selected nationally – One successful Creative Cluster per Education Support Centre.

Applications should be sent to the local full-time Teacher Education Support Centre (list at Appendix 1 of Guidelines document on DoE website) or use this link Appendix 1.

Any queries, please contact your local Education Centre or email Arts in Education Administration artsineducation@edcentretralee.ie

Creative Clusters is an initiative of the Department of Education, led by and in partnership with the 21 full-time Teacher Education Centres (Education Support Centres Ireland – ESCI) and funded through the Schools Excellence Fund.

RTÉ
Dates: 5pm Thursdays & on RTÉ Player

RTÉ is launching an exciting new series for young artists and art lovers everywhere called This Is Art Club! Presented by Irish artists Holly Pereira, Shane Keeling and Ross Carvill, this eight-part series focuses on one special material each week, discovering where it comes from and why it makes such incredible art.

Each week, with the help of young Artist Apprentices, they will take a look at the coolest art from inspiring Irish artists, discover some exciting jobs in the art world, and see how you might turn your love of art into a career. From tech to teacups, makeup to metals, and digital dots to real paint pots, they cover all the materials and processes that make the world of art go round.

Dates: 5pm Thursdays & on RTÉ Player

You can watch this series of This is Art Club! every week on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player at a time that suits you. Find out more here: www.rte.ie/thisisart/club

Arts in Education
Deadline: 5pm, 31 March 2022

Artists, teachers, academics and arts education professionals… Would you like to be part of the Portal Spring Regional Day? The Arts in Education Portal Team are seeking submissions for presentations and workshops for the Portal Spring Regional Day 2022 with a focus on Kildare, Wicklow, Meath and Louth. This regional event will take place in the Mid-East at the Kildare Education Support Centre on Saturday, 7 May, 2022.

The event aims to connect teachers, artists, arts managers and anyone with an interest in arts in education based in Kildare, Wicklow, Meath and Louth. Practitioners can learn more about the Portal and what it offers, tell us about their work, connect with the community at regional level, share practice and find out what opportunities or events are available in their local area.

We are inviting proposals from organisations or individuals who are involved in arts and creative projects in education in the Mid-East, and who want to give inspiring presentations or workshops that can offer sharing of skills, practical approaches, new insights and critical thinking across the field, from a range of perspectives.

Deadline: 5pm, 31 March 2022

Do you have a workshop or presentation that you would like to be included in the programme for the Portal Spring Regional Day? If so, please get in touch by email to editor@artsineducation.ie.

Further Information

Creative workshop facilitators must be based in the Mid-East Region (Kildare, Wicklow, Meath and Louth).
The programme will include two creative workshops: one in-person and one online.
The programme includes one project presentation with up to two presenters.

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative
Date: 9 – 13 May, 2022

Where does wondering happen in schools? When do students explore ‘What if’ questions? How is inspiration and imagination expressed? Creativity is developing and flourishing in all school environments. The Arts Council of Ireland is delighted to announce Creative Schools Week. This week provides a space in the calendar to recognise schools as centres of creativity, highlight those areas where creativity is at work, and give students an opportunity to share their creative exploits.

‘Creativity Lives Here’ is the theme for this year’s celebration. It presents an opportunity for school communities to pause and reflect on where creativity is evident in every class, in every department and in the experience of every student. The week is a time to focus on celebrating this creativity, perhaps adding to the experiences of students in the form of events or workshops and providing a platform to show how creativity lives in each school.

The Creative Schools online programmes from the 2021 celebration provide a great snapshot of creative activities and events in a variety of school settings and age groups. These episodes are available to watch on www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/celebration-2021/

Date: 9 – 13 May, 2022

Creative Schools Week is open to every school. Schools will receive a brochure with lots of ideas and ways to become involved in the celebration. Creative Schools will send some updates in the weeks leading up to May 9th with further ideas for activities and information about how your schools can celebrate. To further information or to get involved, please contact creativeschools@artscouncil.ie

Dublin City Council
Deadline: 12pm, 29 March 2022

Dublin City Council wishes to invite submissions by e-tender from highly motivated and suitably qualified individuals/organisations for the programming and coordination of Children’s Art in Libraries: Creative Hubs.

The Creative Hubs initiative is delivered in partnership by Dublin City Arts Office and Dublin City Libraries. Creative Hubs sustain high quality arts experiences for children, schools and families to access in their Library and locality, through the development of enhanced educational, community and cultural partnership. In recent years, they have prioritised more engaged developmental programming in response to local need and this has led to the establishment of three Creative Hubs in Coolock, Cabra and Ballyfermot libraries.

In 2022/3 programme will be delivered live in the three libraries and their grounds and may also be delivered online or by agreement in other local locations (schools or community buildings). Commissioning processes already agreed for Autumn/Winter 2022 include a visual arts exhibition for Ballyfermot library curated by and in partnership with RHA Gallery, a dance commission with Visual Carlow/GBS Theatre and a theatre commission with The Ark.

The successful tenderer will be responsible for the development and delivery of a high quality multi-disciplinary arts programme for children in identified city libraries and localities supported by the associated development of educational, community and cultural partnerships. The tender is for a one year contract with a potential to extend up to a further 12 months. The value of the one year contract will fall within the range of €38,000 – €45,000 including expenses and excluding VAT.

Deadline: 12pm, 29 March 2022

For full details and to apply see www.etenders.gov.ie Service ID/RFT: 208073. This opportunity is open to organisations or individuals.

Burrenbeo Trust
Date: 19 March, 2022

Burrenbeo Trust invites you to Having Fun in the Outdoor Landscape with Kate Lavender and Karen Van Drop, a workshop for anyone with an interest in place-based learning and/or learning more in the Burren. This workshop forms part of their 11th annual Learning Landscape Symposium that brings together leading change-makers and educators from 18 – 20 March 2022. The symposium takes place at the community centre in Kinvara, Co.Galway and outdoors in the Burren.

The symposium will comprise of a mixture of indoor workshops, outdoor fieldtrips, discussions, and networking events, and is open to anyone with an interest in communicating natural, built, or cultural heritage and sustainability to their audiences and inspiring action.

Date: 19 March, 2022

Learning Landscape Symposium runs from 18 – 20 March 2022 on the theme of From Learning to Action. For more information and to book tickets, see https://burrenbeo.com/lls/

Creativity and Change, Crawford College of Art & Design
Various dates

Creativity and Change Deep Dives are an opportunity for inspirational, intensive and in depth creative engagement over two days. Delivered by facilitators with specific expertise and experience, the programme is designed around the identified gaps and expressed interests of practitioners. Each creative workshop is a deep dive into a specific method that can be used to explore change-making, global citizenship and social justice.

These masterclasses explore a wide range of creative methods of storytelling, visual communication, podcasting, street art, drama and more. Masterclasses include:

1. The Story of Self with Clare Mulvany: Craft a compelling leadership story for social change
Sat 12th and Sun 13th of March
Cost €60

2. Visual Facilitation for Global Citizenship Education with Eimear Mc Nally
Sat 26th and Sun 27th March
Cost €60

3. Art + Activism = Artivism with Helen O Keeffe & Claire Coughlan
Sat 2nd and Sun 3rd April
Cost €60

4. Podcasting with Ainle ó Cairealláin from Rebel Matters Podcast
Sat 9th and Sun 10th April
Cost €60

5. Theatre of the Oppressed & Forum Theatre with Julian Boal
(Yes! That Boal!)
Friday 22nd, Saturday 23rd & Sunday 24th April
Cost €150

For more information on these creative workshops, see www.creativityandchange.ie/deep-dives/

The National Gallery of Ireland
Deadline: 18 February 2022

Following a successful programme in 2021, the National Gallery of Ireland is delighted to bring art to classrooms across the country again this year with Your Gallery at School, an innovative education initiative.

Your Gallery at School aims to break down the barriers that prevent engagement with the arts through holistic programming that ensures children transition to adulthood equipped with the life-changing benefits of art. They also aim to build in students a sense of ownership of their National Gallery so they have a positive place to turn to in adulthood. Engagement occurs in three key strands: learning through and about art, wellbeing, and creative careers.

Over the course of 2022–23, they will work with schools who would not usually be able to visit the Gallery. Participating schools will be selected via an open application process.

Selected schools will not have visited the Gallery in the past three years and will be from one or more of three key groups:

DEIS schools to address socio-economic barriers to accessing culture.
Boys’ schools to address the gender barrier to accessing culture.
Schools geographically far away (over 2 hours away from Dublin) to address the geographic barrier to accessing culture.

There will be two windows of opportunity for primary and post-primary schools to apply, giving schools the option to choose what time of year suits them best to take part:

Round 1 applications accepted 24 January–18 February 2022 (workshops take place March–October 2022)
Round 2 applications accepted 29 August–15 September 2022 (workshops take place November 2022–June 2023)

The deadline to apply for Round 1 is 18 February 2022.

For further information and to access the application form go to https://www.nationalgallery.ie/explore-and-learn/schools/your-gallery-school.

Or contact Catherine O’Donnell on 087 6436310 or codonnell@ngi.ie

Mother Tongues
Date: 10-12:30, Friday 28 January 2022

Mother Tongues is offering an interactive online course ‘Bridging Language Barriers and Building Connection’. In this masterclass, participants will learn about linguistically and culturally responsive strategies that will help them to bridge language barriers and build connections in their work. During the session, participants will get to draft their own language strategy. This course is designed for individuals working in organisations that provide Artistic and Cultural experiences to the public.

Some of the topics covered will include:
– Understanding the types of language and communication barriers and challenges
– Identifying and addressing relevant language and communication barriers
– Building your own inclusive language and communication action plan

Date: 10-12:30, Friday 28 January 2022

About the training:
The course is delivered via Zoom. Participants will take part in group discussions and will be guided through the steps to build their inclusive language and communication plan. All participants receive a certificate of attendance. Cost: €150.

For more information, see discover.mothertongues.ie/shop/courses/bridging-language-barriers-and-building-connection/?mc_cid=dcb2794f78&mc_eid=8a08f8cb24

The Hunt Museum

Deadline: 4pm, January 26th 2022

The Hunt Museum are looking for a self-motivated, collaborative and efficient individual to take on the role of Public Engagement Coordinator for the ‘The Three Muses’ Joint Education programme. They will be required to consolidate, innovate and grow the reach and impact of this visual arts programme which engages primary school aged children from across Limerick with collections at the Hunt Museum, Limerick Museum and Limerick City Gallery of Art.

Are you excited by the unlimited potential the pooling of these collections offers for curriculum linked and creative learning with children? If you have excellent project management, facilitation and administration skills and enjoy working in a busy and creative environment, this role might well suit you. This contract is full time and for two years (subject to funding).

The Public Engagement Coordinator role has three key areas of responsibility:

Programme development and coordination including developing new curriculum linked resources (digital and non-digital), coordination and facilitation of blended learning opportunities with Limerick schools.
Partnership Management, including all related administration.
Promotion of the programme, its resources and results including the preparation and circulation of online publicity materials and networking in the community.

The successful candidate will work across the three partner institutions and with primary schools from across Limerick. A priority area is engaging new schools who have not previously participated in the programme. Given the ongoing challenges presented by Covid 19, the successful candidate will be required to find new ways to deliver online and digital engagement with schools. On this basis, applications from those with excellent IT skills and some knowledge of gamification for learning and open-source learning are particularly welcomed.

Deadline: 4pm, January 26th 2022

For a full job description or to apply, see https://www.huntmuseum.com/about/opportunities/vacancies/three-muses-public-engagement-coordinator/

Irish Film Institute (IFI)

The Irish Film Institute launches its comprehensive 2021/2022 IFI Schools’ Programme. This year’s programme offers screenings in cinema and also online, on the platform IFI@Schools. Choose from brand new titles for Modern Foreign Languages, prescribed English titles, Irish films, and much more!

The ever-popular Modern Foreign Languages strand, encompassing French, German and Spanish are an invaluable way of promoting language and culture. Included in the 2021/2022 German selection is films Cleo, Zu weit Weg, Das freiwillige Jahr, and Nachtwald which are presented in partnership with the Goethe-Institut Irland. Screenings for the French language selection includes Petit Pays, Gagarine, Man Up!, and Fahim in partnership with the French Cultural Service.

If you can’t get to IFI or one of our partner venues, you can stream the majority of the films on the Schools’ Programme 2021-22 on IFI@Schools. For more information about the streaming platform go to ifi.ie/learn/ifischools-about.

Download the the full 2021/2022 IFI Schools’ Programme at ifi.ie/learn/schools

Or for more information please contact schools@irishfilm.ie.

National Gallery of Ireland
Date: 4pm, 2 February 2022

National Gallery of Ireland are delighted to announced their new online CPD workshop for teachers. Join Jennie Taylor, curator of the Zurich Young Portrait Prize, and Catherine O’Donnell, Education Officer, for a practical workshop, equipping you with tools and ideas for including portraiture in the classroom. The session will support teachers using their schools resource What is a Portrait?, and will include peer learning via group work to enable you to develop cross-curricular creative strategies.

Please note that this is an online CPD workshop via Zoom.

Date: 4pm, 2 February 2022

For more information see https://www.nationalgallery.ie/whats-on/online-cpd-teachers-portraiture

Watergate Theatre
Dates: 12pm, 2 December & 7pm, 3 December

‘A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings’ is Gabriel García Márquez’s darkly comic tale, brought to the stage in the Watergate Theatre, Kilkenny. Suitable for children aged 8+, the Watergate Theatre are offering special rates for school audiences.

In a kitchen, in a theatre, two storytellers and their audience ﬁnd something remarkable — a very old man with enormous wings. The wise neighbour woman tells us he’s an angel. The priest says he’s an imposter. Pilgrims ﬂock to see him, hoping to be healed by him, hoping for a gawp. They leave with something different than what they expected.

Adapted from Gabriel García Márquez’s ‘Un señor muy viejo con unas alas enormes’, Dan Colley and Riverbank Arts Centre bring this classic piece of magical realism to the stage in search of its beautiful, strange, emotional richness.

Dates: 12pm, 2 December & 7pm, 3 December

Watergate Theatre are offering schools a reduced rate of €8 per student and free for teachers. For more information, see https://watergatetheatre.ie/watergate_events/a-very-old-man-with-enormous-wings/ or contact boxoffice@watergatetheatre.com.

VISUAL Carlow
Dates: October 2021 – January 2022

The VISUAL Carlow invites primary, post-primary and third-level students to The Corona, an animated documentary film, interactive exhibition and series of guided workshops through the gallery, sharing the experiences of young people in their own voices during lockdown.

The Corona foregrounds the experiences of young people aged 3 – 24 in their own voices. The film shows the experience of lockdown from the perspective of children in early years settings, primary schools, afterschool care, young people from Comhairle na nÓg, early school leavers, third level students and children and young people with disabilities.

Schools can book facilitated, guided workshops through the galleries to view The Corona films, engage in facilitated conversation about their experience of the COVID-19 pandemic and contribute their drawings and reflections to the archive of children’s experiences of the pandemic.

Dates: October 2021 – January 2022
Times: Tuesday 10:00 – 11:30 & 12:30 – 14:00, Wednesday 10:00 – 11:30, Thursday 10:00 – 11:30 & 12:30 – 14:00
Cost €50 per group.

If cost is an issue for your school please contact learning@visualcarlow.ie Schools can also come to the gallery any time during opening hours and do a self-guided free visit to the exhibition. Self-guided tours are free but must be booked through boxoffice@visualcarlow.ie or by calling 059 917 2400.

For more information, see visualcarlow.ie/whats-on/the-corona-schools-workshops

Solstice Arts Centre
Dates: Various times and dates available

Solstice Arts Centre invites schools to explore 3 artworks in their Surveyor exhibition from the comfort of their own classroom. Their learning and engagement coordinator Deirdre Rogers, will use Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) to expand students thoughts on ‘what’s going on in these artworks’. Encouraging peer to peer discussion, this is an opportunity for students to focus and reflect on multiple perspectives, enhancing engagement and enjoyment of learning through art. Students will learn about the artists who created the works explored in their VTS discussion, and may even be inspired to create artworks of their own!

These online school tours are free of charge. They are suitable for students from 2nd – 6th class and students of all ages at post-primary level. The tour and conversations can take place during an in-person visit to the gallery or over Zoom. Good classroom internet access is required if you prefer to attend through Zoom.

Dates: Various times and dates available, please enquire with you preferred date & time.

For more information see: solsticeartscentre.ie/event/online-school-gallery-tours-using-vts or contact Deirdre at deirdre.rogers@solsticeartscentre.ie

Poetry Ireland
Deadline: 5:30pm Friday 31 December 2021

Poetry Ireland are inviting applications from primary and post-primary schools for their Writers in Schools scheme this Autumn 2021. The Writers in Schools scheme part-funds visits by writers and storytellers to primary and post-primary schools in the Republic of Ireland (funded by The Arts Council) and Northern Ireland (funded by Arts Council Northern Ireland).

Writers in Schools visits are available with a range of artists including poets, novelists, storytellers, teen fiction writers, children’s writers and screenwriters. In-person visits are consist of 2–2.5 hours with a selected writer, which can be divided into shorter sessions for different class group. For the duration of the Covid-19 restrictions, Writers in Schools will also be supporting virtual visits by writers. These virtual visits will be one hour in duration and can be split into a maximum of 2 sessions.

Poetry Ireland recommend that schools submit their application as early as possible, as they generally operate on a first-come-first-served basis and unfortunately cannot accommodate every request.

Deadline: 5:30pm Friday 31 December 2021

For more information, see www.poetryireland.ie/education/writers-in-schools.

How to create a culturally responsive environment

When my first child started primary school I was very surprised to be invited alongside all the other parents to spend 15 minutes every week in the class to read together in small groups. It was the first time I walked into a classroom of 4 and 5 year olds where more than 10 different languages were spoken. Each parent was very comfortable speaking to their children in Urdu, Arabic, Chinese, French and Italian, and all the children were quickly accustomed to this immersive sound experience.

For years I studied the development of language in the early years, visited homes to test and assess children, but only when I saw my own children growing up in their dual Italian and Irish cultural and linguistic identity I realised the important role the school community would play in developing their confidence in who they are.

This sparked my interest in developing Mother Tongues with the goal of supporting parents and teachers in making the most of the linguistic and cultural diversity that is already present in our children’s lives. Culturally responsive teaching means making an active choice to leverage each child’s cultural capital to benefit everyone’s learning experience. It shifts the populistic narrative of cultural diversity as a challenge and turns children and families into funds of knowledge, with their lived experiences becoming an integral part of the curriculum and informing the teacher’s approach.

As in the classroom, I think a shift in the conversations and approaches to cultural diversity needs to change in our society, with a stronger emphasis on each individual’s lived experiences as unique and valuable in creating the common space we share.

This is why the work of Mother Tongues takes so many forms in order to enact change inside and outside of the classroom.

In this series of blogs I will take you through some key projects developed by Mother Tongues to achieve our mission and vision, to examine how arts in education can be instrumental in building a culturally responsive environment.

Music Generation
Deadline: 12 noon, 8 November 2021

Kilkenny and Carlow Education and Training Board (KCETB) invite applications for the position of Music Generation Development Officer in Kilkenny. This post is a five year fixed term contract. As the lead partner for Kilkenny Local Music Education Partnership, KCETB seeks to employ a Music Generation Development Officer to implement its plans for the provision of performance music education for children and young people in Co. Kilkenny.

Deadline: 12 noon, 8 November 2021

Application form and further details are available from kilkennycarlow.etb.ie/vacancies-2/musicgenerationdevelopmentofficer/. Late applications will not be accepted.

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership
Deadline: 5pm Monday 1 November 2021

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership seeks an experienced individual to lead on the delivery of their collaborative projects with children from late November 2021 to mid–June 2022. They are a national children’s arts organisation and publishing house, whose mission is to create opportunities for children to collaborate with artists, and to publish and promote the artwork and insights that emerge from these encounters.

The Project Manager will have a base at the office of Kids’ Own Sligo town, but will work both remotely and on-site. Some travel may be required as part of this role. The Project Manager will report to the CEO, and will work closely with our small team to support the delivery of our strategic aims. The role is a full-time post, based on a fixed-term contract to cover maternity leave.

Salary is pro-rata, based on an annual remuneration of €32,000.

