Private School Arts Program

List of 3 items.

• Drama

  Drama in the Lower School is comprised primarily of grade-wide theatrical presentations. Each year, students in Sixth through Tenth Age perform a class play in front of the entire Lower School and their invited guests. Our Fifth Age students also perform for Grandparents Day and other class-specific events.

  
  It is the intent of these performances to allow students to express their creativity and passion for the dramatic arts in addition to gaining the important experience of speaking in front of a large crowd, projecting one's voice, and working together as a team. For students with a special interest in the dramatic arts, we offer an optional after-school Drama Club.
  
  

  Drama in the Middle School seeks to have students embrace the fact that there are no small parts, while further developing listening skills and their ability to work as part of an ensemble. Calvert has put on everything from You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown to Shakespeare to more modern mystery comedies.
  
  

  The Black Box Theatre is an actor's space, so productions are chosen with an eye to giving every participant the opportunity to shine. Not only do students work as actors, they also design and build the set and props, make costumes as needed, and learn how to stage lights and sound. Drama is offered as a full semester course in both Seventh and Eighth Grades, and is part of the Fine Arts rotation in Fifth and Sixth Grades.

• Music

  At Calvert, we believe music appreciation is central to the growth and development of young children, because of this belief, we ensure that music is a key part of the weekly Lower School routine.
  
  

  Beginning in Fifth Age, students have formal music instruction at least once a week. These classes include both instrumental and vocal music. In Seventh through Tenth Ages, students learn how to play the recorder. They are also expected to participate in performances to experience emotional bonding with their peers as well as expressions of individual creativity.
  
  

  Children sing, learn different rhythmic movements and listen to music to learn how to read and identify notes. In the older grades, children learn about composers, musical epochs and elements, like tempo and meter. All children are encouraged to participate in at least one musical performance each year.
  
  

  At our Middle School, every student studies more nuanced elements of music: melody, harmony, rhythm, tone color, form, musical texture and dynamics. Music instruction is a hands-on experience as students learn how to play the recorder, guitar, keyboard and a variety of other instruments.
  
  

  With this basic training, students are encouraged to express themselves musically as solo artists and among others as part of a variety of musical combos as singers, instrumentalists, writers and recorders.

• Visual Arts

  The Visual Arts program in the Lower School is an integral part of student life. As you walk our halls, it's common to see student art work displayed everywhere you look. Art is fully integrated into the daily curriculum of our Fifth Age students. In Sixth Age through Tenth Age, students have formal art instruction at least once per week. They begin by experiencing art through a variety of different mediums, including clay, paint, and oil pastels. They advance to more fundamental elements and principles of art by the end of Tenth Age.
  
  

  A unique offering of our Lower School curriculum is Art History for Ninth and Tenth Age students. During this class, students learn about myriad contributions and influences of art in our culture. Content for this course is integrated into our history curriculum, which spans from prehistoric art and the ancient worlds of Greece, Egypt, Rome, and the Middle Ages in Ninth Age to Pre-Columbian art of Meso America through Native American, colonial art, Civil War art, and art of the 20th Century. For students with a special interest in the visual arts, we also offer an optional after-school Art Club.
  
  

  The Middle School Visual Arts Program is a faculty-directed curriculum that complements our rigorous academic program by seeking to elicit the artist within every child. We encourage creative thinking and problem solving, as well as a lifelong appreciation for art history and aesthetics.
  
  

  Students are introduced to a wide variety of media, techniques, and creative opportunities in order to build artistic skills and confidence in an engaging and challenging studio atmosphere. There is an emphasis on observational drawing skills at all levels as well as the study of the elements of art, principles of design, artists, and the art of other cultures.
  
  

  The Visual Art Program encompasses everything from drawing, painting, and printmaking to ceramics and sculpture, and is further enhanced by the digital arts electives offered in the Seventh and Eighth Grades. Student artwork is displayed throughout the year on campus, and is also exhibited at the AIMS Fall Conference, Maryland State House Underground Show, in the local Traveling Art Show every spring, and at various locations in the community.