Free Arts Seminar Planned for Teachers

One of two free workshops, designed to show teachers of all grade levels how to use the visual arts to teach language, vocabulary, math and other subjects, will be held Wednesday.

Lila Crespin, a member of the Newport Beach Arts Commission and an expert in arts education, will talk about how students can develop better language and critical thinking skills by examining artworks.

For example, when students look at a painting, instead of a chalkboard, they can see how an artist used a horizontal line to paint a bridge, Crespin said. They can also describe how the image in front of them makes them feel or what it’s about.

She added that learning language, especially for younger children, can be difficult and abstract, but when they have a painting in front of them to “hook on to,” it makes learning easier and more interesting.

“Kids are very excited about looking at works of art,” she said, and “the school district seems really enthusiastic about it.”

The workshop, sponsored by the Newport Beach Arts Commission and Newport-Mesa Unified School District, will be from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Sanborn Instructional Media Center Library, 2985 Bear St., Costa Mesa. The second session will be Feb. 28.

Reservations are required. Information: (949) 673-2721.