Deadline: 5pm Monday 1 November 2021

For a full description, see kidsown.ie/kids-own-seeks-experienced-project-manager-maternity-cover/

Imagine Arts Festival
Dates: 15 – 24 October 2021
Imagine Arts Festival is a unique celebration of the arts in Waterford City. Now in its 20^th year Imagine features live performances, exhibitions and interactive performances for people of all ages, including dance, film, visual art, theatre, spoken word and literature, as well as classical, contemporary and traditional music.

Below are some highlights for children and young people:

Theatre:
The Little Robber Girl
18 – 22 October
A limited audio drama series for children with accompanying posted pack, written and directed by Deirdre Dwyer. The school’s ticket includes a digital teacher’s pack with curriculum-related activities. Join Mattie, her little dog Arthur, and her new friend Finn as they go in search of Mattie’s missing Mammy…and return with much more than buried treasure. Let the listening adventure begin!

School’s Ticket – €50 (limited edition; includes a digital teacher’s pack with curriculum-related activities)

Multimedia art:
Creative Cluster exhibition
15 – 24 October
Under the theme of ‘Horizons’, five Post-Primary Schools in Waterford, supported by Creative Ireland, have come together to form an innovative ‘creative cluster’ aimed at student participation in the arts. This exhibition will feature creative writing, photography and visual art from the Transition Year students of 2020/2021 of Abbey Community College, Ardscoil na Mara, De La Salle College, Our Lady of Mercy School and St Angela’s Secondary School.

Workshops:
Body Percussion workshop for 8 – 10 year olds
23 October
Join Karen from Mini Musos in this FUN and engaging body percussion workshop that uses the body as the instrument to create interesting and creative sounds, through pulse and rhythmic coordination. The workshop will engage memory & sequencing skills as well as promote the use of music as a means of encouraging well-being especially in todays ‘new’ world. By the end of the session the children should be able to perform a short body percussive piece for their friends and families!

Leaflings with Niamh Sharkey and Owen Churcher
24 October
A Field Guide to Leaflings, a family event with former Laureate no nÓg Niamh Sharkey and Owen Churcher. Welcome to the world of Leaflings, the secret guardians of the trees. Among the branches and roots of some of our planet’s most important inhabitants, live the leaflings. These tiny creatures protect trees and help manage their interactions, their cycles and tell their stories.

For more information and to see the full programme, visit www.imagineartsfestival.com/index.php/whats-21

Irish Architecture Foundation
Dates: 15 – 17 October 2021

Open House Dublin returns from 15-17 October with an exciting mix of over 100 FREE events happening across the city and online! This year the IAF are delighted to bring Open House back on-site, with limited building tours making a triumphant comeback! See the city from a new perspective with Open House outdoor tours by boat, bus or bike! The digital programme allows fans of Open House to bring their festival home, with films, virtual tours, live streamed events, the Open House Journal and Open House Junior events all available to enjoy from the comfort of home.

The Open House Junior programme includes workshops and activities both in person and online for junior enthusiasts. Highlights include:

Architrek: A colourful series of specially designed architecture activity sheets for families, full of observation games, sketching and quizzes that guide you along selected routes around Dublin and Dun Loaghaire.
Building Stories: A competition to build a 3D model of your favourite building! This is a nationwide competition designed for families with children aged 5-12. Entries accepted until 30th October.
Digital Design Challenge: Use your creativity and digital skills to design your very own ‘Social Space’. This is a nationwide design competition for children and young people aged 7-18. Entries accepted until 30th October.

For more detail and bookings go to openhousedublin.com/whats-on/strands/open-house-junior/

Baboró International Arts Festival for Children
Dates: 4 – 17 October 2021

Baboró International Arts Festival for Children are delighted to launch their Digital Delegate Pass. With a Digital Delegate Pass you will have access to a variety of talks and online work created by some of the finest makers of children’s art and theatre and a series of talks with artists, sector and academic leaders. For their 25th festival, Baboró will be celebrating the rights of the child with a strand of events and performances dedicated to giving children a platform for their voice to be heard, a space for expression and, of course, a festival experience to be enjoyed with family and friends.

For the duration of the festival, Digital Delegates will have access to:

Six Digital Talks

Exploring ‘Mapping’: a map on the aesthetics of performing arts for early years
Bringing the Rights of the Child into View
Reflecting on RISE and Looking Towards Galway 2020 Legacy
Here’s What I’m Making
Here’s What I Made
You, Fin and the Play Between

Six Filmed Performances & Exhibitions

Birdboy
Mixed Up
Flying the Flag
Mise Mollser
Wild Atlantic Tales
Ta da!
Our Day Out

Three Podcast Series

Super Paua Stories
Into the World Within
Don’t Forget to Wash Your Hands

Dates: 4 – 17 October 2021

For more information on Baboró’s Digital Delegate Programme see: www.baboro.ie/festival/programme/digital-delegate

Music Generation
Deadline: 5pm Tuesday 5 October 2021

Music Generation is seeking to recruit a Quality Support & Development Manager as it builds towards its aim of nationwide expansion by 2022. This is an exciting job opportunity for a skilled professional with expertise in and a demonstrable track record of delivering results and achievement in music, education development and management. Reporting to the Head of Quality, Support and Development, the successful candidate will join a growing team focused on providing strategic support for the implementation of its Quality Strategy with its network of Local Music Education Partnerships.

Music Generation is Ireland’s National Music Education Programme which helps children and young people access performance music education in their local area. Music Generation has been successfully established in 25 cities and counties in Ireland. It has created some 67,000 opportunities for children and young people to engage in music tuition annually.

This position will be offered initially as an 18 month fixed-term contract commencing in January 2022. The Music Generation National Development Office is located in Dublin city centre; this job may be performed onsite or through a hybrid working arrangement.

Deadline: 5pm Tuesday 5 October 2021

For more information on this job opportunity, see www.musicgeneration.ie/news/job-opportunities-at-music-generation For further information, contact Conor Harty at mgrecruit@hartyvirtualhr.ie; or on 086-2406651.

The National Gallery of Ireland
Date: Wednesday 24 November 2021, 4 – 5.30pm

The National Gallery of Ireland is delighted to announce a Teachers’ CPD workshop in photography. Join photographer Brian Cregan and Education Officer Catherine O’Donnell for a practical workshop, equipping you with tools and ideas for photography in the classroom. The session will support teachers using their schools resource Medium, Materiality and Magic: Photography at the Gallery. It will also include peer learning via group work to enable you to develop cross-curricular creative strategies.

The National Gallery of Ireland’s Teachers’ CPD programme is designed to support teaching and learning through and about art, via collaborative networking.

Date: Wednesday 24 November 2021, 4 – 5.30pm

This is a free event but booking is required. To book, see www.nationalgallery.ie/explore-and-learn/schools/teacher-network-and-cpd. This event will take place via Zoom.

The National Gallery of Ireland
Deadline: 5pm, 17 Sept 2021

National Gallery of Ireland is thrilled to announce Your Gallery at School, along with the return of lots of new programmes, resources and opportunities, including the return of onsite school visits, digital sessions and teacher CPD. They are inviting post-primary schools to apply to participate in Your Gallery at School, a new holistic outreach programme that brings the Gallery directly to schools. This project builds on the success of the Gallery’s established schools programme and develops new content and partnerships outside of the Gallery walls.

Your Gallery at School aims to break down the barriers that prevent engagement with the arts through holistic programming that ensures children transition to adulthood equipped with the life-changing benefits of art. It also aims to build in students a sense of ownership of the Gallery, giving they a positive place to turn to in adulthood. Engagement occurs in three key strands: learning through and about art, wellbeing, and creative careers.

How to apply
Download and complete the short application form and email it to tours@ngi.ie. Please note that only schools who have not visited the National Gallery of Ireland in the past three years are eligible to apply. They will let you know if your application has been successful by Monday 4 October.

Deadline: 5pm, 17 Sept 2021

For more information or to apply, see www.nationalgallery.ie/explore-and-learn/schools/your-gallery-school

For more information on their onsite and digital school visits, see www.nationalgallery.ie/explore-and-learn/schools/schools-programme-autumn-2021

Culture Night
Date: Friday 17 September 2021

The sixteenth edition of Culture Night will take place on Friday 17 September 2021. Culture Night / Oíche Chultúir celebrates all that makes up the richness and diversity of culture in Ireland today, connecting people to cultural activities locally and nationally and aims to open up pathways to ongoing engagement. Doors are opened late and special and unique events are specifically programmed at participating locations. All activities are free of charge, thanks to the continued support of the Arts Council and Local Authorities across the island of Ireland.

Here are a selection of family friendly events taking place for Culture Night:

Cork:
Pitch’d Circus and Street Arts Festival
Time: 6pm – 10pm
The event is a space for friends to catch up, stand awestruck at acrobats flipping and tumbling, or even a place to scratch your head at some silly walkabout characters. Features pop-up performances of Tumble Circus’ “Cycle Circus” and Tom Campbell’s “Rubbish Performance”.

Dublin
Interactive Museum of Languages for Children
Time: 4pm – 8pm
Visit Mother Tongues’ touring Interactive Museum of Languages for Young Audiences in Rua Red. Since 2017, Mother Languages has promoted multilingualism in Ireland. Through artwork, sculptures, and spaces, the exhibit creatively encourages children to interact with different letters and alphabets across languages. This fun, immersive experience promotes both creativity and linguistic/cultural diversity.

Online
Sundown Circus
Event Times: 7.30, 9.30, 10.30
Erebidae Circus preforms an intimate and enchanting circus show with Irish mythology, original music, fire dancing and aerial circus spectacle. They will have three special online performances about three ancient fires: The Fire of the Hearth, The Fire of the Forge, and The Fire of Inspiration.

Zoom Book Clinic with Children’s Books Ireland and Hodges Figgis
Time: 4pm – 6pm
Are you a young reader? Looking for a new series to delve into? Feeling uninspired by your bookshelves at home? Then pop into the virtual Children’s Books Ireland Book Clinic with Hodges Figgis! Chat to the Book Doctor, consult on your favourite reads and leave with a prescription for your next book, as well as a 10% off book voucher.

Live Online Workshop for Teens: Kabuki Actors
Time: 6pm – 7pm
Inspired by the Kabuki theatre, join the Chester Beatty Library and create your very own puppet dressed to dance and entertain. Bring your theatrical creature to life with glamorous costume and heavy make-up of the Kabuki world.

Date: Friday 17 September 2021

See culturenight.ie for more information on events and activities in your local area.

We are delighted to announce the dates of the sixth annual National Arts in Education Portal Day. This year, it will be moving online with a series of virtual events taking place over a week in November – Monday 15th to Sunday 21st.

The Portal Team are excited to welcome guest speaker Professor Adele Diamond, Canada Research Chair Professor of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience at The University of British Columbia, Vancouver. Professor Adele Diamond will open the conference on Monday 15th November.

Adele Diamond is the Canada Research Chair Professor of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience at UBC in Vancouver.

Professor Diamond’s specialty is executive functions (e.g., self-control, problem-solving, mentally playing with ideas, thinking outside the box). She offers a markedly different perspective from traditional medical practice in hypothesizing that treating physical health, without also addressing social and emotional health is less efficient or effective. Adele offers a markedly different perspective from mainstream education in hypothesizing that focusing exclusively on training cognitive skills is less efficient, and ultimately less successful, than also addressing emotional, social, spiritual, and physical needs. She has championed the roles of music, dance, storytelling, and play in improving executive functions and academic and mental health outcomes. When not working, Adele loves to be with her 4-year-old granddaughter and to hike, play tennis, and especially dance.

View Dr. Diamond’s TEDx talk on the power of Executive Function and its impact on learning below:

The full line-up of the conference will be announced shortly. It includes a series of ‘in-conversation’ sessions with artists, teachers and practitioners from across the sector, bringing discussion and critical thinking to a range of topics. It also features series of online processed based creative workshops and a closing event.

These events bring together members of the arts in education community from all across Ireland, to share, learn, talk, network, get inspired, and continue interrogating best practice in the field.

Full programme details for the day will be announced shortly. For enquiries please contact events@artsineducation.ie.

The Ark and Dublin Theatre Festival
Dates: 1 – 10 October, 2021

The Ark and Dublin Theatre Festival present a new show by The Ark Artist-in-Residence, Shaun Dunne. This children’s theatre piece offers a window into one child’s experience of the first lockdown of 2020.

Kyla is throwing a party on her street. Not just any party. It’s a graduation ceremony. It’ll be mad to see the kids from her old class again after so long. Summer 2020 was literally endless.

Now that they’re all in first year, Kyla wants to get the old gang back together. She’s made caps, she has gowns, and she’s even prepared a speech. But there’s one visitor she’s not expecting…

As Kyla attempts to mark an important milestone in her young life, can she and her mother learn to understand each other and bridge the divide left by lockdown?

Informed by collaborative work with The Ark Children’s Council and featuring choreography by the multi-award winning Junk Ensemble, What Did I Miss? is a story of both childhood and parenthood, about growing up, no matter what age you are.

For ages 10+

Dates: 1 & 2 October, 7pm; 3 & 10 October, 2pm & 4pm; 8 & 9 October, 7pm
Tickets: €7.50–€10

To book a ticket for this children’s theatre show, see dublintheatrefestival.ie/programme/event/what-did-i-miss-2

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership
Deadline: Friday 3 September, 2021

Kids’ Own is seeking an Education Advisor to develop and expand their links with teachers, schools, and academics in teaching and learning over a nine-month period from October 2021. The Education Advisor is a brand new fixed-term role that aims to support Kids’ Own by building new audiences through outreach to schools. The Advisor will also build on the increased interest of teachers, academics, and educational bodies in their work. They will develop new connections with all of the above to ensure Kids’ Own’s work remains linked with sectoral developments.

The Education Advisor will primarily:

1) build links between Kids’ Own and schools, teachers, and teacher training colleges
2) conduct focus groups to understand the links between our books and the current and incoming primary school curriculum
3) make connections with governmental educational bodies
4) advocate for the use of Kids’ Own books within the classroom to demonstrate the value of greater representation of children’s voices and lived experience within the curriculum and the books children encounter in school.

Qualifications and experience needed:

A strong interest in arts in education
A qualification in education or equivalent experience
Up-to-date knowledge of primary education in Ireland
Experience of working with schools, teachers, and primary school student groups
Experience with self-directed projects
Full, clean driving license and access to own transport
Interest in and strong commitment to advocating for children’s voices and rights. Previous experience in this area would be desirable.

Deadline: Friday 3rd September, 2021

To apply, please send a detailed cover letter expressing your interest and suitability for the role, along with a CV to staff@kidsown.ie. Please include a document that outlines ideas you have for how you may approach this role. This should include a breakdown of costings according to the fee that is being offered. There is a set fee of €10,000 offered for this role to take place between October 2021 and July 2022. This is primarily to cover the Education Advisor’s fee, but must also cover any other anticipated expenses, e.g. travel costs, materials etc.

For more information, see kidsown.ie/education-advisor-job-with-kids-own-publishing/

Dublin Fringe Festival
11-26 September

The Dublin Fringe Festival takes place this September with live events in venues across Dublin and online nationwide. Their programme features an outdoor visual art in Dublin 8 and secret locations city-wide, as well as live open-air performances at Dublin Castle and Grand Canal Dock. They will be hosting music and comedy gigs back in beloved venues. Whilst bringing cutting edge interdisciplinary performances to stages in The Abbey Theatre, Project Arts Centre, Smock Alley, Chapel Royal and Draíocht Blanchardstown – as well as events online.

Some of the highlights for children and young people include:

Dublin 8, Yer Lookin’ Great
11-26 September
Free

Emmalene Blake is an internationally recognised street artist based in Dublin. This September, she will create a new mural on Swift’s Alley, inspired by the ideas of children from that neighbourhood. Cities change and grow to suit the people who live in them. The artist asked children from local schools to tell her what makes Dublin 8 great. Children also shared the positive changes in the area that have made life better for them and their friends.

For more information, see www.fringefest.com/festival/whats-on/dublin-8-yer-lookin-great

The Veiled Ones
Dates: 7pm on 10, 11, 12 & 13 Sept; 4pm on 10 & 13 Sept; 12 noon on 11 & 12 Sept
Tickets: €12/€8

Junk Ensemble present a dance theatre production for young audiences. This show explores witches, transformations and the powerful relationship between a grandparent and grandchild. The audience are invited on an intriguing journey through intricately designed rooms with a cast of internationally acclaimed dancers, young performers and live musicians.

To book, see www.fringefest.com/festival/whats-on/the-veiled-ones

Baboró International Arts Festival for Children
October 4 — 17, 2021

For their 25th Arts Festival for Children, Baboró will be celebrating the rights of the child, inspired by the UN Convention on the Rights of The Child. The arts festival will have strands of events and performances dedicated to giving children a platform for their voice to be heard, a space for expression and, of course, a festival experience to be enjoyed with family and friends.

Two Baboró commissions, a co-commission and a touring exhibition, will be central to these celebrations and part of the festival programme in October. The full programme and box office will be announced at the end of August.

Dates: October 4 — 17, 2021

For more information on Baboró’s festival, see www.baboro.ie/news-events/celebrating-our-25th-festival

The Glucksman
Free online art toolkits

The Glucksman has released a series of online art toolkits suitable for primary and secondary students. Organised around key themes, their free art toolkits enable you to explore works in the UCC Art Collection. Whether you are an educator, activist, student or individual art lover, these online toolkits are full of ideas and information to support you and your community.

The toolkits focus on the work of Irish artists Fiona Kelly, Deirdre Breen and The Project Twins. Fiona Kelly’s work has a strong environmental interest and
focuses on ideas of urban sprawl and its impact on the Irish landscape and its traditions. Deirdre Breen is a printmaker and designer who makes screen
prints characterized by flat abstract motifs and geometric compositions. The Project Twins, a Cork based collaborative art duo, create bold and playful graphics which explore ideas of absurdity, identity and the mundane.

To download this art toolkit, see www.glucksman.org/discover/digital/toolkits

Based in Cork, The Glucksman is a leading museum nationally and internationally for creative learning and access to the visual arts. For more information about the toolkit, get email education@glucksman.org.

The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon
Deadline: 5:30pm, 19 August 2021

The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon has opened applications for their Young People, Children and Education Project Award 2022 (YPCE). The purpose of the YPCE Project Award is to support artists to develop and deliver ambitious and original projects with and for children and young people. Projects may be interdisciplinary or focused on a specific artform. The maximum award is for €80,000.

This award has four strands. You should choose the strand that is most suitable for your project proposal. You may only apply to one strand:

Strand 1: Early Childhood Project Award – Ambitious and original projects that engage children aged 0–6 in the arts.
Strand 2: Childhood Project Award – Ambitious and original projects that engage children aged 7–12 in the arts.
Strand 3: Transitions Project Award – Ambitious and original projects that enable children and young people to engage in the arts. This may involve transitioning into or out of secondary education, between Junior and Senior Cycle (Transition Year), or into further education or the field of work.
Strand 4: Connections Project Award – Projects that connect young artists and recent graduates aged 18+ with established arts organisations and arts infrastructure in Ireland.

Deadline: 5:30pm, 19 August 2021

For more information or to apply for this award, see www.artscouncil.ie/Funds/Young-People,-Children-and-Education-Project-Award/.

Coole Music & Arts
Until 26^th July 2021

Coole Music & Arts have launched the Carolan’s Rambles Sound Walk, a unique geolocated audio experience along the banks of the Gort River Walk. This audio experience is the creative outcome of Coole Music and Arts’ music school, where musician Sinead Hayes worked with children and teens via Zoom. In this project, the participants explored the life of Turlough Carolan – a composer and musician who preformed across Connaught, Clare and south Ulster in the 1700s – creating artwork, stories, poems and original music compositions over the past three months.

The free ‘Geo-located Sound Walk’ is the first one in Ireland to use this newly launched sonic maps software, is available until 26^th July 2021 along the River Walk in Gort (entrance beside Aldi). Bring headphones and a smart phone and hold your camera over the QR code on the Carolan’s Rambles poster or download the App through www.coole-music.com.

An e-book containing 19 original musical compositions composed by the children is available to download from their website here: https://www.coole-music.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Carolans-Rambles-Tune-Book-Draft-4-1.pdf. For more information on the project, see https://www.coole-music.com/ or contact Ellie Farrell at info@coole-music.com.

Dublin City Council Arts Service
Throughout summer 2021

Over seven weeks of Summer, Dublin City Arts Office and Libraries are delighted to present Inside Out – a feast of free online and outdoor workshops and performances for children and families. Events are free but booking is required through Eventbrite.

