Arts+ Provides Professional Development to CMS Arts Teachers

In August, Arts+ participated in Professional Development (PD) days for all Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) music and visual art teachers. Over 300 teachers attended Arts+'s sessions to learn new skills and techniques they could confidently bring back into their classrooms.

Sessions for music teachers included Reaching the Standard: Connecting, How To Use Technology as a Resource but Not a Crutch, and Checks for Understanding. All sessions provided practical teaching tips with examples tied directly to the subject of music.

Reaching the Standard helped music teachers see how what they're already doing applied to North Carolina state standards. The technology session focused on how to use Canva and other tools to simplify instruction, and the understanding workshop provided several short, focused ways to evaluate student understanding throughout the course of a lesson.

One of the sessions visual art teachers joined was 3D Unit Planning. Like the sessions provided for music teachers, it took something all teachers need to know and applied it directly to the subject of visual art. This session gave teachers a clear structure for building multi-step sculpture lessons using low‑cost materials like cardboard and recycled items. This session was particularly helpful for new and lateral entry teachers, showcasing simple lesson building and how to scaffold difficulty for multiple grade levels.

Visual art teachers also joined sessions in mono prints, paper clay, and gelli plate printmaking. These mediums were chosen for their ease of introduction in the classroom, offering practical, affordable lesson ideas using materials schools either already have access to or can easily obtain.

Mono printing introduced a quick setup for a relatively low-mess technique teachers can use for warm‑ups, centers, or full projects. Paper clay provided a kiln‑free way to teach modeling and relief sculpture with materials schools can afford. Gelli printing offered a layered, experimental process that supports lessons on color, pattern, and abstraction.

The PD sessions created space for teachers to make art themselves, exchange ideas, and connect with colleagues, helping them build a supportive community that strengthens their teaching long after the sessions ended. Arts+ was honored to provide CMS music and visual art teachers with new skills, classroom-ready lesson ideas, and the confidence to integrate hands-on artmaking into their everyday instruction.