New Wolf Trap Affiliate Will Work with Local School Districts to Bring Arts-Based Learning to Early Childhood Classrooms in Florida’s Gulf Coast Region
Sarasota, FL and Vienna, VA (June 27, 2024) – Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts and Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation have partnered to bring Wolf Trap’s customizable arts-based teaching and learning programs to early childhood classrooms in Southwest Florida.The partnership creates Gulf Coast Florida Wolf Trap, Wolf Trap’s newest addition to a growing network of 27 affiliates across the United States and in Singapore.
Gulf Coast Florida Wolf Trap, operating locally as part of Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation, will deliver services to early childhood classrooms in Sarasota, Manatee, Desoto, and Charlotte counties beginning in summer 2024. The new affiliate’s work in the early childhood space will complement Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation’s commitment to providing artistic experiences that ensure students receive a well-rounded education, teachers have the tools and resources to reach every student, and its community members have access to meaningful arts experiences. The research-based Wolf Trap program boasts increased language development, improved teacher practice, an increase in tests scores, and an additional 34 days of math instruction.
"We believe in creating meaningful, immersive experiences that strengthen the voices of tomorrow through the power of the arts," said Tania Castroverde Moskalenko, CEO of Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation. "By partnering with Wolf Trap, we expand our ability to deliver customized professional development strategies for teachers and interactive arts experiences that will inspire young children, families and early childhood educators."
Wolf Trap and its affiliates work collaboratively with schools to deliver vital in-person and virtual classroom residencies, professional development workshops for teachers, and family workshops that serve the unique needs of their communities. The affiliate program is operated under Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, a program of Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts based in Vienna, VA. Through Wolf Trap’s education programs, including the work of the Institute and its affiliates, serves nearly 100,000 children, families, and educators each year.
Gulf Coast Florida Wolf Trap programs will be designed for children in preschool and kindergarten and their teachers and families. Programs will introduce performing arts-based experiences that illustrate key curricular concepts such as literacy and social-emotional learning, incorporating song, movement, imaginative play, and musical instruments, to equip teachers with skills to infuse active learning through the arts in their instruction with every classroom of children they teach. Throughout the 2024-2025 school year, Gulf Coast Florida Wolf Trap will expand to bring this nationally recognized model of STEM-based arts integration learning to the Florida Gulf Coast region.
“We’re excited to expand our work in Florida through this new partnership with Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation,” said Akua Kouyate-Tate, Vice President of Education at Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts. “Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation plays an important role as an arts leader in the region. It’s Gulf Coast Florida Wolf Trap program will increase opportunities for young families and educators to connect through joyful, active learning.”
Through professional teaching artists trained in the Wolf Trap model, Wolf Trap Institute delivers customized, in-class professional development to early childhood educators using proven, arts-based strategies that reach across curricula and support development in key areas like language, literacy, math, science, and social-emotional learning. Teaching artists engage in multi-day residencies, during which they meet one-on-one with teachers to create custom lesson plans that align with their curriculum objectives. During these residencies teaching artists work in the classroom alongside the teacher to engage students in arts-based learning experiences, supporting the teacher to lead the lesson using these strategies.
To inquire about scheduling a Gulf Coast Florida Wolf Trap Residency, contact info@performingartsfoundation.org.
For more information about Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, visit www.wolftrap.org/education.
For more information about Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation, visit performingartsfoundation.org.
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About Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, produces and presents a full range of performance and education programs in the Greater Washington area, as well as nationally. Wolf Trap features three performance venues: the outdoor Filene Center and Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods, both located at Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, and The Barns at Wolf Trap, located down the road from the national park and adjacent to the Center for Education at Wolf Trap. The 7,028-seat Filene Center is operated in partnership with the National Park Service and annually showcases an extensive array of diverse artists, ranging from pop, country, folk, and blues to classical music, dance, and theatre, as well as multimedia presentations, from May through September. The Barns at Wolf Trap is operated by the Wolf Trap Foundation year-round, and during the summer months is home to the Grammy-nominated Wolf Trap Opera, one of America’s outstanding resident ensemble programs for early career opera singers. Wolf Trap’s education programs include the nationally acclaimed Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts, Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods, a diverse array of arts education classes, grants, and a nationally recognized internship program.
About Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation
Sarasota Performing Arts Foundation’s mission is to create and sustain a vibrant performing arts center, advance education, and enrich communities by inspiring minds through the power of the arts. The Foundation has partnered with the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall since 1987 to support arts education throughout our region, serving more than 35,000 students and their families annually with arts-based education opportunities and professional development for more than 400 teachers across five counties.
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Media Information
Meredith Dropkin
Grapevine Communications
mdropkin@grapeinc.com