Summer Programme includes:

Underwater Moves: Early Years Dance workshops with Monica Munoz
Dates: 27th July, 28th July or 29th July, 10.15 – 10.45 or 11.45 – 12.15

The Storybook Treasure Trail: Performance based, interactive, outdoor family friendly adventure with the Gaiety School of Acting
Dates: 24th July, 7th August, 14th August, 11-11.45am, 12.45-1.30pm or 2.30-3.15pm

CuriousB: A pop-up festival site that you and your family will dream up, design and play in with ReCreate.
Dates: 4th August, 11th August, 10.15 – 11.00 & 12:00 – 12: 45

Throughout summer 2021

For the full line-up of workshops and performances, see here: Inside_Out_Arts_and_Libraries_Summer_2021.pdf

Events are free but booking is required. Capacity is limited to ensure that this is a good experience for children. To book workshops, see here: www.dublincity.ie/events.

National Museum of Ireland
Deadline: 30th July 2021

The Education Department of the National Museum of Ireland is looking for artists working in visual arts, design, drama, film, storytelling, architecture, craft and/or other arts disciplines with experience of designing and delivering workshops to meet the learning styles and needs of a range of audiences, including adults, schools and intergenerational groups such as families.

While currently prioritising online engagement programmes, the National Museum of Ireland are inviting facilitators who are interested in creating both online content and in facilitating onsite programmes. Those eligible will have experience in the delivery of digital-based content in a virtual capacity and should be comfortable operating digital based equipment and programmes.

Facilitators and artists who register their interest in working with the Museum may be invited to work with them, at one or more of its four sites, and/or to create one or more short videos or participate in the Museum’s public engagement programmes through live online or onsite workshops or talks.

See here for artist/facilitator’s brief.
Click here for the application form.

Any queries can be directed to bookings@museum.ie.

Deadline: 30th July 2021

Music Generation Clare
Deadline: 12noon, 9 July 2021

Limerick and Clare Education and Training Board invites applications for the five year, fixed-term position of Music Generation Development Officer in Co Clare. The Music Generation Development Officer will be responsible for managing a programme of performance music education on behalf of County Clare Local Music Education Partnership.

The successful candidate will have a broad understanding of the diversity of effective, contemporary approaches across the diversity of performance music education – and will have the skills and experience to develop a programme that responds to the specific needs of children and young people.

Music Generation Clare is part of Music Generation – Ireland’s national music education programme, which is co-funded by U2, The Ireland Funds, the Department of Education and Local Music Education Partnerships.

Deadline: 12noon, 9th July 2021

Application form and full job description are available at www.lcetb.ie/mgce/ Completed application forms should be emailed to recruitment@lcetb.ie. Please indicate in the subject line of your e-mail “Ref Number 21/12″.

BLAST Arts-in-Education Residencies
Deadline: 30 September 2021

Arts in Education Residency Initiative in Primary and Post-primary Schools

The Department of Education has developed a new innovative Arts-in-Education BLAST Residency Programme in 2021, which will enable up to 400 new Arts-in-Education Residencies in schools each year.

This initiative aims to support the integration of the principles and key skills outlined in the Arts in Education Charter and the Creative Ireland Programme (2017-2022), Pillar 1 Creative Youth.

The aim of this scheme is to give pupils in schools all over the country the opportunity to work with a professional artist on unique projects, to be originated and planned between the artist, the teacher and the school, under the coordination of the Education Support Centres Ireland ESCI’s network of 21 full-time education centres. This initiative supports children and young people for the future, where skills like the ability to connect and collaborate with others, engage in creative and critical thinking and practice inclusivity at every level, will be paramount to peace, stability, sustainable economic growth and equality.

What is proposed is a unique streamlined process whereby schools apply for an artist on the Online Register of Approved Artists, who are already trained for the new BLAST Arts-in-Education Residency Programme, managed by the local education centre. The education centre will also pay the artist which will further remove the administrative burden on teachers and schools.

How this BLAST Residency initiative will work

The Education Centre:
While the programme will be nationally coordinated by the Arts in Education administrative base located at the Education Centre Tralee, schools will apply for a BLAST Arts-in-Education Residency to the full-time education centre in their area, based on the Online Register of Approved Artists. The Register of Approved Artists in each education centre will be arranged by artist and discipline, include relevant required and approved training experience, examples of previous work and examples of relevant or related experience in an educational and community context.

In excess of 300 artists are currently trained and registered on the Online Register of Approved Artists, managed by the education centre network nationally. All artists will have submitted their Child Safeguarding Best Practice Policy (to include Child Safeguarding Statement) and their Certificate of completion of the Children First Training module to the education centre.

What is proposed is a unique streamlined process when schools apply for an artist under the new BLAST Arts-in-Education Residency Programme. The education centre will also arrange for payment of the artist, which will further remove the administrative burden on teachers and schools.

Garda vetting:
Garda vetting for artists for successful school applications will be organised with the individual artist by the education centre in collaboration with the school. Schools may separately (if they wish) request the artist to apply for Garda vetting specifically to work in their school.

The Artists:
Artists from any artistic discipline, who have been trained in partnership working with schools, will be registered with each of the 21 full-time ESCI centres. Artistic disciplines include visual arts, crafts, music, dance, drama, literature and film. Creative disciplines will be expanded as the residency programme develops over the next number of years.

The artists on the Register of Approved Artists will have been previously trained and have engaged in school residencies under the Teacher-Artist Partnership CPD and Residency initiative or the Arts in Junior Cycle Programme which are both approved and led by the Department of Education.

The School:
The schools must be in the catchment of the local full-time education centre. Schools may submit only one application. Schools should make their own selection of artists on the Approved Register, based on CVs/examples of recent work, training and recommendations. Inclusion of artists on the Approved Register is based on training in the education centre (TAP) in addition to suitability/artistic qualification and has taken place in advance to ensure the selected artist satisfies school policies in relation to engagement of external personnel.

Once a school is approved for the scheme, the school has a commitment to the artist, who will have earmarked that time for the project and could potentially turn down other work at the times scheduled to work with the school.

This initiative encourages:

schools, primary and post-primary, that have not recently had an opportunity to participate in such creative initiatives, to apply
schools supporting inclusion and enhanced arts-in-education engagement with students from disadvantaged backgrounds and students with special educational needs to apply
schools that have a track record in teacher-artist partnership working in the classroom and school to apply
a whole-school commitment to the project, but it is not a requirement that all classes work with the artist
projects should have regard to the relevant school curricula where appropriate and have a focus on process

BLAST Arts-in-Education Residency funding:
The artist’s fee is €1,000 per residency. This is funded by the Department of Education via each education centre. The education centre will pay the artist in accordance with agreed guidelines after the artist and teacher/school evaluations have been submitted and received. In certain instances, this may include the payment of two instalments of €500 with agreement.

The artist will be funded for 20 contact hours, including 6 hours planning/development/review time. Participating schools must pay for materials associated with the project and also for documentation of the project through photographs, for example, and any other costs involved including insurance costs. Funded residencies can be delivered throughout the academic year commencing in September in the year the residency was approved.
Schools must acknowledge the Department of Education and the local education centre in all publicity relating to the project.
Successful applications:

Successful schools will be required to sign a short contract with their local education centre accepting the terms of the BLAST Arts-in-Education Residency Programme prior to the commencement of the residency. Successful residencies should not be started until official written notification to proceed has been received from the education centre and once Garda vetting has been completed and this has been communicated to the school.
It is a specific condition of this residency programme that a teacher works closely and collaborates with the artist to plan the learning experience and is present at all times with the artist while working with students in the school and to enhance further teacher-artist partnership. Schools will be responsible for ensuring the residency complies with Public Health advice relevant at the time of the project.

Evaluation:
The education centre will put in place the necessary evaluation for Arts-in-Education Residencies. This will include a school visit, completion and return of the Teacher/School Feedback Form and the Artist Feedback Form. The second instalment of the artist fee will be paid following the submission of the final reports.

Any images submitted by the school either in reports or on completing the project may be used to promote the scheme through print and other media including social media. It is therefore important that the schools have permission for the use of such images, noting in the consent forms that they will be used for this purpose, and only send images to the education centre once parental consent has been obtained.
Guidelines for application

A note on COVID-19 related Public Health Guidance: Schools should base proposals on the best public health advice and guidance available at the time of application.

Completed applications must include:

a completed application form
a written proposal for the project indicating the aims of the project, the theme, materials, processes, anticipated outcomes, deliverability, number of contact hours and number of classes and pupils that will participate in the project

Please also indicate the planned time-frame schedule and planned method of documentation for the project.

The proposal should demonstrate a whole school commitment to the project. (This does not mean that all children must participate in the project rather that the whole school should be supportive and flexible in facilitating the project).

Applications will open on 4 June 2021. The closing date is 30 September 2021.

Download BLAST Arts-in-Education Application Form

For more information or to apply, see http://www.gov.ie/blast/

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership
Deadline: 5pm, 21 June 2021

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership are seeking 8 professional artists and writers (4 artists and 4 writers) to join their panel specifically for collaborative book-making and publishing projects with children and young people. Are you an artist or writer with a strong professional practice who is interested in exploring collaborative ways of working with children and young people? Would you like join a panel of experts who will lead on developing new publications for Kids’ Own with groups of children and young people?

Having developed an approach to collaborative publishing with children and young people over two decades, they are inviting applications from people who would like to participate in a 2-day funded training programme and subsequently be part of a panel, from which artist–teacher pairs will be selected to work on future projects.

Kids’ Own invite applications from all over the island of Ireland, and especially welcome applications from diverse communities that are reflective of the communities of children they work with, and of artistic and cultural life in Ireland.

Deadline: 5pm, 21st June 2021

For more information or to apply, see https://kidsown.ie/callout-exciting-training-opportunity-for-artists-and-writers-interested-in-working-with-children-and-young-people/

The Ark
Booking closes 1st July 2021

The Ark, Dublin are delighted to present a number of creative courses for teachers this summer:

The Magic of Everyday Materials in the Early Years Classroom
Date: 5–9 July 2021

The Ark and Dublin West Education Centre are delighted to present an innovative new week-long online course for teachers working with children in the Early Years.

This hands-on, creative course focuses on a visual arts approach to working with very young children, supporting participants to develop and enhance their confidence and skills to deliver process and play-based art experiences. This year, due to ongoing public health restrictions, this face-to-face course will take place live online using Zoom video conferencing.

This is a five day Department of Education EPV-approved summer course for teachers.

For booking and further information go to ark.ie/events/view/the-magic-of-everyday-materials-in-the-early-years-classroom

Creative Music & Drama in the Classroom
Dates: 5 – 9 Jul 2021

We are excited to present this established and popular engaging arts summer course focusing on the two curriculum areas of Drama and Music. This year, due to ongoing public health restrictions, this face-to-face course will take place live online using Zoom video conferencing.

This is a five day Department of Education EPV-approved summer course for teachers.

For booking and further information go to ark.ie/events/view/teachers-5-day-course-creative-music-drama-2021-online

Bringing Science Alive in the Classroom through Drama
Dates: 12–16 Jul 2021

Now in its third year, we are excited to present a five-day arts-science summer course led by scientist and theatre-maker Dr. Niamh Shaw. This year, due to ongoing public health restrictions, this face-to-face course will take place live online using Zoom video conferencing.

This is a five day Department of Education EPV-approved summer course for teachers.

For booking and further information go to ark.ie/events/view/5-day-teachers-course-bringing-stem-alive-in-the-classroom-through-drama-2021-online

A Visual Arts Approach in the Classroom
Dates: 12 – 16 Jul 2021

Always hugely popular with teachers, we are delighted to be presenting this course once more. This hands-on, creative course focuses on a visual arts approach to exploring narrative, literacy & other subjects. This year, due to ongoing public health restrictions, this face-to-face course will take place live online using Zoom video conferencing.

This is a five-day Department of Education EPV-approved summer course for teachers.

For booking and further information go to https://ark.ie/events/view/teachers-summer-course-a-visual-arts-approach-2021-online

The Ark
Deadline: 5pm May 4th, 2021

The Ark is now seeking expressions of interest in the provision of Creative Hub project coordination services on a freelance contract basis to coordinate the delivery of their new strand of programming as part of the DCC Children’s Art in Libraries Creative Hubs. This is an exciting opportunity for someone who demonstrates an affinity for the values of The Ark, a talent for delivering multi-disciplinary arts programmes for children, and an ability to connect and collaborate with multiple partners to deliver both artistic and locally relevant aims.

This opportunity provides the right individual the chance to work with The Ark to deliver an exciting new programme for children in a community context working with key partners within the cultural sector for children in Dublin.

Deadline: 5pm May 4th, 2021

For more information, see ark.ie/about/work-at-the-ark/current-opportunities?fbclid=IwAR3GGiP1otV53-C7WoSR0J5wcawsO9BSlN1Io_K5T4rgWPdDGoYTjG8UgU8

TULCA

New online visual arts education resource for primary and secondary school students.

TULCA is a festival celebrating contemporary visual art, that takes place annually in November across Galway City and County with a programme of multi-venue exhibitions and events. TULCA Education Programme is a unique programme that focuses on looking at and responding to visual art. It is about reaching out and engaging with schools and the wider community to create an increased awareness and a shared understanding of the Visual Arts. The programme engages a process of slow looking, reflection and response.

TULCA’s Education Programme is designed to continue this process of critical thinking by creating a space for dialogue and learning exchange. It draws on individual personal experience and acknowledges that we all have our own set of visual codes, value systems, likes and dislikes.

The online arts education resource caters for primary and secondary school students and uses a mixture of creative activities and videos to explore contemporary visual art.

For further information, see https://www.tulca.ie/news/2021/03/24

The Everyman & Graffiti Theatre Company

Dates: 1 – 31 May On Demand

On demand audio stream theatre for young audiences 8+ for families or schools.

This Girl Laughs, This Girl Cries, This Girl Does Nothing by Finegan Kruckemeyer, is presented by The Everyman and Graffiti Theatre Company as part of Play It by Ear, a programme of shows performed on The Everyman stage, and available as an audio stream.

Triplet sisters are left in the forest by their woodcutter father. From this fairytale beginning, three resolutions are made – one sister will walk one way, one the other, and the third will stay right where she is. Twenty years later, having circumnavigated the globe, and fought Vikings, and crossed oceans, and tamed wilds, and achieved greatness, the three meet again, as women.

Fun and accessible resources will be available on Graffiti’s website for teachers and parents to support children’s enjoyment of the episodes. These resources – which will be available for the audio stream live date – will include creative prompts and activities to give children a deeper engagement with the piece.

Price: On Demand Audio Stream Family €12 | Schools €65

Age recommendation: 8+, recommended for young audiences and their families

Running Time: 5 X 10mins

For further details go to everymancork.com/events/this-girl-laughs-this-girl-cries-this-girl-does-nothing/

Music Generation
Deadline: 30 April 2021

Music Generation invites individual or groups of professional musicians to tender to lead and develop distinct Communities of Practice with musicians that deliver Music Generation programmes; and to lead, develop and create new work for children and young people with musicians involved in Music Generation Communities of Practice.

Music Generation is Ireland’s National Music Education Programme that gives children and young people access to high-quality, subsidised performance music education. Initiated by Music Network, Music Generation is co-funded by U2, The Ireland Funds, the Department of Education and Local Music Education Partnerships.

Deadline: 5pm Friday 30th April 2021

For more information on how to apply, see: www.musicgeneration.ie/news/request-for-tenders-professional-musicians-provision-of-services

Creative Schools
Deadline: 2 April, 2021

Creative Schools is forming a panel of Creative Associate Regional Coordinators across the country. It is envisaged that the Arts Council will engage the services of 8 Regional Coordinators. Both individuals and organisations (who nominate a particular representative) may apply to provide these services.

The main tasks of the Creative Associate regional coordinators are:

– Work closely with the Arts Council’s Creative Schools’ team to support and assist in coordinating the work of the Creative Associates at a regional level.

– Liaise with and support up to twenty Creative Associates and their assigned schools across each region.

– Be required to carry out services for around seventy days per annum, with a minimum of one day per week between the months of September to June.

Deadline for applications: Friday 2nd April, 2021

For more information, see www.etenders.gov.ie/ (select Arts Council in ‘authority’ field of an advanced search on etenders).

The National Museum of Ireland (NMI)

The National Museum of Ireland (NMI) has launched its spring/summer 2021 programme of online workshops, activities and resources for schools.

The Museum is inviting schools all over Ireland to enjoy, engage and learn with culture in the classroom this spring and beyond.

From the Crazy Life of Crows to pop-up talks on the Easter Rising, the spring/summer programme explores a diverse range of topics and themes, all inspired by the National Collections across four Museum sites in Dublin and Mayo.

The NMI usually welcomes some 90,000 primary and post primary students on classroom visits each year. Due to COVID-19 public health advice, the Museum has now moved its schools programme online with imaginative workshops, virtual tours and classroom activities, delivering meaningful learning experiences for students.

Some highlights from the spring/summer programme include a family tree workshop with the NMI – Country Life; a virtual tour about the 1916 Rising from the NMI – Decorative Arts & History; an Ogham Code challenge from the NMI – Archaeology; and special virtual classroom sessions exploring extinction with the NMI – Natural History.

All events are offered free of charge.

For further infromation go to – www.museum.ie/en-IE/News/National-Museum-of-Ireland-invites-schools-to-lear

Baboró International Arts Festival for Children
Event Date: 23 April 2021

Baboró are delighted to present their Galway 2020 European Capital of Culture project, RISE.

Children in Galway are dancing, leaping and learning with local and international artists this spring, thanks to the RISE programme from Baboró International Arts Festival for Children in partnership with Galway 2020 European Capital of Culture. This March children aged 8 to 13 years are taking on starring roles in two “RISE” projects, combining parkour, circus skills, performance art, sport and more. Making the most of digital opportunities to connect across the globe, the young people are participating at school and at home.

Projects include:

St. Pats Lockdown Olympics: A whacky series of four weekly videos, accompanied by props delivered to students’ homes, to guide them through the creation of their own spectacularly zany sports.

The Streets Are Ours: A collaborative project to create a promenade performance by Galway children combining parkour, contemporary dance and circus skills. The dance performance will be recorded in April and shared with the public as soon as safely possible.

The Veiled Ones: The final element of the RISE programme will be The Veiled Ones, a new dance theatre production highlighting the powerful relationship between grandparents and grandchildren, created by renowned Irish company Junk Ensemble.

This immersive work, currently in development.

In Conversation with Junk Ensemble & kabinet k

On April 23, Baboró will host the digital event, ‘In Conversation with Junk Ensemble & kabinet k’, exploring both companies’ development processes in making work with and for children, and the challenges to creating dance in a global pandemic.

For more information, www.baboro.ie/galway-2020.

The LAB Gallery, Dublin City Arts Office
Dates: Wednesdays 4-6pm, 3, 10, 24 March & 14, 21, 28 April

The Practice of Looking is a six-week, online course to learn about Visual Thinking Strategies and its use in Dublin, and to practice its facilitation. It was born out of the growing interest in the adoption of Visual Thinking Strategies at the LAB Gallery and in the partnerships and networks that have evolved around it. The LAB Gallery, Dublin City Arts Office, The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) and VTS Neighbourhood Schools are partnering to host an online course that offers the opportunity to learn from trained VTS coaches in the existing network. The course will have a strong focus on facilitation practice and reflection. You will receive a certificate of attendance after completion of the course.

Please note that to participate to the course, you need to:

Be available for all sessions.
Be a practicing teacher / educator / artist / museum guide.
Pay a course fee of €250.

For more information and to register, please see here: http://www.dublincityartsoffice.ie/the-lab/vts-projects/the-practice-of-looking

The Ark
Date: 25 February 2021

The Ark invites you to ‘Creativity in the Online Classroom Made Easy’ CPD workshop for teachers, where you will learn a range of easy, accessible skills to help you bring creativity into your online teaching. Find out how easy it can be to breathe imagination into an online class, inspiring both your students and yourself. The ideas shared will be useful for both teaching online and when you are back in the classroom.

Perhaps you are overwhelmed with the technical aspects of moving your teaching online, or feeling frustrated with the limitations and struggling to make your online lessons creative and engaging. Or perhaps you are simply looking for some fresh inspiration for ideas that can work well in the online space. Join the Ark for this morning of inspiration and art-making to help you address these challenges, led by artist Duffy Mooney-Sheppard who has been leading online classes for children for the past year.

During this session you will gain valuable time to explore various tools available on Zoom to develop, hone and gain confidence in digital art lessons. Ideas shared will be adaptable and transferrable to other online platforms you may be using also. The possibilities in virtual learning spaces are wide and we are all learning! We will ask questions, share challenges, try things out and build our knowledge as a group.

This is a free CPD event for teachers, but advance booking is essential. For more details please go to: https://ark.ie/events/view/cpd-creativity-online-classroom

Children’s Books Ireland & Poetry Ireland
Dates: 23 & 24 February, 2, 3, 10 March

Children’s Books Ireland and Poetry Ireland are working in partnership to host a series of capacity-building webinars for artists who are delivering online programmes to children and young people. The webinars are free to attend and places are limited. Children’s Books Ireland and Poetry Ireland are committed to supporting artists in the development of their practice and their working conditions.

23rd Feb: Child Protection and Safeguarding Webinar
24th Feb: Cybersafety when working with Children Webinar
2nd Mar: Managing Online Content Webinar 1
3th Mar: Managing Online Content Webinar 2
10th Mar: Basic Online Content Generation & Sharing Skills for Children’s Artists
10th Mar: An Introduction to video editing tools for Children’s Artists

For more information or to register for these workshops, see https://www.eventbrite.ie/o/childrens-books-ireland-11806877628

A selection of some of the fantastic digital arts in education activities and programmes available for children and young people which support learning at home.

The Ark @ Home for Teachers

To support teachers delivering arts-based learning to children remotely while they are home due to the COVID-19 restrictions, The Ark have a variety of classroom and at-home activity packs relating to different areas of the curriculum, as well as a selection of recorded shows available to stream for your class privately.

For more information: ark.ie/projects/details/ark-home-teachers

The Glucksman: Creativity at Home

Join The Glucksman online for on daily live art sessions and creative activities you can do at home. A team of facilitators delivers daily art classes and discover a range of art making skills and techniques. These free online sessions will keep children engaged as they learn about drawing, painting, constructing and printmaking using basic art and household materials.

For more information: www.glucksman.org/exhibitions/creativity-at-home

IMMA: Explorer at Home

With your family, you can explore specially selected artworks from the IMMA Collection online and their temporary Exhibition Programme, as well as suggested starting points for creative activities related to those artworks. These free online resources cover themes such as abstract painting, collage, land art and more.

For more information: imma.ie/whats-on/explorer-at-home-abstract-painting/

National Gallery of Ireland at Home

Stay connected with the National Gallery of Ireland online, with lots of different ways to engage with their collection – virtual tours, videos, podcasts, downloadable resources, activities for children, online workshops, blogposts, and much more.

For more information: www.nationalgallery.ie/national-gallery-ireland-at-home

The Dock Arts Centre and The Lab Gallery

Eleven Irish artists reveal what inspires them and how they make their art in a free video series designed for use in the classroom.

The Dock Arts Centre in Carrick on Shannon and The Lab Gallery in Dublin have worked together to produce an online resource for teachers and arts educators. This resource is ideal for use in a classroom or online educational setting and features artists speaking directly about themselves and the art making process. View the online resource here: https://vimeo.com/showcase/8094850

As well as connecting young people with some of the rich ideas that inform our visual culture and offering them a unique insight into the arts practices, methods and motivations of practicing artists the series also affords the artists a unique opportunity to speak directly to and connect with young audiences.

In the interviews the artists reveal their reasons for making art, describe the methods they use to make their work but most importantly reveal what is means to them to be an artist and how they transform their desire to create and communicate into the work they produce. The diversity of their individual backgrounds and experiences is reflected in the work each artist makes. They draw inspiration from many sources; the books they read as children, the films they have watched, conversations they have had, the environments that they have lived in and places they have visited.

The artists are Sinéad Ní Mhaonaigh, Eve O’ Callaghan, Jamie Cross, Ellen Duffy, Kate Murphy, Atoosa Pour Hosseini, Gemma Browne, Anna Maria Healy, Austin Ivers, Louise Manifold and Jackie McKenna.

The video series is a starting point to mediate conversations with young people about their own creativity, ideas and inspirations, the videos may also be used as an inspiration for teachers and educators to devise workshop and other practical activities for their classes.

Access this free resource here: https://vimeo.com/showcase/8094850

For further information go to www.thedock. ie/learning-projects/speaking- of-which.

Chester Beatty Library

Chester Beatty launched an Intercultural museum programme for primary and post-primary schools offering students and their teachers the opportunity to explore world cultures in an Irish museum. Participants are encouraged to engage with Chester Beatty’s Islamic, East Asian and European collections through a variety of activities including guided tours, self-guided visits, online learning resources and access to the extensive image gallery.

Intercultural dialogue and learning plays a key role in the museum’s mission and fosters dialogue with the communities represented in Chester Beatty’s unique collections. These collections offer wonderful learning opportunities and support a number of key curricular areas from art history to world faiths. A range of free teaching resources are available to support self-guided visits and inspire activities back at school.

The research for developing the programme was carried out in co-operation with Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Maynooth University, the Intercultural Education Service (Education Authority of Northern Ireland) and the UK Heritec Education Consultancy. A key component of the development programme was the training of guides and facilitators in visual thinking strategies and object-based learning to reflect the school curriculum.

This report includes the background to the intercultural school’s project and includes definitions on intercultural dialogue and relevant policies, strategies and projects in both the formal education, arts and cultural sectors; the development of the intercultural school’s programme; analysis of current practices and methodologies; programme development including the training of volunteer guides, Continuous Professional Development of teachers; and pilot tours and evaluation.

Schools have full access to Chester Beatty’s remarkable treasures through the website www.chesterbeatty.ie thus allowing students and teachers to experience the Chester Beatty from the school desk or from home. In addition, the CB’s new Digital Museum Guide app offers audio tours in 13 languages, virtual 3D walkthroughs of the museum, online browsing of the Chester Beatty’s world-renowned treasures, and a news section to highlight our extensive programme of events and activities.

View and Download the ‘Embracing cultural diversity in the classroom – Research and Development Report’ here.

For more details about the Chester Beatty Learning and Education Department please contact educationservices@cbl.ie

RTÉ and Creative Ireland Programme

Deadline extended to Sunday 31 Jan 2021

RTÉ and Creative Ireland Programme have come together in partnership to create This Is Art! – a celebration of visual art through the creation of an exciting new online art competition aimed at young people across the island of Ireland.

The competition aims to promote artistic practice among young people and encourage and support creativity, originality and self-expression. Applicants can enter individually or they can enter as part of a group and all visual art disciplines are welcomed. The competition is open for anyone 18yrs and under.

All of the artwork will be included in a digital gallery and considered for the This Is Art! 2021 Grand Prix Award.

Deadline extended to Sunday 31 Jan 2021

For further information go to: https://www.thisisart.ie/

Irish Film Institute

The Irish Film Institute today (1st December) launches its comprehensive 2020/2021 IFI Schools’ Programme. For the first time, the programme will be available to view nationwide online on the Institute’s brand-new IFI@Schools
platform at www.ifischools.ie. Films to feature as part of this year’s offering include Greta Gerwig’s Oscar-nominated Little Women, Bo Burnham’s Eighth Grade, Neasa Hardiman’s Sea Fever, and three films from Cartoon Saloon, Kilkenny’s beloved animation studio.

The entire programme is available to view for schools through an annual subscription for either the Primary or Post-Primary programmes. With the generous support of the Arts Council Capacity Building Grant, the IFI has been able to heavily subsidise costs so that an annual Primary subscription costs €100, and annual Post-Primary subscription costs €250.

Each subscription allows 10 teachers per school to watch 10 screenings each. Unlike booking student groups for
cinema screenings, the subscription allows the teacher a greater degree of flexibility as to when material is viewed in the classroom and will encourage increased media literacy across a wide range of ages.

The ever-popular Modern Foreign Languages strand, encompassing French, German and Spanish, presents five Irish premieres. Eagerly awaited by teachers and students alike, the films are an invaluable way of promoting language and culture. Included in the 2020/21 Spanish selection is Berlinale prize winner Wolves and classroom drama One For All. French students will enjoy teen comedy-drama Man Up! for Senior Cycle, while Junior Cycle drama Fahim, The Little Chess Prince rides on the coattails of The Queen’s Gambit, and focuses on a young Bangladeshi immigrant who discovers he has a gift for playing chess. The German choices this year are Ulrich Köhler and Henner Winckler’s A Voluntary Year (Das freiwillige Jahr) for Senior Cycle, and Sarah Winkenstette’s Too Far Away (Zu Weit Weg) for Junior Cycle.

Speaking about the launch of the platform, IFI Director Ross Keane said, ‘The advent of IFI@Schools is a truly transformational moment for IFI Education, bringing our hugely popular and successful schools programme directly into classrooms all around Ireland. While Covid-19 has presented huge challenges for arts organisations, it has also made us all examine what we do and how we can continue to engage with our audiences in new and innovative ways. We are therefore delighted to offer this exciting new online platform to schoolchildren nationwide, marking the beginning of a new era for IFI Education’.

Head of IFI Education Alicia McGivern commented, ‘While school trips to cinemas and arts venues may be on hold for the moment, the appetite for quality arts engagement remains undiminished. IFI@Schools offers teachers the opportunity to bring film content directly into the classroom in a smart, affordable and accessible way. We’re very excited to bring the magic of cinema into schools and to continue to foster a love of film in students during these unprecedented times.’

Arts Council Head of Film and Architecture Fionnuala Sweeney added, ‘The Arts Council is delighted to have funded the development of the IFI@schools platform. At a time when cinema doors are closed, this dedicated new platform will bring the world of film into classrooms all over Ireland so that children and young people can continue to collectively experience, explore and enjoy film.’

For English this year, Senior Cycle students can look forward to Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence in Debra Granik’s Winter’s Bone, and Paddy Breathnach’s acclaimed drama Rosie, starring Sarah Greene and Moe Dunford. For Junior Cycle, there’s a hugely entertaining and thought-provoking slate of films including Taika Waititi’s Hunt for the Wilderpeople, The Peanut Butter Falcon starring Shia LaBoeuf, Ken Wardrop’s touching Irish documentary His & Hers, and Saudi Arabian comingof-age drama Wadjda.

IFI is delighted to present a particularly strong line-up of Irish films, and as part of our ongoing commitment to support Irish filmmakers, IFI has confirmed a number of special guests to speak as part of this year’s online programme, including Oscar-nominated animators Nora Twomey and Tomm Moore, documentarians Brendan J Byrne and Ross Whitaker, and Vivarium director Lorcan Finnegan.

Other films available for Senior Cycle include documentaries In the Name of Peace: John Hume in America, Bobby Sands: 66 Days, Iris, Risteard O’Domhnaill’s Atlantic and The Pipe, and drama Black ’47. Transition Year students will be treated to environmental and socio-political documentaries Now, Spaceship Earth, Gaza, Push and 3½ Minutes, Ten Bullets. Art and Geography students will delight in the anime film Weathering With You, while sporting documentaries Katie and Climbing Blind look at the physical and mental hurdles sportspeople overcome to achieve their goals. A special Inclusion and Diversity section for Transition Year Wellbeing/SPHE includes Sundance winner Clemency, powerful civil rights drama Selma, and the funny and tender LGBT+ drama Love, Simon.

This year’s Primary programme features a fantastic range of titles for younger pupils including the charming Little Women with Saoirse Ronan and Emma Watson, Irish drama A Shine of Rainbows, plus animations Minuscule, Dreambuilders, and the Cartoon Saloon trio of Song of the Sea, The Secret of Kells and The Breadwinner.

Finally, the IFI is delighted to announce the 2021 edition of its hugely successful Careers in Film Day events next March, in association with the Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival. IFI will also run special events in association with Screen Skills Ireland, which will allow students to engage directly with filmmakers and their craft; these Q&A and ‘First Steps’ events will be held in January.

For more details and to download a full IFI Education 2020/2021 Programme, please visit www.ifi.ie/learn. For more information and booking, please contact Richard or Amy at schools@irishfilm.ie.

Full details of the programme can be found at www.ifischools.ie.

Solstice Arts Centre

Exhibition running until 22 December 2020

Solstice Arts Centre are delighted to announce two new online resource packs for schools to accompany the exhibition ‘New Era – Exploring Climate Change’.

New Era is an exhibition featuring four Irish visual artists Rachel Doolin, Siobhán McDonald, Martina O’Brien and Méadhbh O’Connor whose work explores different aspects of climate change in the natural world. The exhibition includes new and recent art works by these artist/activists and advocates for both local and global climate change.

Resource Packs:

Look Draw Think Respond – Primary Schools

This fun learning resource, originally designed to be completed in the gallery is now accompanied by a virtual 360° tour of the exhibition New Era, with links and additional information on each of the four artists on our website at solsticeartscentre.ie/ event/new-era-exploring- climate-change.

This resource embraces many subjects across the curriculum including art, geography, SPSE, science and literacy and a personalised tour and virtual creative activities can be arranged for individual classrooms.

Download Primary School Resource here

Solstice Secondary Resource New Era – Post-Primary Schools

This learning resource is designed to assist Leaving Certificate students and teachers interested in opting for the gallery question on the History & Appreciation of Art paper.

It can be used in conjunction with the virtual 360° tour of the exhibition New Era. with links and additional information on each of the four exhibiting artists on our website at https://solsticeartscentre.ie/ event/new-era-exploring- climate-change for a comprehensive response to this or similar exam question.

Download Post-Primary School Resource here

Solstice Arts Centre can also arrange a Zoom meeting with any class group to give them further insight into the show and information on the artists involved.

For further information go to solsticeartscentre.ie or email deirdre.rogers@solsticeartscentre.ie

National Museum of Ireland

From hieroglyphics to harvest knots…the National Museum of Ireland launches a new programme of online events, activities and resources for teachers to bring the Museum to the classroom.

Each year, the NMI welcomes some 90,000 primary and post primary students to its four Museum sites in Dublin and Mayo, providing engaging, hands-on, curriculum linked and creative learning opportunities that underpin classroom teaching.

This year, due to COVID-19 guidelines, the NMI has had to rethink how schools, teachers and their students can engage and learn with the national collections and, in response, has developed a range of virtual programmes to be used in the classroom. The first strand of the new programme is available now including arts in education activities.

The new schools programme 2020/2021 blends live online sessions with Museum educators, and a range of pre-recorded video and printable resources available from the Museum’s website.

Arts in Education programme highlights include:

Leaving Certificate Art History Presentation
Archaeology

In place of Leaving Certificate Art History Tours, Museum educators have developed a presentation containing high-resolution images of the artefacts on display at the Museum that are linked to the Leaving Certificate Art History curriculum. The presentation can be used by teachers as an in-class resource and the notes pages can be used by students as a revision tool.

Arts, Crafts and Design Activities
Decorative Arts & History

Explore a range of art and design activities suitable for primary students and art at post primary junior cycle, through short videos and downloadable activity sheets. Students can take a design challenge inspired by Eileen Gray, make their own musical instrument, design and build a Thaumatrope or build their own bird helmet inspired by a Samurai costume.

Nature School Storytelling
Country Life

Join storyteller Fiona Dowling on the grounds of the NMI – Country Life at Turlough Park, Co. Mayo, to hear some nature based stories and some intriguing tales connected to our fairy trail ‘Of Fairies and Fairy Folk’.

For a further information and link to the full programme go to www.museum.ie/en-IE/News/From-hieroglyphics-to-harvest-knots-the-National-M.

Irish Film Institute – IFI@Schools

Stream new films into your school with a brand new film platform from the IFI@Schools, launching in October.

With school trips on hold and very different learning situations arising in schools across the country, the Irish Film Institute (IFI) is launching an online streaming platform, offering films to support a whole range of subjects and interest areas.

In return for a one-off annual fee to cover film rights, your school can access the complete catalogue, using an easy, user-friendly teacher pass.

For more information email schools@irishfilm.ie

Arts in Education Portal

Over 130 artists, teachers and arts in education professionals joined us live across the week for the first virtual Portal Regional Series which showcased arts in education and creative practise in the South East.

On Monday curator Karla Sanchez and artist Clare Breen shared with us their experience on The Living Arts Project, a long-term primary school arts in education initiative supported by Wexford Arts Centre in partnership with the Arts Department of Wexford County Council.

Exhibition of artwork from Living Arts Project

Key themes that arose from the discussion were the importance of partnerships, relationships and adaptability; how these values have allowed the project to organically develop and strengthen over its thirteen years.

We were delighted to be joined in the discussion by Wexford Arts Office Liz Burns, Elizabeth Whyte Executive Director/CEO of Wexford Arts Centre and Visual Art Curator Catherine Bowe who spoke about the value of evaluation. How listening and building on the feedback from the children, artists and teachers involved has allowed the project to organically grow and adapt year on year.

Karla also introduced us to ‘Curious Minds’ a resource pack for teachers which was developed this year by Karla and artist Els Dietvorst with the aim of disseminating the learning from the project. Curious Minds will be launched as part of Cruinniú na nÓg in June with a local launch in September.

In Tuesdays session artist, educator and researcher Tunde Toth led us in a presentation exploring co-ownership and participation within a classroom setting, where we truly value children’s questions, responses and doubts.

Tunde introduced us to the idea of taking creative risks and the importance of creating a space where children can make decisions and voice their opinions.

Tunde Toth – creative risk taking with children

For those who missed the discussions they will be available to watch back this month on the Arts in Education Portal Facebook page.

Facebook Live Videos Links:

Discussion: The Living Arts Project

Presentation: Danger Art with Tunde Toth

Links for further Information:

Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA)

IMMA invites children, young people and their families to join them every week on their social channels for #ExploreratHome.

While IMMA is closed the Explorer at Home art activities are available for children and adults to do and make at home. IMMA’s team share a new art activity every Wednesday afternoon on their social channels. You will find specially selected artworks, inspired by the IMMA Collection Online and IMMA’s temporary Exhibition Programme, as starting points for creative activities.

IMMA invites you to share your creations with them online by tagging IMMA and using the hashtag #ExploreratHome so you can see your work on IMMA’s website.

For more information go to imma.ie/whats-on/explorer-at-home/

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative

Update: In light of the COVID-19 situation, this deadline has been extended further to 25 June http://www.artscouncil.ie/available-funding/

Deadline: 25 June 2020

The Creative School Team is delighted to announce an opportunity for schools and Youthreach centres to be part of the next phase of Scoileanna Ildánacha / Creative Schools.

Creative Schools aims to put the arts and creativity at the heart of children’s and young people’s lives and this year 150 new schools/centres will join the programme. Participating schools will work alongside a Creative Associate who will help them to develop their own Creative Schools plan to understand, develop and celebrate the arts and creativity in their school. Schools will be awarded a once-off grant of €4,000 (in total) to implement their plans over the two school years 2020–21 and 2021–22.

The deadline for submitting applications is 25 June 2020. The window for submitting applications opens on 18 February.

Further information and applications details go to www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/schools/

To apply go to www.artscouncil.ie/Funds/Creative-Schools-Initiative/

National Gallery of Ireland

A comprehensive new photography resource has been developed for the National Gallery of Ireland by artist/educator Brian Cregan.

Medium, Materiality and Magic: Photography at the National Gallery of Ireland is suitable for both primary and post-primary schools. It provides an introduction to photography, exploring key works in the Gallery’s growing photography collection, along with ideas for students to create their own photographs.

The resource is accompanied by a video tutorial providing an easy step-by-step guide of how to make a photogram. Some of the Gallery’s most popular resources are now also available in Irish: Tuiscint ar Thaispeántas; Céard é Portráid; & Tírdhreacha in Ealaín na hÉireann.

For more information go to www.nationalgallery.ie/what-we-do/education-department/schools/resources-schools

Download Medium, Materiality and Magic here.

Branar Téatar do Pháistí’s – Galway 2020

Dates: 2 – 29 March 2020

Sruth na Teanga: an adventure through the story of the Irish Language

As part of Galway 2020, Branar Téatar do Pháistí’s Sruth na Teanga is an epic and unique immersive theatre show that imaginatively tells the story of the evolution and life of the language. Branar will transform the terminal building of the old Galway Airport for a walk-through performance in which one class group of thirty pupils will enter at a time. Experience a true sense of adventure with cinematic levels of detail as you travel through four worlds experiencing live performance, puppetry, music, design and beautiful imagery. The children’s journey will culminate with an opportunity to explore a response room that will enhance and deepen their engagement with the show.

Branar’s world-class brand of storytelling will enchant audiences aged 8-plus and adults alike.

Tickets are €7 per child and teachers go free.

For further information and school bookings go to www.sruthnateanga.ie.

Waltons Music for Schools Competition

Entry Deadline: 24 January 2020

Founded in 2012, the Waltons Music for Schools Competition is a non-profit national event celebrating and supporting music in Irish schools. The Music for Schools Competition is produced by Waltons New School of Music and generously supported by RTÉ lyric fm. All primary and post-primary schools in the Republic of Ireland are eligible to enter the Competition, and schools from all 26 counties have participated.

Each year’s Competition culminates in a gala Finalists Concert, in which twelve Finalist school music groups (six primary and six post-primary) perform before their peers and two distinguished adjudicators. At the end of the Finalists Concert, the adjudicators announce six winning primary and post-primary schools, which receive awards totalling €7,000 worth of vouchers for musical instruments and equipment from Waltons Music Ireland, including two First Prizes of €2,000 vouchers.

The Process

Schools create an ensemble piece or song, based on the year’s Competition theme, and performed by an instrumental, vocal or mixed group from the school (maximum 40 performers). The piece or song can be performed by any combination of singers or instrumentalists you choose. This year’s theme comes from Hans Christian Andersen, ‘Where words fail, music speaks’.
Schools submit an online entry form and send a video of the group’s performance as well as a jpeg photograph of the group.
The initial entries are judged by a team of first-round adjudicators, and twelve Finalist groups (six primary and six post-primary) are selected.
The Finalists are announced by Liz Nolan on RTÉ lyric fm.
Groups not selected as Finalists but displaying real merit are designated as either Commended or Highly Commended, and certificates are produced for the schools and all student performers.
The twelve Finalist groups perform in a gala Finalists Concert at the National Concert Hall, at the end of which the six winning schools are announced.

2020 Calendar

Friday, 24 January, 5 pm · Entry Deadline
Friday, 7 February, 1 – 4 pm • Announcement of Finalists
Monday, 23 March • Finalists Concert, National Concert Hall

For more information and entry forms go to www.newschool.ie/musicforschools

Launch of archive to preserve Arts in Education content and showcase the work of creative organisations in Ireland

The Minister for Education and Skills Joe McHugh T.D. on Monday September 23rd announced the opening of a new free-to-access online archive to showcase creative activity of teachers, artists, researchers and others.

The Arts and Culture in Education Research Repository (ACERR) will be open to people working in education and the public, allowing them an insight into the inspirational ideas being developed for schools.

Some of the work available in the archive includes an essay from the UCC School of Digital Humanities on using Minecraft as a tool for creative engagement in the classroom and a project on using rap music as a creative method in research with children and young people.

The repository also details the experiences of Lisa Cahill, a dance artist in residence at Maynooth University in 2016. The repository has allowed for videos of Lisa’s work to be recorded and uploaded for the public to view.

It is hoped the archive will be expanded as teachers, schools, arts and cultural researchers, academics, colleges and universities and artists offer resources including video, music, dance, drama and art.

The repository will also help to overcome traditional barriers to publication for arts and creative practitioners.

Making the announcement, Minister McHugh said: “This Government is doing huge work to put creativity to the fore of a child’s education and development, not least with the 300 schools in the Creative Ireland programme or the growth of Music Generation.

“The new archive will grow over time and help to cement the great work already being done every day in our classrooms as well as giving researchers and parents and others an insight into how we can inspire the next generation.”

The ACERR has been developed as part of the Creative Ireland Programme and has been supported by the Dormant Accounts Funds.

To access the ACERR click on the link here.

National Gallery of Ireland

Dates: Thursday 10 October 2019, 4pm – 6pm

The National Gallery of Ireland work with all teachers – to encourage confidence and agency in using art as a tool for learning. To support this they collaborate with DES and teaching practitioners to run accredited CPD courses, study days and conferences, and provide a wide variety of resources online.

Join Catherine O’Donnell, Education Officer for Teachers, Schools & Youth, for an evening exploring three very different exhibitions: Bauhaus 100: The Print Portfolios, Sorolla: Spanish Master of Light, The Zurich Portrait Prize, and The Zurich Young Portrait Prize 2019.

Learn more about their current schools programme, how you can utilise the Gallery’s collections and exhibitions for cross-curricular learning, and network with colleagues. Attendees can avail of a free ticket to a lecture about Sorolla by Christopher Riopelle, Neil Westreich Curator of Post-1800 Paintings, the National Gallery, London.

This event is free, but booking is required. To book, follow this link or contact education@ngi.ie

National Gallery of Ireland

Deadline Date: 12th July 2019

The National Gallery of Ireland this year are developing new resources and outreach programming, taking the Gallery off-site to schools across the country that may find it difficult to travel to Dublin. To help shape this programme, the Gallery will be forming a national network of teachers who will guide their research, planning and evaluation.

The Gallery are looking for teachers from across the country to be part of this network. They want the network to be as inclusive as possible, with every county represented, and a good mix of rural and urban, and primary, post-primary and special schools.

The network will primarily exist online, but each year we will hold programme-development workshops at the Gallery, where participants will help co-produce new programming. The Gallery also hope that members will host local events, helping to share learning and resources with their peers.

For further information and details on how to apply please go to www.nationalgallery.ie/schools/teacher-network

Setting the Scene for Erasmus+ Permission to Wonder

My first encounter with Visual Thinking Strategies was at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) in 2001. I was on a public tour of the collection and the guide stood us in front of an artwork by Jackson Pollock and said ‘What is going on in this picture?’. I was challenged by the question. I was also surprised by the long, silent pause that followed it! The group discussion began slowly. All opinions offered by the group were considered by the guide, validated and acknowledged as a valuable contribution to the meaning of the work. But in truth, I was disappointed that the guide did not offer any explanation about history of the artwork. Being a graduate of history of art, I had visited a lot of museums and always enjoyed the experience of being told information and stories about the artwork and the life of the artist. The Pollock work was figurative, with references to native American iconography. I wanted to be told the ‘right answer’ about its intended meaning.

Soon after, I began an internship with SFMOMA and discovered that the discussion-based approach used on public tours was called VTS – Visual Thinking Strategies. I began to think more about visual learning and constructivist pedagogy. I was introduced to the basics of VTS facilitation – three questions – what’s going on in this picture? – what do you see that makes you say that? – what more can we find? – backed up with carefully considered paraphrasing on the part of the facilitator. I then did a piece of action-research with a group of adult learners with literacy difficulties from San Francisco Public Library which deepened my understanding of the role of the art museum as an active learning space which could harness rich opportunities for literacy/language development.

Visual Thinking Strategies is a teaching framework and a practice. It was devised in the late 1980s by Philip Yenawine, art educator and Abigail Housen, cognitive psychologist. At the time, Yenawine was Director of Education at The Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City and was primarily concerned with making museum education programmes more effective. Yenawine and Housen’s research found that most viewers participating in museum programmes (specifically MOMA’s education programmes) were novice viewers, meaning that they had little experience looking at art, and their interpretations were relatively naïve.

VTS is based on three questions that aim to support novice viewers become more observant and more thoughtful about what they are looking at. This approach seems deceptively simple. However, with regular practice and when implemented effectively with a group, by a trained VTS facilitator, the (educational) outcomes are strong. Participants learn to acknowledge that every idea is important as they concentrate on justifying their idea with physical elements present in the work they are observing. This improves observation skills and builds confidence in understanding works of art, giving participants a sense of ownership and empowerment over their opinions about art. VTS involves no art-historical information and it does not require that the VTS facilitator have the answers to questions that arise in the course of discussion. However, it does require educators to accept that they are not teaching aboutart. Rather they are facilitating critical debate and thinking about art and indeed the bigger themes that emerge from an artworks’ powerful mirroring of the world. I have learned from my own training with VTS/USA, that while VTS is a valuable method in my arts in education toolkit, my VTS practice requires consistency and reflection to genuinely support students’ thinking, learning and aesthetic growth.

While art museums are increasingly more open to audience centred approaches in mediating art, historically, this has not always been the case. French sociologist, Pierre Bordieu, went so far as to claim that the “true function” of the art museum was to “reinforce for some the feeling of belonging and for others the feeling of exclusion” and his research highlighted a public perception of art institutions as a type of holy shrine for artwork to be admired but not necessarily understood. [i] The opposite is the agenda for the durational work with VTS at Dublin City Council’s LAB Gallery. As a contemporary art space for experimentation and risk taking in the visual arts in Dublin, The LAB Gallery has played a critical role in giving professional development, time and space for contemporary art, educators and local children in Dublin 1 to collaborate in a shared investigation of VTS. Sheena Barrett, the LAB’s Curator, highlights the importance of VTS in providing a safe space to practice discussions that support our capacity to ‘wonder’ as opposed to moving too quickly to judgement about an artwork and/or complex social issue.

Fast forward to 2017, and Dublin City Council Arts Office is successful in achieving a European Union Erasmus+ KA2 Strategic Partnership Project Funding for Erasmus+ Permission to Wonder.

Artist Claire Halpin, Art Teacher Kieran Gallagher & Liz Coman at the MACA Contemporary Art Museum Alicante

Artist Claire Halpin, Art Teacher Kieran Gallagher and Liz Coman at the MACA Contemporary Art Museum Alicante

Erasmus+ Permission to Wonder aims to widen the network of VTS peers through training and sharing learning. The project focuses on supporting ‘educators’ to develop a Visual Thinking Strategies practice over time. Over the course of this blog series, I hope to introduce you to the Irish educators who participated in Permission to Wonder. Kieran Gallagher is a secondary school art teacher based in St Oliver’s Community College, Drogheda and is a member of the visual arts Junior Cycle training team. Claire Halpin, is a professional artist and art educator and is the co-ordinator of the VTS Neighbourhood Schools Programme led by Central Model Senior School. Anne Moylan is a secondary school art teacher based in Hartstown Community College, Dublin 15. Jane Malone is a primary school teacher based in St Catherine’s National School, Donore Avenue, Dublin 8. Sile McNulty Goodwin is Education Curator at Dublin City Gallery, The Hugh Lane. Kathryn Maguire is a professional artist and art educator.

Assistant Arts Officer Liz Coman, Teacher Anne Moylan, Education Curator Sile McNulty , Teacher Jane Malone and Artist Kathryn Maguire in the David Museum, Copenhagen

[i] As quoted in Stephen E. Weil, Esq, “On a New Foundation: The American Art Museum Reconceived,” in A Cabinet of Curiosities: Inquiries into Museums and Their Prospects (Washington, D.C. : Smithsonian Institution Press, 1995), 106.

Creative Clusters

Deadline Date: 10th May 2019

Minister McHugh invites applications from schools for second year of Creative Clusters initiative as part of the Creative Ireland programme.

Participating schools will help students learn through a lens of creativity

The Minister for Education and Skills Joe McHugh T.D. this week invited applications for Creative Clusters, an initiative taking place as part of Creative Ireland and under the Schools Excellence Fund.

Each school will enjoy access to a specialist facilitator, artist or creative expertise in whatever their own chosen area of interest or theme might be. These resources will help the schools build a programme of learning and activities tailor-made for their students. In addition, clusters will receive up to €7,500 funding to help bring their plans and ideas to fruition.

Making the announcement, Minister McHugh said: “This is another fantastic opportunity for schools to work together on a project of their choice. Schools are given complete freedom to design and develop their own project, with support from a local facilitator and their local education centre.

“I hope that this initiative will help schools enhance creativity in their classrooms. It is important that our children are allowed to express themselves and learn to adapt and collaborate. Opportunities such as Creative Clusters are perfect to give students the opportunity to develop these skills.”

The first year of the Creative Clusters initiative has seen schools around the country work together to develop creative projects and collaborate on new ideas based on their local experience and unique perspective. In Kilkenny, St John’s Senior School, St John’s Junior School and Loreto Secondary School are working together using coding to develop innovative projects and support the transition from primary to post-primary school. This project involves students learning a variety of different coding methods and working on coding projects to develop their problem-solving and logical-thinking skills.

St Michael’s Post Primary and St Joseph’s Secondary School in North County Kerry are also collaborating on an interesting project exploring “the hidden history of North Kerry” using modern technology. This project tasks students with investigating and researching the main tourist sites of the North Kerry region. The students will use modern technology including drones to gather footage which will then be used in a documentary regarding the history of North Kerry. Students will be trained in the appropriate use of technology in the classroom and will also be able to learn valuable skills in the making of the documentary including directing, photography, narrating and producing.

The Schools Excellence Fund is an initiative in the Action Plan for Education. It sets out to encourage and recognize excellence and innovation in our schools. This initiative will help deliver on the Creative Youth pillar of Creative Ireland, which sets out a commitment that every child in Ireland has practical access to tuition, experience and participation in music, drama, arts and coding by 2022.

Applications are available from the Department’s website at the following link: https://www.education.ie/en/ Schools-Colleges/Information/ Curriculum-and-Syllabus/ creative-youth.html

The closing date for applications is May 10th 2019.

The Arts Education Research Group (TCD) and the Association for Drama in Education in Ireland (ADEI)

Dates: 9th & 10th March 2019

The School of Education in Trinity College will host an exciting international conference on drama and theatre in education on March 9th and 10th.
This is a timely event in today’s world, and explores the theme of the social and political in children’s and young people’s drama and theatre. This conference will be of interest to teachers, artists and anyone working at the cutting edge of drama, theatre, education, creative and cultural studies, arts education, sociology and social policy, political science and education, psychology, and related fields.

The conference features an impressive line-up of speakers who will explore the conference theme with reference to their own practices in different parts of the world. With subsidised rates available for attendees (€105,) and a bursary scheme available for full time students (€38 for the 2 day event).

For further information and booking go to www.tcd.ie/Education/Drama-Davis-Conference19/

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative

Deadline: 21st March 2019

Opportunities for schools

Would you like to be a more creative school?
Do you believe the arts help children and young people to thrive in school and in life?
Would you welcome support to develop innovative creative projects in your school?

If your answer is yes to any or all of these questions then read on…

Creative Schools aims to put the arts and creativity at the heart of children’s and young people’s lives.

Participating schools will understand, develop and celebrate their engagement with the arts, empowering them to bring about real change in the way they work. They will draw on the range of resources within their school and wider community, developing new ways of working that reinforce the impact of creativity on student learning, development and well-being.

Schools will be allocated a Creative Associate, who will support the school for a maximum of nine days over the 2019–20 school year. The Creative Associate will support the school to develop a Creative School Plan and will assist in creating or developing links between schools and with artists and arts and cultural organisations locally and/or nationally. In addition, schools can avail of a grant of €2,000 to implement their plans in 2019–20.

All Department of Education and Skills recognised primary and post-primary schools and Youthreach centres are eligible to apply. 150 new schools will be selected to participate in the initiative in the 2019–2020 school year.

For further information, guidelines and to apply go to www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/schools/

Deadline for online applications 21st March 2019

Waltons Music for Schools Competition

Entry Deadline: 22nd March 2019

Running since 2011, the Waltons Music for Schools Competition is a non-profit national event celebrating music in Irish schools run by Waltons New School of Music and generously supported by RTÉ lyric fm. All primary and post-primary schools in the Republic of Ireland are eligible to enter the Competition, and schools from all 26 counties have participated.

Each year’s Competition culminates in a gala Finalists Concert, in which twelve Finalist school groups (six primary and six post-primary) perform before their peers and two distinguished adjudicators. At the end of the Finalists Concert, the adjudicators announce six winning primary and post-primary schools, which receive awards totalling €7,000 worth of vouchers for musical instruments, accessories, books, music technology or PA equipment from Waltons Music, including two First Prizes of €2,000 vouchers.

The Process

School groups create an ensemble piece or song, based on the year’s Competition theme, and performed by an instrumental, vocal or mixed group from the school (maximum 40 performers). The piece or song can be performed by any combination of singers or instrumentalists you choose. This year’s theme is Music=. (What it equals is up to you!)
Schools submit an online entry form and send a video of the group’s performance and a jpeg photograph of the group.
The initial entries are judged by a team of first-round adjudicators, and twelve Finalists (six primary and six post-primary) are selected.
The Finalists are announced by Liz Nolan on RTÉ lyric fm.
The twelve school groups perform in the Finalists Concert at the National Concert Hall, and the six winning schools are announced at the end of the concert.

Friday, 22 March 2019, 5 pm • Entry Deadline
Friday, 29 March • Announcement of Finalists
Tuesday, 7 May • Finalists Concert, National Concert Hall

For more information and entry forms go to www.newschool.ie/musicforschools

Creativity & Change, CIT

If you are hoping to inject some creative change into your 2019 then look no further than the Creativity & Change Masterclass programme. They start off next month, Feb 9th and 10th with a weekend of creative writing.

Creativity and Change masterclasses are an opportunity for inspirational, intensive and in depth engagement over one or two days. Delivered by facilitators with specific expertise and experience, the programme is designed around the identified gaps and expressed interests of practitioners. Each masterclass is a deep dive into a specific method that can be used to explore change-making, global citizenship and social justice. Fees are subsidised by our partner Irish Aid in order to make these courses affordable and accessible to all. They will all take place in inspiring locations around Cork City.

Explore all the masterclasses and register online here: https://www.creativityandchange.ie/master-classes/2019-masterclass-programme/

Make Create Innovate

Deadline: 5pm, Wednesday, January 23rd 2019

Make Create Innovate is an exciting educational start-up working with creative technology across many education sectors. We offer learners the opportunity to make, build, create and explore in hands-on workshops. We are passionate about developing high quality STEAM- based education experiences for learners of all ages in both formal and non-formal educational settings.

They are now inviting expressions of interest to join a panel of freelance facilitators from which we will draw upon for our upcoming series of workshops 2019-2020.

Role Specifics:
Job type: freelance / contract – paid hourly or by the day
Location: Usually Dublin, occasionally outside Dublin
Availability: Usually Monday – Friday, sometimes weekends
The successful candidate must have easy access to Dublin and have own transport

For more information and application details go to makecreateinnovate.ie/jobs
Or email hello@makecreateinnovate.ie

Deadline for receipt of applications is 5pm, Wednesday, January 23rd 2019
Interviews will commence the following week

Kids’ Own has published a brand new book by children experiencing homelessness. The book was launched in partnership with Focus Ireland on Friday 9th November, and offers a rich resource for teachers and schools to explore themes of social justice, children’s rights and SPHE topics. The book was developed by 15 children, aged 8–12, during the summer – through a creative process with writer Mary Branley and artist Maree Hensey –and includes a beautiful mixture of artwork, photography, poetry and personal stories.

To buy a copy, visit Kids’ Own’s website.

Creative Schools: The Start of the Journey – Blog 1

Creative Schools is a pilot initiative of the Creative Ireland Programme. It is led by the Arts Council in conjunction with the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Culture Heritage and the Gaeltacht. The aim of this initiative is to put the arts and creativity at the heart of children and young people’s lives. My job as a Creative Associate is to enhance and shape the place of creativity in schools. I work to inspire, energise and drive schools forward in developing creative opportunities in the school and wider community. I enable schools to understand, develop and celebrate young people’s engagement with the arts and creativity.

Getting to Know Schools:

I work with a number of schools throughout Cork and Kerry. At the beginning of November, I began engaging in meetings with the Creative Schools Coordinators from my designated schools. There are a series of objectives I aim to achieve in these meetings. Initially, we go through the Creative Schools Planning Framework. We then begin to discuss the first step of the programme: ‘Understand’. This allows schools to understand their current engagement with the arts and creativity. It also enables them to assess the creative interests of students and the resources which are available in the school and wider community. We talk about the school’s current involvement with the arts and artistic areas which they wish to enhance. Through this meeting I develop a better, more thorough understanding of the school as a whole.

In each school I run a workshop with students on ‘The Voice of Young People’. All creative associates were lucky enough to have the opportunity to undergo training in Hub na nÓg. This is a national centre of excellence which supports us to give children and young people a voice in decision making. I use the Lundy Model to ensure the voice of young people is a priority. This model indicates that young people should be provided with a safe space and appropriate information to enable them to express their views. It is also important to make sure that their views are communicated with someone with the responsibility to listen, taken seriously and acted on where appropriate.

Workshop:

Giving young people the opportunity to actively participate in a workshop is a great way to hear their views. Let me give you a brief insight into ‘The Voice of Young People’ workshop. I use two different methods in this workshop called: ‘Open Space Method’ and ‘World Café Method’. The‘Open Space Method’ involves me asking student three questions as follows: 1) What is creativity? 2) What kind of creative things do you currently do? 3) What kind of creative things would you like to do? Students write their answers on post-its and stick them on three different parts of the wall. Students then divide these answers into sections according to what kind of arts activity they are e.g. music, dance etc. This leads to a very effective visual portrayal of student’s artistic interests. We then move on to ‘World Café Method’. Students are provided with a poster on which they are asked a series of questions containing blanks: 1) What is …..? 2) What kind of …… activities have you done/do you do? 3) What kind of ….. activities would you like to do? The young people use the arts activities they came up with in the previous exercise to fill in the blanks in these questions. Students then design the poster using a series of words and illustrations in order to answer these questions. I like using these methods as students take ownership of the kinds of arts activities they would like to explore and they are decision makers from the offset. I also give students surveys which are specific to their age and ability which allow them to express their opinion on their experience of the arts. These are important to give me concrete data to work from. If you want to know what young people want the best thing is to ask them. This workshop enables me to do that.

Further action I have taken in my role as Creative Associate is to create links between the school and local arts opportunities. So far, I have met people such as the local arts officer, programme manager from arts centre etc. These links are important to make to ensure the sustainability of the Creative Schools Programme.

The next step for my work as Creative Associate is to develop a Creative Schools Plan schools. Finally, schools will celebrate their experience with the arts and creativity by sharing their experience as a school, community and beyond.

Onwards & Upwards:

I firmly believe that providing young people with improved, sustainable arts opportunities will benefit them now and into the future. I am delighted to be working as part of this exciting new programme which allows us to make a positive difference in the lives of young people through the arts & creativity.

The Glucksman

Date: 12th January 2019, 10am – 1pm

Artists have long used visual methods of expression to consider and interrogate personal experiences and challenge mental health stigma.

Join curators and artists as we explore the new Glucksman digital toolkit for educators – Art and Mental Health. In this masterclass, teachers will investigate ways to engage their students in artistic processes that creatively encounter, explore and understand our mental health using artworks from the University College Cork art collection.

The new toolkits are designed for educators from Primary to Third level and uses the artworks of The Project Twins to look at projects about art and mental health that can be re-imagined in the classroom.

The Art Teachers Masterclass is run as part of the First Fortnight 2019 programme. First Fortnight utilises arts and culture to challenge mental health stigma while supporting some of Ireland’s most vulnerable people through creative therapies.
Cost €25 – Booking required. For online booking go to www.eventbrite.ie/e/teachers-masterclass-art-mental-health-tickets-52432269329

For further details go to www.glucksman.org/discover/education/teachers or www.firstfortnight.ie/

Or contact + 353 21 4901844 / education@glucksman.org

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative

Autumn has been a busy time for Creative Schools with lots of focus on training and development. The team have been meeting with and training 47 Creative Associates and over 350 representatives from the 150 pilot schools. The commitment shown by schools in the training to putting the arts and creativity at the heart of school life was very obvious and they are excited about the possibilities that learning in and through the arts will bring to their respective school communities. A key aim of the initiative is to give children and young people a central role in the process, to support this Creative Associates were given a day of training from the amazing team at Hub na nÓg – Young Voices in Decision-making, Department of Children and Youth Affairs. Over the coming weeks Creative Associates will meet with their schools and begin the first stages of their work together.

For more information go to www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/

To view the full list of the 150 schools selected to participate in the pilot phase of Creative Schools go to www.artscouncil.ie/pilotschoolslist

The Glucksman, University College Cork

Dates: Saturday 13 October 2018, 10am -1pm

Join artist Clare McLaughlin for a non-visual exploration of art at The Glucksman, University College Cork. This masterclass for educators of all backgrounds will provide entry points to the understanding of artwork for students who are visually impaired or blind.

Cost €25. Booking required.

For further details go to www.glucksman.org/discover/education/teachers

Or contact + 353 21 4901844 / education@glucksman.org.

Online ticket bookings at https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/art-teachers-masterclass-tickets-49381187461

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative

Chosen from over 400 applicants, 150 schools across Ireland will participate in the new Creative Schools pilot which aims to put the arts and creativity at the heart of children and young people’s lives. The schools chosen include primary schools, secondary schools, Youthreach centres, special schools, DEIS schools, co-educational schools, rural, urban, single-sex and Irish-language medium schools. Their work will begin in the new school year and run through to the summer of 2019.

The enthusiastic response to the call for applications suggests just how vital the arts and creativity are within schools across the country. In their application, schools had to explain how their participation would support learning and development in the arts and creativity, their capacity to engage as a school and their plans for ensuring that children and young people play an active role in developing, implementing and evaluating their work as a Creative School. Through the programme, the Arts Council is engaging with children and young people across the country to develop their creativity and linking them to the arts and creative infrastructure in their locality and nationally.

Schools selected for the pilot will benefit from a package of support which includes funding and expertise from a Creative Associate to help them to understand, develop and celebrate the impact of the arts and creativity on school life. With the support of their Creative Associate, schools will develop a Creative School Plan and design a unique programme that responds to the needs and priorities of their school. This process will support children and young people to challenge themselves in new ways, to gain in confidence and to take a more active role in learning.

The Creative Schools team within the Arts Council will be travelling the country in September and October training and inducting Creative Associates, School Co-ordinators and other teachers from each of the 150 schools.

This innovative pilot is a cornerstone of the Creative Youth Plan, an initiative of the Creative Ireland Programme, led by the Arts Council and in collaboration with the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and the Department of Education and Skills.

Future opportunities for Creative Schools will be included in the Arts Council’s newsletter which you can subscribe to at the following link: www.artscouncil.ie/about-us/newsletter/. They will also be posted on their website where a full list of the 150 schools participating in the pilot can also be found: www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/pilot-schools/

Cartoon Saloon

Screenings running Nationwide throughout May/June 2018

Cartoon Saloon are delighted to announce a series of upcoming screenings for schools of ‘The Breadwinner’, a powerful story of hope and resilience set on the streets of Afghanistan. The screenings are accompanied by a comprehensive education pack containing questions and activities to guide your class through the film.

THE BREADWINNER is a powerful story of hope and resilience set on the streets of Afghanistan and is based on the beloved book of the same name by Deborah Ellis which is currently on the curriculum. The heroine is Parvana, an 11-year-old girl whose family struggles for a better life under Taliban rule. Parvana disguises herself as a boy to help her family survive following the wrongful arrest of her father. Twomey’s powerful film drew the attention of UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie, who is an Executive Producer.

There a number of upcoming screenings suitable for schools for ages 10+, with a comprehensive education pack containing questions and activities to guide your class through the film. The education pack can be downloaded directly here and is a free resource for teachers.

The key points of interest in The Breadwinner include:

Arts education in the form of Cartoon Saloon’s beautiful animation
Social and personal health education reflected in Parvana’s resilience and good actions;
Diversity and inclusion explored through the representation of Afghan people and women in Afghanistan;
Politics, history and folklore referenced in stories of Afghanistan;
Language, reading and writing is represented as important skills in The Breadwinner. The students will also have the opportunity to discuss their feelings and opinions through the activities in the education pack.
The Breadwinner is available in English and in Irish language and has received a 12A certificate. It is recommended for Senior Primary Level and Junior Secondary Level students.

There is a full list of cinemas screening The Breadwinner online here: https://bit.ly/2ImyBmT

To book please fill out this booking form: https://goo.gl/forms/ EGO92EbalUaoVFmB2 or contact your cinema directly. Ticket prices are subject to the cinema’s school prices.

For any further queries, please contact Sarah Ahern, Schools Coordinator on thebreadwinnerfilm@gmail.com or ring The Breadwinner Team on 01 6185032.

Ombudsman for Children’s Office

The Ombudsman for Children’s Office is celebrating 25 years since Ireland ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child making a promise to all children and young people to prioritise their rights and hear their voices.

To mark this significant anniversary a national invitation has been extended across Irish society including schools and their communities of staff and students to join with in the celebrations, raising awareness and understanding of children’s rights and listening to children and young people ensuring their voices are highlighted and heard. The aim is to provide creative and innovative ways to mark the 25th Anniversary and to enable educators to start the ‘Rights’ conversation in school – across many subject areas.

How to Get Involved

Get Animated About Rights
The OCO has teamed up with the Irish Animation Industry in a unique way to invite young people to create an image of the right that means most to them and have the opportunity to have it animated by one of Ireland’s leading animators.

Five winning artworks will be chosen by a panel of judges (including Oscar nominee 2018 Nora Twomey ‘The Breadwinner’, Best Animated Feature) for animation and winners will be offered an exclusive ‘behind-the-scenes’ tour of the hugely successful Brown Bag Studios (home of Give Up Yer Aul Sins, Doc McStuffins, Angelas Christmas and Octonauts). The animations will feature permanently on the OCO website.

Closing date is 16th June.

The Rights Museum
A cross-sector collaboration between OCO, National Museum of Ireland and Collapsing Horse Theatre. From September 2017 the OCO has been piloting this new education resource with Larkin Community College in Dublin (the first Rights Museum exhibition launched in March 2018 in the National Museum, Collins Barracks and runs until 29 June 2018). The Rights Museum resource will be available online on www.oco.ie from September 2018 inviting Junior Cert students to explore the UNCRC, choose and curate objects representing rights to exhibit in a pop-up Museum in school or in the local community.

The process of creating a Rights Museum offers schools opportunities for co-curricular co-operation, increased professional collaboration and students possibilities to apply learning in different contexts, engage in research, be creative and learn new skills. Collapsing Horse and Larkin’s pilot of the resource will be available as a short video piece.

Exhibition runs until 29th June

Check out Dan Colley, Collapsing Horse Theatre director guest blog series for the Arts in Education Portal on the project Rights Museum Project – artsineducation.ie/en/guestblog/dan+colley

Act Your Rights

Take part in the national ‘Act your Rights Drama’ competition in partnership with The Abbey Theatre.

Running until 30th May the OCO invite teachers and students to complete the ‘Act your Rights’ online resource. Make a short play, email a 3 minute taster and enter the competition to get the opportunity to perform on stage in the Peacock in September 2018.

The ‘Act your Rights’ online resource available here is a joint collaboration between the Ombudsman for Children’s Office and the Abbey Theatre. Act Your Rights aims to help children to become more aware of their rights and explore how rights are reflected in their everyday lives. It offers an innovative and enjoyable way to talk about rights with 4-6th class students through discussion, drama and art activities.

Closing date is 30th June

For more information go to www.abbeytheatre.ie/act-your-rights-competition/

Children’s Rights, Children’s Writing

The OCO were delighted to collaborate with Fighting Words and The Irish Times on a 25th Anniversary publication inviting 25 young people from a variety of ages and backgrounds to choose a right and respond to it. The pieces reflect their views of their ‘rights in reality’ and are available for research (or inspiration!) at www.oco.ie/childrens-rights/un-convention/celebrating-25-years-of-the-uncrc/projects-we-are-working-on/

The OCO have also created a special 25th Anniversary Information pack with materials to help organise your own events and activities, including a summary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, suggestions, a ready-made presentation and the 25th logo go to www.oco.ie/childrens-rights/un-convention/celebrating-25-years-of-the-uncrc/celebrate-the-uncrc-with-us/

For more information on all the events go to www.oco.ie/childrens-rights/un-convention/celebrating-25-years-of-the-uncrc/projects-we-are-working-on/

The Hunt Museum

Until 31st May 2018

As part of the Hunt Museum’s Sybil exhibition programme, primary and post-primary schools are invited to take part in a series of curriculum linked workshops at the Museum. These will enable students to examine Sybil’s highly innovative use of traditional Irish fabrics, including linen, lace, tweed and her design processes.

Sybil Connolly was the first Irish female designer to become successful internationally. She took her inspiration from Ireland and its people, creating “clothes using Irish fabrics made by Irish hands.” The Friends of Limerick Lace will introduce students to Limerick and Carrickmacross lace which are used in her fashion designs. Students will then learn how to create some basic stitches.
Using the Past Projections Future Fashion display in the exhibition students will also create a Sybil inspired t-shirt design which must give consideration to the importance of technology and ethics in contemporary fashion.

Booking essential.
For further information go to www.huntmuseum.com/sybil-workshops/

Email education@huntmuseum.com or call 061 312 833

The Glucksman

Date: 10am – 1pm, Saturday 12th May 2018

Join curator Tadhg Crowley and artist Inma Pavon to look at projects that can be re-imagined in your classroom. This season’s masterclass will look at learning beyond the classroom and how educators can capitalize on this when designing their own lesson plans. Inma Pavon will introduce participants to movement, dance and performance exercises that can be developed for students of all ages and abilities.

Participants will receive a certificate of attendance from the Centre of Continued Professional Development at University College Cork.

10am – 1pm, Saturday 12th May 2018

€25. Booking required. To book go to www.eventbrite.ie/e/art-teachers-masterclass-tickets

For more information go to www.glucksman.org

Department of Education and Skills & Creative Ireland Programme

Deadline 11^th May 2018

Creative Clusters is a pilot initiative of the Department of Education and Skills, led by, and in partnership with, the 21 full-time Teacher Education Centres (ATECI) and funded through the Schools Excellence Fund – Creative Clusters Initiative.

Creative Clusters is an important initiative of Creative Youth – A Plan to Enable the Creative Potential of Every Child and Young Person (View the full Plan here), which was published in December 2017 as part of the Creative Ireland Programme. The Creative Youth Plan aims to give every child practical access to tuition, experience and participation in art, music, drama and coding by 2022.

A Creative Cluster will typically consist of between three and five schools collaborating on the design, implementation, evaluation and dissemination of an innovative arts and creative learning project which supports them to address a common issue or challenge.

Each Creative Cluster will receive funding of €2,500 for one year to implement their project in the 2018-2019 school year. It is anticipated that all schools in the cluster will have a say in how the budget is allocated and spent to support the implement of the project

Paid substitution will be provided for the Regional Cluster Training event and two/three local cluster meetings.

How To Apply

Schools can apply as part of a cluster which may be an existing network of schools or a potential cluster. Each cluster must nominate a lead school and a Creative Cluster Coordinator. Substitution costs to the equivalent of 1 day per term for the duration of the pilot project will be provided for the Lead School Creative Cluster Coordinator

Schools can apply individually and if successful, they will be placed in a cluster with other applicant schools. The local Teacher Education Centre will have a key role in identifying and supporting a Creative Cluster for their local area.

The closing date for receipt of applications is 11^th May 2018

To download the application from and guidelines go to www.education.ie/en/Schools-Colleges/Information/Curriculum-and-Syllabus/creative-clusters.html

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative

Opportunities for schools to apply to participate in the Creative Schools pilot open on Tuesday 20th February, 2018. Selected schools will have the opportunity to deepen the impact the arts and creativity can make on school life and on the lives of children and young people. Schools selected for the pilot will be partnered with a Creative Associate, who will support them in planning and implementing a creative programme that can be sustained in their school. Creative Associates will be artists, creative practitioners and educators who will help schools to draw on the range of opportunities within their school and wider community. Each school will also receive €2,000 to help them implement their programme.

Following an application and selection process 150 schools will participate for the 2018/19 school year across Ireland. All Department of Education and Skills recognised primary and post-primary schools and Youthreach Centres will be eligible to apply. A diversity of school settings will be selected, with a strong focus on inclusion. The long-term objective is that all schools will have the opportunity to participate. Schools are encouraged to get on line and register today. Demand for places is expected to be high and this is an opportunity schools are not going to want to miss.

What schools should do now:

Step 1 – Get online to find out more www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/schools/
Step 2 – Register your school as an organisation/group today
Step 3 – Apply online between 20th February and 22nd March 2018

Applications for Creative Associate opportunities are also now open – go to artsineducation.ie/en/2018/02/12/creative-associate-opportunities-with-creative-schools/

For more information please contact the Creative Schools Team at www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/team/

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative

Deadline: 5pm 5th March, 2018

Scoileanna Ildánacha /Creative Schools is seeking a team of Creative Associates to support the delivery of the pilot initiative. This is an exciting opportunity for artists, creative practitioners, individuals working in organisations in the arts and cultural sector and for teachers currently working in schools who have a creative practice.

Creative Associates have a deep understanding of the arts and creativity and its potential to transform the lives of children and young people. They are dynamic agents for change uniquely placed to form sustainable partnerships between teachers, school staff, learners and other partners. They will work with a number of schools, inspire and energise them to create new connections and approaches that will develop and sustain arts and creative practices in their schools.

Scoileanna Ildánacha / Creative Schools is a flagship initiative of the Creative Ireland Programme to enable the creative potential of every child. Creative Schools is led by the Arts Council in partnership with the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.

For more information on the role of Creative Associate and how to apply please visit www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/creative- associates/. Deadline for applications is 5pm, 5th March 2018

Applications for schools will open on 20 February. More information is available on www.artscouncil.ie/creative-schools/schools/

Audi Dublin International Film Festival

21st February – 4th March 2018

Fantastic Flix, ADIFF’s strand for young people aged 4-16, returns for its third thrilling year with the support of Cheestrings and featuring an exciting programme of international films for school groups.

Director of Collapsing Horse Theatre, Dan Colley, will give post-screening talks at both At Eye Level (12+), a father and son reunion tale, and Liyana (12+), a beautiful Swazi documentary with animated elements about a girl who goes to great lengths to save her younger brothers from harm. Director Meikeminne Clinckspoor will attend two screenings of Cloudboy (9+), an enchanting film about Niilas, who is sent to visit his mother in the wonderful forests of Lapland and learns about the Sami people.

Nora Twomey, director of the much-anticipated The Breadwinner, will introduce a screening of children’s classic My Neighbour Totoro. Brown Bag Films’ Vampirina (4+) and the Fantastic Flix Shorts (4+) are sure to delight the youngest budding cinemagoers. Actress Wilma Lundgren will attend the festival for her film, Room 213, a seriously spooky Swedish mystery. Other highlights include the terrific animations from France, The Big Bad Fox & Other Tales (6+), and Japan, Mary and the Witch’s Flower (6+).

The Fantastic Flix Children’s Jury, a collaboration with The Ark’s Children’s Council and the Irish Film Classification Office, returns for a second year, as do a fascinating choice of workshops in collaboration with The Ark.

Schools Programme

Primary Level

My Neighbour Totoro – Thursday 22nd February – Light House 1 – 11am – Age Recommendation 5+

Cloudboy – Thursday 1st March – Omniplex Rathmines – 10am & Friday 2nd March – Light House 3 – 11.30am – Age Recommendation 9+

At Eye Level – Thursday 1st March – Movies @ Dundrum – 1pm – Age Recommendation 12+

Vampirina – Friday 2nd March – Light House 3 – 10am – Age Recommendation 4+

Room 213 – Friday 2nd March – Omniplex Rathmines – 11am – Age Recommendation 12+

Post – Primary Level

At Eye Level – Thursday 1st March – Movies@Dundrum – 1pm – Age Recommendation 12+

Room 213 – Friday 2nd March – Omniplex Rathmines – 11am – Age Recommendation 12+

Liyana – Friday 2nd March – Movies@Dundrum – 12.30pm – Age Recommendation 13+

Career’s Day – Thursday 1st March – IFI – 10am – Tickets €5 – Age Recommendation 14+

This one day event, aimed at Senior Year Secondary Level students will unpack some of the many di erent lm and television departments and skills required for a career in the lm industry. There will be insights from sparks and foley artists, script supervisors and VFX supervisors, and will feature some of the Irish lm industry’s most talented artists including Darragh O’Connell (Brown Bag Films), Louise Kiely (Casting Agent), Piers McGrail (Cinematographer), Steven Fanagan (Sound Editor & Composer).
—
The Career’s Day is a joint initiative from
Audi Dublin International Film Festival, the Irish Film Institute, Irish Film Board and Broadcasting Authority Ireland.

For more information go to www.diff.ie

Roscommon Arts Centre

This spring the Roscommon Arts Centre have planned a host of children’s events for families, schools and crèches to enjoy. We hope you will come along and join us in some fun!

Roadworks

In 2016 theatre maker Paul Curley was awarded Roscommon Arts Centre’s “First Edition Commission” to create new work for young audiences as part of the Bookworms Festival and “Roadworks” was conceived. Since then, the production has enjoyed further periods of development with the support of Theatre Lovett and Irish Theatre Institute and this season, we are delighted to welcome it back home as a fully fledged show.

From the team that brought you BAKE! a brand new show is coming to town…and you’re invited to be amongst the first to see it. Designer Ger Clancy and performer Paul Curley present a work-in-progress of their innovative new theatre show for young audiences called ROADWORKS. In collaboration with theatre artist and director Andy Manley, with music by Jack Cawley and movement by Emma O’Kane, ROADWORKS digs up an exciting new telling of a very old tale. Mac the road engineer is digging at the crossroads until unexpectedly he finds a rare and beautiful artifact. Will he turn it in or will he keep it all for himself? A visual feast with road-signs, music and…..a wolf!

THURSDAY 18TH JANUARY | 10am & 12pm | Free Admission | Suitable for ages 4 – 7

The House of Oedipus – Roscommon County Youth Theatre

An epic Greek Tragedy following the story of one man’s family who are doomed from the beginning. Are pride and stubbornness the cause of Oedipus’ downfall or did he commit some unknown sin against the Gods? He committed a crime but did not know it was a crime, was he guilty? Bringing four Greek tragedies together, this full-length play brings us three generations, two countries, five kings, two plagues and one war.

THURSDAY 19th & FRIDAY 20th | 11am | €6 & FRIDAY 20th & SATURDAY 21st APRIL | 8pm | €12/€10

U00, Mee, Weee – Baboró International Arts Festival for Children & Branar Téatar do Pháistí

Uoo and Mee walk the same, talk the same, do everything the same…until one day one of them decides to do something different!! This playful show explores what happens when things change in a humorous tale of finding your feet and having the courage to be different. This non verbal show is directed by Lali Morris & Marc Mac Lochlainn with original music score by Michael Chang.

WEDNESDAY 7th FEBRUARY | 10am & 12pm | €5 I Ages 3 – 6

White by Andy Manley – Catherine Wheels Theatre Company – Early Years Event

Welcome to the beautifully strange world of White. Full of birdsong and birdhouses, it gleams and dazzles and shines in the night. Two friends look after the birds and make sure the eggs stay safe. We watch, we help. The world is bright, ordered and white. But high up in the trees, all is not white. Colour appears. First red… then yellow… then blue…White is a playful, highly visual show for little ones – a perfect first time theatre experience.

TUESDAY 27th FEBRUARY | 10am & 12pm | €5 I Ages 2 – 4 year olds

For more information and bookings go to www.roscommonartscentre.ie

Creative Ireland

On the 7th December Creative Ireland delivered on one of it’s key promises by publishing Creative Youth: a Plan to enable the Creative Potential of Every Child and Young Person. This now represents the core work programme for Pillar 1 of the Creative Ireland Programme. Michael O’Reilly from Creative Ireland discusses the plan development and implementation.

Michael O’Reilly – Creative Ireland

Developing the plan was an interesting and not entirely pain-free process: it is no secret that the 2018 budget didn’t allow as much scope for new investment as had been hoped. But in the end, a creative engagement between the Department of Culture Heritage and the Gaeltacht, the Department of Education and Skills and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs produced a plan with a long-term vision – cultural and creative education for all – a strategic approach to the further development of pillar 1, and 18 implementation actions.

The two headline actions are implementation of Scoileanna Ildánacha / Creative Schools – an Arts Council led project, which is a development of the Arts in Education Charter initiative, Arts Rich Schools – ARIS, and the extension of Music Generation countrywide during the lifetime of the Programme.

There are several entirely new ideas in the plan but in the main it builds on existing initiatives. For example there will be a significant research project, and a culture and creativity-mapping project, but both will build on existing work.

From our point of view the most encouraging aspect of the plan is the acceptance of the long term vision of cultural and creative education for all: Cultural education that enables young people to explore and understand their own and other people’s cultural assumptions, viewpoints, beliefs and values, and Creative education that uses the innate creative skills of children and young people as a powerful instrument of learning.

The plan is not static. A Pillar 1 expert advisory group will be appointed shortly which will guide the further development of pillar 1 and also monitor the implementation of Creative Youth. A cross-departmental working group and a senior officials group will ensure that implementation stays on track.

We now have a clear agenda and cross-government support for its implemenation. The next few years will be both testing and exciting.

Click here to download the full report

The Glucksman, UCC

Date: 10am -1pm, Saturday 24^th February, 2018

Art can help us understand and address difficult issues. Artists have long used visual methods of expression to consider and interrogate societal problems such as homelessness and discrimination. In this masterclass, teachers will investigate ways to engage their students in artistic processes that creatively explore global and local challenges. Join curator Tadhg Crowley and artist Cassandra Eustace to look at projects about art and social change that can be re-imagined in your classroom.

€25. Booking required.

For more information go to www.glucksman.org.

To book go to Eventbrite

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership

8th & 9th November 2017

Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership, as part of its 20-year anniversary celebrations, will host 2 days of sectoral activities, in partnership with Dublin Book Festival and The Ark, exploring the value of publishing with children, and interrogating how we can support children to be seen and heard within our literature, culture and society. With the ambitious vision of current policy to reach all children through cultural tuition by 2022, Kids’ Own seeks to ask how we make space for quality and depth of engagement to support children as cultural makers and creators in their own right.

8th November 2017
Round table discussion (10.30am – 4pm)
Chaired by Martin Drury

Through a series of presentations and discussions hosted by Kids’ Own Creative Director, Orla Kenny and Kids’ Own co-founder Victoria Ryle, the day will involve explorations and case studies of the Kids’ Own archive, followed by discussions involving a chaired panel of guest speakers, and focused conversations, where participants will be invited to explore and interrogate how we make space for quality and depth of engagement, the role of the professional artist working with children and young people, and how we give children’s work greater visibility and recognition within mainstream culture.

This event is free but booking is essential.

9th November 2017

A day of practical exploration and creativity
Workshops for artists, teachers and arts education practitioners

11am – 1pm
All That We Are: An artist-led public participatory workshop with Simon Spain (Australia)
Kids’ Own co-founder and artist Simon Spain returns to Ireland to share his practice with Irish artists, teachers and practitioners. Through this practical workshop where participants will make figures from wood and plaster that will be joined to create a gathering, Simon will discuss key elements of his current practice-based PhD enquiry about working as a socially engaged artist. The work is centred around a strong theory of collaborative making environments that create liminal spaces for individual input while leading to a shared outcome celebrating difference.

Workshop fee: €10

2pm – 5pm
Print and book-making workshop with Alain Regnier (Belgium)
In this workshop, printmaker and art teacher (and founder of Motamo International Biennial of Children’s Books) Alain Regnier shares his way of working and will support participants to make books that include print and text, inspired by the work of his second-level students in Belgium. Copies of the books made during this workshop will be taken back to Belgium to be shared with a European audience.

Workshop fee: €10

For all bookings go to ark.ie/events/view/childrens-voices-are-we-listening.

For more information go to kidsown.ie/childrens-voices-listening/

13th December 2017

On December 13th The Mansion House will play host to celebrate 120 years of school choirs in a special event ‘It’s the Taking Part that Counts’.

The event will celebrate and highlight the positive impact of school-based choral participation on both choir members and the wider school community and will feature prize-winning Irish school choirs alongside a community outreach school choir formed ‘from scratch’ specially for the celebration. This ‘scratch choir’ involves one of Ireland’s DEIS schools – St. Vincent’s GNS, Dublin who is being trained by Wesley College choral conductor Helen Doyle for this their debut concert, and beyond. Joining them will be the Feis Ceoil prize-winning school choirs, along with members of two of Ireland’s leading professional choirs.

Additional choirs ‘from scratch’ will attend the event as they begin their year-long journey, culminating in the celebration of Christmas in their own schools in 2018. With a keynote address from Assistant Professor in Education Marita Kerin, Trinity College, the event will celebrate school-based choral activity while demonstrating its powerfully transformative effects on school communities, thus encouraging every school in Ireland to get involved in choral singing.

The Mansion House event, ‘It’s the Taking Part that Counts’, takes place on Wednesday, 13^th December at 2.30pm. Please lend your support to this project and attend this choral celebration of our school choirs.

For more information find go to @schoolchoirs120 on Facebook or email schoolchoirs120@gmail.com

To book tickets go to www.eventbrite.ie/e/its-the-taking-part-that-counts-tickets

FeisCeoil-120

Music Generation

Music Generation has announced the 9 new areas of Ireland that will receive philanthropic funding from U2 and The Ireland Funds to create increased access to non-mainstream music tuition for children and young people in their local area.

Following an open national call for applications earlier this year, the 9 new areas selected for participation are: Cavan/Monaghan; Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown; Galway City; Galway County; Kilkenny; Leitrim; Roscommon; Waterford and Wexford. The programmes will be managed and delivered by local Music Education Partnerships in each area. Operating on a 50/50 matched funding basis, these new Music Education Partnerships will receive an investment of €5m raised by U2 and The Ireland Funds, and will also generate a further combined €5m in local investment over the next five years.

Ireland’s national music education programme, Music Generation was initiated by Music Network in 2010, and is co-funded by U2, The Ireland Funds, the Department of Education and Skills and Local Music Education Partnerships.

For more information go to www.musicgeneration.ie/news/article/music-generation-announces-9-new-areas-of-ireland-selected-for-partici/

We welcome educators from all backgrounds to join us for a curatorial tour of our exhibitions Now Wakes the Sea and Deep Maps. The evening will include light refreshments and an opportunity to discuss upcoming Glucksman projects and events.

Wednesday 11^th October 2017, 4pm

Free. Booking required.

Please contact education@glucksman.org to register.

Join Curator of Education Tadhg Crowley and artist Carol-Anne Connolly for a morning masterclass that looks at art projects ready to be re-imagined in your classroom. This season the masterclass will look at techniques and approaches to helping students develop personal projects and establish individual ideas through sketchbooks and drawing exercises.

10am – 1pm, Saturday 21 October 2017 – €25.

Booking required.

Please contact education@glucksman.org for booking or for further information

Trinity College Dublin is calling on the nation to get creative this autumn and be inspired by one of Ireland’s greatest cultural treasures, the Book of Kells. Get your pens and paint brushes out, and write a poem, short story or create a drawing or painting based on the images from the world’s most famous medieval manuscript. Our judges will be looking for modern and innovative interpretations of the Book of Kells from participants. There are fantastic prizes to be won for individuals, schools, clubs and groups nationwide.

Closing date for entries Thursday 30 November 2017

To find out more click here

The month of October at Roscommon Arts Centre means it’s Lollipops Children’s Festival time! We’ve planned a host of children’s events here at the arts centre for families, schools and crèches to enjoy. From theatre performances, music events, workshops, and exhibitions, the month of October is all about our youngest audience members! We hope you will come along and join us in some Lollipops fun!

Four Go Wild In Wellies – A whimsical adventure featuring bobble hats, scarves, tents that have a life of their own and, of course, lots of fun in wellies! FRIDAY 6^th OCTOBER 10am, €5, Ages 3 – 5

The Locksmiths Song – Set in the dusty world of an old locksmith’s shop in this tale is full of action and adventure. TUESDAY 17^th OCTOBER, 10am, €5 Ages: 7+

They Called Her Vivaldi – Family favourites Theatre Lovett return with this upbeat comedy-adventure. WEDNESDAY 25^th OCTOBER, 10am & 12pm, €5, Ages: 7+ and Adults of All Ages

And coming up in November!

The Ugly Duckling – In a nest at the edge of a pond a flock of baby ducklings find an enormous egg in their midst and here our story begins…. of the most unusual duckling the pond has ever seen. TUESDAY 28^th NOVEMBER, 10am & 11.45am, €5, Ages 3+

For more information on shows, click here

Make Create Innovate

Date: 7 & 8 October 2017 at The Digital Depot, James St, Dublin 8

In collaboration with The Digital Hub, Make Create Innovate offer this hands-on, jargon-free two day workshop that will introduce you to physical computing using conductive materials, MaKey MaKey and Arduino with some basic sensors. Our artist-maker-educator approach is all about tinkering with art, electronic and everyday materials to learn through experimentation and discovery.

By the end of the weekend you will have a basic understanding of the principals involved in easy-to-make light and sound responsive systems and the materials required. You will work in groups to create an electronically triggered soundscape or an interactive environment/artwork.

This workshop is for creative practitioners and educators, who want to do something different with non-screen based technology; whether it’s programme a touch-activated sound effects on the theatre stage or design a cross-curricular STEAM project at school. It is especially suitable for anyone involved in engaged arts that support arts participation and/or invite audience interaction.

For more information click here

‘Virtually There’ Project – Opportunity for Action Researcher

Kids’ Own is pleased to invite applications from suitably qualified individuals for the role of ‘Virtually There’ Action Researcher.

Kids’ Own seeks an Action Researcher to join the ‘Virtually There’ project, which takes place in Northern Ireland. This is a long-term piece of work, running until 2020. This phase of this project is funded through a ‘More and Better’ Grant from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation’s Arts-based Learning Fund.

Deadline for receipt of applications is Weds 23rd August at 5pm. Shortlisted applicants for the post of Action Researcher will be invited to interview on 31^st August or 1^st September 2017, with a view to starting work in September. The successful applicant will be required to attend a two-day creative planning meeting in Belfast on 28^th and 29^th September 2017.

More information and a full brief for the role can be found here

The Arts Council’s Creative Schools Initiative

The Arts Council is establishing a project team to lead Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools – a partnership initiative with the Department of Education and Skills. This initiative is being developed in the context of the Creative Ireland programme 2017–2022 and with the support of the Department of Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs.

Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools is an ambitious national initiative, which sets out to understand, develop and celebrate the arts in Irish schools, and to foster children and young people’s creativity and participation in the arts as an integral part of their education in Ireland.

The project team will be based in the Arts Council, 70 Merrion Square, Dublin 2.

The Project Lead will be procured by an EU public tender process and will be responsible for the development and implementation of the first phase of this important national initiative, and future phases, subject to agreement.

In addition, up to two Advisers will be recruited on a secondment basis from the Department of Education and Skills on an initial one year basis. These secondees will be qualified and registered teachers. A Primary and Early Childhood Education Adviser and a Post-Primary Education Adviser will work alongside the Project Lead and will contribute to the design and development of the Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools initiative as it relates to primary and early childhood education; and to post-primary education respectively.

Further information

For more information on the Project Lead tender and required services, please visit the Arts Council’s tenders page.

For more information on the roles of Primary and Early Childhood Education Adviser and Post-Primary Education Adviser please visit the Arts Council’s jobs page.

(Note: Scoileanna Ildánacha/Creative Schools is a working title. This initiative was formerly known as ARIS/Arts Rich Schools.)

Are you a teacher in Primary or Post-Primary education?

Are you doing a summer course this July or August?

Then we are looking for you! We would love to hear from teachers who are taking part in a Summer Course and would like to document their learning throughout the week, as part of our Guest Blogger series.

If you are interested in being a guest blogger for the Arts in Education Portal then contact us at editor@artsineducation.ie for more information.

The Creativity and Change programme targets educators, change-makers, activists, artists, community workers, adult educators, youth workers, volunteers and anyone who is interested how creative engagement can nurture global citizenship and empathic action around local and global justice themes.

This is a Level 9 CIT Special Purpose Award offered over 8 weekends of the academic year, September – May.

Are you passionate about change?
Do you believe that you can make a difference in the world?
Do you believe that we need creativity to think in new ways about the challenges that face the world?
Are you curious about how creative processes and learning environments can transform how people engage with the world around them?
Do you want to build skills to bring others on a journey of transformation and growth as global citizens?

This course is for you if you can say ‘Yes!’ to these questions.

Find out more about the Accredited award, hear the stories of previous participants and how to connect to CIT online application here

Find out more about the Creativity & Change programme and what else it has to offer with master classes, Creative fairs and training for youth workers here

Room 13 Inquiry is a dynamic investigation into the potential of shared art studio spaces in school settings. It has evolved in two primary schools in Fingal since its inception in 2014 and includes the provision of a dedicated art studio space, an artist in residence and a series of exhibition and artists’ studio visits for the students.

We engaged filmmaker Kilian Waters to capture the activities of the students and artists over the course of six weeks this academic year and commissioned a website to share some of the intelligent and honest conversations held by the students over the past three years. The website www.room13inquiry.ie will go live on Tuesday 20^th of June at 12noon.

Room 13 Inquiry is an initiative of Fingal County Council Arts Office in partnership with Tyrrelstown Educate Together N.S, Scoil Bhride Cailini N.S., artists Orla Kelly and Anne Cradden, with support from Draíocht and the Arts Council of Ireland.

The Association of Irish Choirs presents its 38th International Choral Conducting Summer School from 6^th-12^th August 2017, for conductors, teachers, music students, choral singers and musicians. The only one of its kind in Ireland, this seven-day intensive course offers a wealth of expertise from international tutors, all of whom are active conductors and experienced teachers of conducting. With courses designed to meet the needs and abilities of every student — from beginners to experienced and established conductors — participants at all levels will develop and refine their core conducting skills, with more advanced classes focusing on areas such as rehearsal technique, interpretation, vocal technique, style, and pronunciation of languages. EPV accredited.

For more info:

www.aoic.ie/education_training/education_programmes/full_article/?tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=779&cHash=e47fd129fc39265abf306c9a5ae3d3d8

“The arts transformed my love of learning and are the reason I’m standing before you today” Prof. Anne Bamford

On May 6th the second arts in education portal national took place at St Patrick’s Campus, DCU. The portal national day is building momentum as a very significant event in the arts and education calendar in Ireland. Just under 200 people registered to attend the event with 17 workshops and lectures, an inspiring keynote from Prof Anne Bamford and a policy update from the Arts Council and Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional and Gaeltacht Affairs, Heather Humphreys. We are already excited about next years event. Have a look here to see the video from the day. Thanks to all involved in making day a huge success!

The Day Has Arrived!

The countdown had stopped. The day had finally arrived. It was the day of the opening.

Many months of decision making, days spent in the gallery and countless meetings have all culminated in our exhibition and we were finally opening it up to the public. We invited everyone we knew- family, friends and teachers, but we also had other important guests coming to see the exhibition- the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, TD; Heather Humphreys, Sir Ciaran Devane; CE of the British Arts Council and two of the exhibiting artists; Mariele Neudecker and Graham Crowley, the pressure was on!

On the afternoon of the opening day, we had the opportunity to meet Marielle Neudecker and Graham Crowley. They told us about their lives and inspirations. It was really fascinating to hear the artist themselves reveal their thoughts, the ideas behind their creations and to hear their opinions on how their art complemented the other artworks surrounding them. It was an amazing experience, as soon we would have to be the ones giving tours of all the art that was now in the gallery.

As the opening night grew closer there was a hint of nervousness in the air between us. In a few moments we will have to give one of, if not the most, important tour of the exhibition to our special guests. In our heads we recited all of the facts, dates and names we learnt over the past few months about the art surrounding us, remembering the connections that we mapped out and why we hung certain works in certain places. Our family, friends and teachers started to filter in through the doors. The time had come!

We greeted and shook hands with Heather Humphreys and Sir Ciaran Devane as they walked into the gallery. In pairs we led them and the other guests through the gallery telling them about the art along the way. After the tour everybody who came gathered downstairs at the altar. Niamh McDonnell (St. Oliver’s) and Cáit McArdle (Our Lady’s College Greenhills) gave amazing speeches about the Student Select, how we came about to do this and the work we did up to the opening. They were followed with speeches from some of the distinguished guests and Aoife Ruane, the director of the gallery.

We were excited and proud to finally be able to fully share the exhibition with the public. We were building up to this point all the time and hearing the thoughts, praise and observations of our families, our teachers, general visitors and special guests on ‘In Sense Of Place’ definitely gave us feelings of affirmation and accomplishment. After the opening we celebrated with dinner and it was nice to socialise with all the people we worked with for so long.

During the weeks the exhibition was open we gave tours to secondary and primary school students. On most of these tours we spent time listening to the opinions of the students and discussing them, rather than just telling them the exact information. Art should always be based on your own interpretation. At the end of the tours the primary school students drew out their favourite art piece. It was great to see their enthusiasm, they were less inhibited than the older students.

We also held a workshop based on the works in our exhibition. It was set up for kids between the ages of 4 and 12. We were thrilled that 45 kids came and they brought recycled materials in primary and secondary colours. Together we assembled shapes out of the materials they brought, inspired by Tony Cragg’s ‘Canoe’. We also discussed the colour wheel and complementary colours, we put the theory to practice with pastels. Another work we took inspiration from is ‘Mean-mean’ and we made collages.

This was a once in a lifetime experience, we learnt so much about contemporary art and how a gallery works and we so happy to be involved in such a great project.

Written by Kotryna Knystautaite with assistance from Hannah Murphy and Aoife Craddock

Ursula Byrne, Head of Development and Strategic Programmes, UCD Library and Dr Lucy Collins, Lecturer UCD are co–founders of the Irish Poetry Reading Archive:

http://www.ucd.ie/specialcollections/archives/ipra/

The Irish Poetry Reading Archive is a free digital collection of readings by Irish poets in the English and Irish language. Educators and students alike will derive value from this archive, drawing on the readings by the poets themselves, along with their recollections and insights of the time, place and context that influenced their writing. The archive holds recordings by 80 poets, with new voices being added annually. Each poet reads up to 8 poems, and over time poets will be invited back, to capture more of their work. Bringing the voices of our poets together within a curated digital environment aims to ensure that these cultural heritage recordings are preserved for future generations. The Irish Poetry Reading Archive is poised to develop into a resource of national scope and significance. There is great potential for this resource to support students doing the Junior Cert and the Leaving Cert. Hearing the poets talk about their own work, and read the poems in their own voices brings the poetry to life and makes it really enjoyable.

We just had our final session of the online course, ‘Documenting Projects and Events’. The five weekly online conversations covered a range of topics surrounding the documentation of artwork and events. The participants on the course included a mixture of artists, educators and organisations working in different media (painting, sculpture, lens-based, performance) and carrying out different processes (workshops, artworks, and live events). Given this variety, the course took a participant-led format that based discussion around individual responses to weekly tasks and provocations.

Week-to-week, participants were asked to populate their own mini-website with their responses to tasks that focused on varying forms of artwork documentation. These included documentation in text, still image, and audiovisual (moving image/sound). In an attempt to broaden and challenge each participant’s approach to documentation in these media, tasks solicited examples of a range of formats with varying intentions and potential audiences. For example, promotional material for the general public; report for a funding organisation; material for an archive or portfolio; and notation for another artist to carry out a project.

The pace of the conversation really heated up in the last two weeks, darting around the various aspects of capturing and processing still and moving image. The discussion regularly turned to the online presence of artists and organisations and the various functions of their websites and social media presence – portfolio/archive/promotion/journalling. Whilst the chat sometimes took in tech-talk (digital file-types, recording gear, etc.), the diversity of the group led to a most advantageous sharing of ideas and concepts around the intentions and potentials of arts education documentation.

The group related an invigorated enthusiasm and curiosity about the ways in which they might capture their work, encouraged by the interdisciplinary discussion. In exploring what (and how) artefacts might be logged and captured, we have considered more critically how works and events might be preserved, shared and perceived by a myriad of potential stakeholders. I have been taking notes and observations throughout the course and will be sharing these as a resource with the group and other members of the Arts in Education Portal for future reference and inspiration.

Artist, John D’Arcy (Course Leader)

As part of a review of the Artists~Schools Guidelines conducted by the Arts Council on behalf of the High Level Implementation Group of the Arts in Education Charter, this video has been developed to capture stakeholders’ observations regarding the key principles and information of most relevance to artists and/or schools interested in developing best practice in this area.

Watch the video here.

The Big Bang: Young Composer Mentoring Programme

Belfast-born Brian Irvine was appointed Music Generation Sligo Composer-in-Residence in September 2012. Brian’s work has been commissioned and performed widely by the National Symphony Orchestra, the Moscow Chamber Players, the Roald Dahl Foundation, Sesame Street, Channel 4, RTE & BBC TV, the Welsh National Opera, Opera Theatre Company and Carlow County Council to name but a few. He has collaborated with a variety of artists from the late great Seamus Heaney to Snow Patrol. The Composer-in-Residence Programme was funded by the Per Cent for Art Scheme as a Public Art Commission.

Brian’s brief was to create a new work to be performed by young people in Sligo and, significantly, to work with a number of young people from Sligo in a Young Composer Mentoring Programme. This aspect of the programme was requested by the commissioners, the Public Art Steering Committee of Sligo County Council Arts Service. Six young composers worked with Brian from their base at the Foroige Youth Café in Sligo town ‘The Crib’ from October 2012, with five bringing their work to completion to be performed by their peers on stage alongside Brian’s own compositions, giving us The Big Bang.

The project was a significant & magnificent undertaking for all concerned. Music Generation Sligo is lucky to have the talent, commitment, energy and enthusiasm of our young composers, orchestra and choir and of course their leaders & teachers. Sligo has a wealth of musicians and volunteers who, together with Music Generation, are making music education happen for the young people of Sligo, the next generation of musicians, teachers and audiences.

Introducing Music Generation Sligo Young Composers:

Alice Purcell

“My piece explores the trust in the space between people and how you should leave your mind wide open because YOU can achieve anything! This last year has been a magic carpet ride for me and I’d like to thank everyone who made the carpet ride happen.”

Matthew Rooney

“Music is a big part of my life. I love to play the guitar and sing. Music Generation has really opened my mind to new music. Brian Irvine has really helped me progress in my composition skills and I am very grateful to have had this experience. Who knows, maybe I will compose more music in the future, whether it be songs on the guitar or classical music.”

Ferdia Durkin

“Music has always been part of my life. It has shaped me into the person I am today. After years of studying and performing music, this piece, entitled SPACE, is my personal contribution to music. I have tried to express my idea of space through the notes and rhythm: an infinite void of peace, mystery, danger and wonder.” Now a fifth year student at Coola Post Primary School, Ferdia’s ambition is to study history and music at University.

Niamh Feeney

“I love music, and I spend most of my time either listening to it or playing it, but the Music Generation programme has opened up a whole new dimension for me. It has given me the opportunity and the confidence to create my own music – a fantastic life skill. I’m very grateful to have had the chance to work with and learn from Brian Irvine. It has been a wonderful experience that I will never forget.”

Ciara Murphy

“Music gives us an identity and my composition has allowed me to explore sounds, arrangements and lyrics to communicate my ideas. Working with Brian was an opportunity to develop my knowledge of music and explore its limitless potential.” Ciara is 13 years old. She attends The Royal Irish Academy Of Music for cello classes and studies singing and piano in Sligo. She is a member of Sligo Baroque Orchestra. Her love of music began very early and she may one day choose a musical career.

A composition in seven movements:

1. Overture ‘Where never lark nor even eagle flew’: Brian Irvine
2. Realtin: Alice Purcell
3. Infinity & Further: Matthew Rooney
4. Space: Ferdia Durkin
5. You could be an astronaut: Niamh Feeney
6. Dreaming: Ciara Murphy
7. Big Bang: Brian Irvine

“Each of the five young composers have produced extraordinary pieces. It’s been a delight working with them.”

Brian Irvine composer

The Big Bang: The show

This was a performance of the new music created by Composer Brian Irvine & the five young Sligo composers… Ferdia Durkin, Niamh Feeney, Ciara Murphy, Alice Purcell & Matthew Rooney. 120 children & young people in the Music Generation Sligo Youth Choir performed together with 80 young musicians from Sligo Academy of Music Sinfonietta Orchestra, under the musical co-ordination of Niamh Crowley. The piece was inspired by the mystery and wonder of space and our place within it.

The performance took place at the Hawk’s Well Theatre Sligo on 10th November 2013 as part of Sligo International Choral Festival and was re-staged in the Hawk’s Well Theatre on 3rd October 2014 and in the National Concert Hall on 13th October 2014 as part of the Music Generation National Gala Concert.

Performers included members of the Sligo Academy of Music Sinfonietta and Music Generation Sligo Choir, comprising: Grange Post Primary School Choir Choir director, Emma Purcell); Sligo Community Youth Choir (Choir directors, Emma Purcell & Eileen Curley); Ursuline College Choir (Choir Director, Edel Murray)

Writers in Schools Scheme

Poetry Ireland’s Writers in Schools scheme part-funds visits by writers and storytellers to primary and post-primary schools in the Republic of Ireland (funded by The Arts Council) and Northern Ireland (funded by Arts Council Northern Ireland).

Over the past 22 years, the scheme has given more than 500,000 children the chance to work closely with writers in the classroom. Poetry Ireland believes that the creative energy sparked by these first-hand encounters with writers can trigger an appreciation of the emotional and intellectual power of language that lasts a lifetime.

Writers in Schools single visits are:

Suitable for primary and post-primary school groups
Available in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland
Available with a range of artists including poets, novelists, storytellers, teen fiction writers, children’s writers and screenwriters
2 hours with a selected writer, which can be divided into shorter sessions for different class groups (eg two/ three sessions during one visit).
€100/£85 per visit. This is half the writer’s fee, paid by the school. Poetry Ireland funds the balance plus travel expenses.

B type visits (4 hours/ cost €200/ £170) are reserved for special projects, with more information available upon request.

To apply for the Writers in Schools single visit, please visit: Writers in Schools scheme | Poetry Ireland | Poetry Ireland

!!!! Opportunity for Schools: Ireland’s Young Filmmaker Awards 2025

The Fresh International Film Festival
Deadline for entries: 10 January 2025

Calling All Young Filmmakers: Submissions Now Open! The Fresh International Film Festival Returns for 2025, opening doors for aspiring filmmakers.

Could you be the next Fresh Film alumnus to reach global acclaim?

The countdown is on for submissions to the Fresh International Film Festival 2025 and the coveted Ireland’s Young Filmmaker of the Year Awards!

For submission details, visit: Fresh International Film Festival Submission 2025 freshfilm.ie

Mark Your Calendar

Submission Deadline: Tuesday, January 10, 2025

Regional Screenings: March 10–21, 2025, in Omniplex Cinemas Nationwide

Festival Week: April 7–13, 2025

Watch the trailer here:

!!!! Opportunity for Schools: Funding for Artists in Schools and Youth Theatre Announced for County Kerry

Kerry County Council
Closing date for applications: 15 January 2025 at 1pm

Kerry County Council has announced funding opportunities for 2025 including Artists in Schools Scheme and Youth Theatre Grant Scheme.

Artists in Schools Scheme 2025

Kerry County Council intends to provide funding for a number of projects in Primary and Post-Primary Schools in County Kerry under its Artists in Schools Scheme in 2025.

The purpose of the scheme is to enable students and teaching staff to work collaboratively with a professional artist on a creative project over an extended period.

A school awarded a bursary in previous years, must allow a lapse of 1 year before being eligible to apply again (e.g. successful in 2023, apply again for 2025).

Youth Theatre Grant Scheme 2025

For more information on both funding opportunities, guidelines and application forms, see consult.kerrycoco.ie/en/applications

!!!! Creative Schools publishes Youth Voice Journal

Creative Schools publishes ‘Youth Voice in Creative Schools – Reflections on Practice’
October 2024

The intention of this publication is to:

Collect, preserve and celebrate innovative practice in creative youth consultation in the Creative Schools Programme.
Share this practice to a wider audience.
Surface and document trends, patterns, challenges encountered to inform future training and research needs.

Youth Voice in Creative Schools – Reflections on Practice is available to download here

!!!! Cultural Diversity in Music Education (CDIME) Conference 2025: Call for Proposals

Mary Immaculate College and the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick.
Deadline: 16 December 2024

Proposals should be submitted via the conference Call for Proposals online form before 16 December, 2024.

For more information, submission guidelines and online application form see www.mic.ul.ie/CDIME2025

!!!! Opportunity for Writers: Poetry Ireland Writers in Schools Scheme

Poetry Ireland
Deadline: Ongoing

Call for Applications: Writers in Schools Scheme

Applications are open on an ongoing basis from poets, novelists, storytellers, teen fiction writers, children’s writers, playwrights and screenwriters to join the Writers in Schools directory.

!!!! Opportunity for Schools: 2025 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition

2025 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition
Closing date: 12 February 2025 at 5pm

Waltons New School of Music and RTÉ lyric fm are delighted to announce the 2025 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition!

About the Competition

Founded in 2012, the Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition is a non-profit national event celebrating and supporting music in Irish schools.

All primary and post-primary schools in the Republic of Ireland are eligible to enter the Competition, and schools from all 26 counties have participated in previous years.

How It Works

Primary and post-primary schools put together instrumental, vocal or mixed student music groups (between 10 and 40 performers), which create ensemble pieces or songs that respond in some way to the year’s Competition theme. A group can be made up of any combination of singers or instrumentalists you choose. And this year’s theme is The Key of Life.
Schools submit an online entry form and send a video of the group’s performance as well as a jpeg photograph of the group.
The initial entries are judged by a team of first-round adjudicators, and twelve Finalist groups (six primary and six post-primary) are selected.
The Finalists are announced on RTÉ lyric fm. Groups not selected as Finalists but displaying real merit are designated as either Commended or Highly Commended. Certificates are produced for the schools and all student performers, and the groups are listed on the Waltons New School of Music website. Finalists’ entry videos are added to the Music for Schools Competition YouTube channel.
The twelve Finalist groups perform in a gala Finalists Concert at the National Concert Hall. Their performances are assessed by a panel of distinguished adjudicators, who announce the six winning groups at the end of the concert. Finalists Concert videos are later added to the Music for Schools Competition YouTube channel, and both videos and photos are added to the Waltons New School of Music website.

2025 Competition Calendar:

Wednesday, 12 February 2025, 5 pm
Deadline for schools to submit their entries.

Friday, 28 February 2025
The twelve Finalist schools are announced on RTÉ lyric fm.

Monday, 24 March 2025
Finalists Concert

For more information and entry forms, go to newschool.ie/musicforschools.

!!!! Opportunity for Schools: Clare County Council announce Artists in Schools Residency Award 2024-2025

Clare County Arts Office – Artists in Schools
Closing Date: 8 November, 5pm

Projects can be collaborative and involve other creative practitioners and organisations but must be developed with the input of both the artist and the school.

Assessment Criteria
Projects will be assessed according to the following criteria

Quality and innovation of the concept/idea for the proposal. (30)
Quality of the artists work and track record as demonstrated by the support documentation submitted with the application, including the Artists CV. (30)
Feasibility of the proposed project, budget, time frame, number of students etc. (30)
Potential for the project to leave a creative impact on the school. (10)

For further information, Terms and Conditions and Application Forms, please visit: yoursay.clarecoco.ie/artists-in-schools-residency-award-2024-2025

!!!! Opportunity for Teachers: Oide Creativity Autumn/Winter 2024 Workshops

Oide Creativity
Dates: various November 2024

The Creative Ireland Programme and Oide are delighted to present their Autumn/Winter 2024 series of professional development workshops for teachers to support engagement with the arts and learning.

The courses include:

This workshop offers participants an opportunity to:

explore the Museum of Literature Ireland (MoLI) and use it as a stimulus and source of inspiration,
engage in an active listening process as a means to discussing the relationship between teachers and students in the classroom,
consider the written word and Joyce’s use of language,
discuss how words are mediated through multi-modal texts in the world today,
enjoy time and space to develop their own writing.

Introduction to Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS): Learning to look
Dates: Saturday 16 November and Saturday 30 November 2024
Location: Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA)

Oide Creativity in collaboration with artist Claire Halpin and the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA), presents a two-day elective workshop, open to all teachers. For full details go here.

This workshop offers participants an opportunity to:

look at and respond to a range of images utilising the VTS method of looking,
practice the VTS method of looking in a collaborative and supportive environment,
discuss how thoughtful and responsible image selection supports aesthetic development and critical thinking skills,
reflect on how the VTS method can be utilised to engage students in analysing imagery.

Spaces are limited for each workshop. A waiting list will apply.

For more information on full list of Oide Creativity workshops, dates and to book your place, please visit: www.creativity.oide.ie/

!!!! Opportunity for Schools: Good Vibes Arts Calendar Project 2025

Good Vibes Project
Deadline: 15 December 2024

You are invited to develop creative ideas in response to the question:

The 2025 Arts Calendar Project pilot aims to inspire with a weekly online calendar featuring a selection of 52 pieces of art from submissions.

Individuals or groups who are interested in getting involved, please share your selected piece as follows:

In English, briefly introduce the piece of art you have selected (max. 150 words), explain why it has touched you personally and might have an uplifting impact also on others,
add any additional information (image, link, source/copyright etc.) that helps to convey a vivid impression of the selected piece of art,
submit and send your proposal by 15 December 2024 to: goodvibesproject@protonmail.com

Please also note:

You are welcome to send up to three proposals if you wish.
As cultural and linguistic diversity is valued in this project, contributors with a first language other than English are encouraged to provide a first language version of their proposal(s).
You can download a PDF with a few examples of the (bilingual) format in which the contributions can be submitted: Contributions to Project – Some Examples

For further information please email Project Coordinator (Manfred Schewe) at: goodvibesproject@protonmail.com

See full information about The Good Vibes Calendar Project here: www.ucc.ie/en/scenario/scenarioforum/specificprojects/goodvibesartscalendarproject/

Featured image: Street Art in Müllerstraße, Berlin, by HERA. Photo: MS streetartmankind.org/artists/hera/

!!!! Opportunity For Schools: Branar’s Acorn Digital Arts Flag

Branar
Closing Date: 31st October 2024

Branar is accepting applications from schools for their Acorn Digital Arts Flag programme.

The Acorn Digital Arts Flag programme includes:

A series of 6 arts workshops in video format that teachers and pupils can do in the classroom (there is a version for junior classrooms and one for senior classrooms)
Suggestions for extending the workshop activities in the classroom
Documentation to support engagement with the workshops and to build on them afterward in the classroom

Further details about what’s involved, see Branar’s website branar.ie/en/schools or watch this introduction video:

This programme is free to apply for schools in Ireland so please share with any teachers/schools you think may be interested.

There is no cost to schools to participate.

To apply please complete and submit the form at this link: form.jotform.com/231153125616346

!!!! Artist Opportunity: Apply for BABEL Round 4 with Baboró

Baboró International Festival for Children

Selected artists will:

Participate in two 5-day practical sessions in 2025 with a cohort of 11 other professional artists from across Europe;
Experience two European children’s arts festivals with their workshop cohort;
Receive a daily fee of €200 to cover workshop and travel days. The cost of all travel, accommodation and festival tickets will be covered.

This opportunity is made possible through Baboró’s partnership with BABEL, a 4-year Creative Europe project emphasising communication and multilingualism in Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA).

Is this opportunity for you?

RSVP here

Key Dates

Applications Open Wednesday, 11 September 2024
Information Session Monday, 16 September 2024
Applications Close end of day Wednesday, 6 November 2024 at midnight
All participants will be notified by Friday, 20 December 2024

For full details on he application criteria and how to apply go to www.baboro.ie/news-events/artist-opportunity-apply-for-babel-round-4.

!!!! Spark curiosity, learning and engagement with a school visit to the Museum!

The National Museum Of Ireland

Dates: Autumn / Winter 2024

The National Museum of Ireland has launched its latest programme of guided tours, workshops and resources for primary and post primary schools for the autumn/winter 2024 term.

All of the activities are designed to complement the primary and post primary curricula and are offered free of charge to schools.

Schools can visit three Museum sites in Dublin and Co Mayo this year. Click on a location below to see what is on offer at each Museum.

!!!! Arts Council announces 184 new schools will join its Creative Schools programme

Creative Schools

For further information on the Creative Schools initiative go to artscouncil.ie/creative-schools.

!!!! First Look at Baboró 2024

Baboró International Arts Festival for Children

Dates: 11 – 20 October 2024

How to Book Tickets

For further information see https://www.baboro.ie/plan-your-festival/festival-schools.

!!!! Children and Youth Theatre Directors Seminar in Hamburg – Open Call

ASSITEJ Germany – OPEN CALL FOR DIRECTORS IN TYA GERMANY

22-29 June 2025

The theme is : ‘Reassembling the world: Intergenerational and international alliances in TYA’. The event will explore:

How can artistic practices connect audiences from around the world?
What message would the children from your local community send to a group of adult artists?
How can our audiences share our connections and benefit from them?
How can intergenerational and international alliances inspire our TYA practice?
How can TYA reassemble the world – one project at a time?

ASSITEJ Germany and FUNDUS THEATER will cover the costs for accommodation, catering, theatre tickets and leisure activities for all participants.

For more information see here.

!!!! Fighting Words is Hiring!