The Cherry Court curriculum is one of the few programs designed for the unique developmental needs of middle school. During the school year, classes meet once a week, 14 weeks per semester. Each class is 1½ hours long. Classes for grades seven, eight, and nine are followed by an optional 45 minute open studio. To make the most progress, students should plan to attend at least two semesters and come to class regularly. Classes meet after school, evenings, and Saturdays. In addition, workshops are available during the summer. One workshop provides the instructional hours of one-half semester.

COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

IMAGINE
After years of drawing and painting with freedom and abandon, the 6th grade artist becomes less spontaneous.  Students notice the difference between the symbols that once represented trees and houses in earlier grades compared to the way trees and houses really look.  Even the most gifted artist slows down and begins to labor over art in an effort to create more adult representations.  For the first time there is a sense of drawing right and drawing wrong.

To avoid the bad feelings connected with drawing wrong, students often practice drawing one subject well, such as animals or robots.  This becomes a comfortable creative zone that many students avoid stepping beyond.  Without guidance, many gifted students remain within this zone, until they have exhausted the possibilities and drift away from drawing altogether.

IMAGINE is a program that builds self-confidence in young artists and shows them how to express themselves creatively in dozens of ways. Their comfort zone gradually engulfs more subjects and art materials.  Soon the idea of drawing right and wrong is replaced with “What are the possibilities?”  This is what creative thinking is all about.

ART CHALLENGE
This course is designed for middle school artists in grades 7, 8, & 9. Kids in middle school love a challenge. That’s why video games are so popular. Cherry Court’s ART CHALLENGE for middle school takes kids on a quest to complete 18 exciting Challenges, starting with the simplest and progressing through more and more complex levels of creative problem solving. The prize is a completed million-dollar (perhaps priceless) portfolio. ART CHALLENGE takes advantage of students’ rapidly developing motor skills and abundance of creative energy.

A personal journey: Young artists receive their empty portfolios on the first day of class. Students begin the first Challenge, working at a pace comfortable for them. The average student will complete six Challenges in a semester. Some with busy academic and extracurricular schedules may complete less. Others may find the time to finish seven or eight Challenges. Teachers and classmates provide inspiration, encouragement, and feedback. But within this supportive environment, each student progresses in a direction suited to his/her personality, aspirations, and unique world view.

Sample Challenge: ART CHALLENGE 7 is called: A Surreal Experience. Students take pencil in hand to create a surreal dreamscape in the style of Salvador Dali. Part of the Challenge is to sketch three-dimensional cubes, cylinders, and spheres using perspective, a source of light, shading, highlights, shadows, and cast shadows. Beyond that point, students must engage their imaginations to consider the creative possibilities. Should they create a mysterious board game, a room in another dimension, or something intergalactic? Below are project examples. Click HERE to see the complete course outline.

ART & TECHNOLOGY
This course is available to students in grades 8 & 9 who have completed at least 12 Challenges from the ART CHALLENGE program.  In the fall, students will create art in two computer programs: Adobe Photoshop and CorelDraw.  The first is a bitmap program which manipulates photographs.  The second is a draw program (although it can handle photos as well). 

We will use two textbooks this semester.  The first is called Adobe Photoshop Drop Dead Fantasy Techniques by Derek Lea.  The second text is called CorelDraw Wow! Book by Dayton, Hunt & Steuer.  Students will create striking compositions with this complex Draw program.

In the 21st century, the computer is an important assistant, even in the art room.  Today’s middle school students, who have worked on computers from kindergarten up, love to create art on the computer.  Many are anxious to colorize the drawings that they have created by hand.  Others are interested in special effects.

This course will be arranged as a 1½ hour tutoring session meeting at the same time each week.  If students do not own these programs, they may schedule practice time when the studio is open for classes.

The spring ART & TECHNOLOGY course will explore several animation programs.

During the summer, students may elect to study any of the programs offered during the school year. They will consult parents and instructor to set up six 1 1/2 hour tutoring sessions plus optional practice time.

INTENSIVE SKILL DEVELOPMENT
This course is available to ninth-graders who have completed 12 Challenges of the ART CHALLENGE program. Subjects will include still life, people, and environments. Students will strive for proficiency in both drawing and paint media. An important part of the course will be training one’s eyes to observe and record.

However, within the parameters of observational studies, students will also learn to see the artist as visual poet, or one who interprets what is recorded.

Students may approach this course with different degrees of urgency. Some plan to attend a top university, Governor’s School, or win a scholarship as a high school senior. Those students should do all recommended outside sketches as well as spend extra time in open studio. Quality work cannot be produced without quantity in the number of hours practiced.

On the other hand, students who are studying art just for the enjoyment of the subject can take a more casual approach to the course. For these students, the extra sketches and open studio are not urgently needed.

This course is offered each semester and in the evenings during summer session. Special class arrangements can be made to fit the goals of students regarding the number of classes per week and the focus of study.

PORTFOLIO DEVELOPMENT FOR HIGH SCHOOL
To meet the educational needs of students in Cherry Court’s growing program, fall 2008 will offer for the first time advanced courses for students in grades 10 through 12. These courses will be sequentially arranged, and designed to guide students toward advanced art production that reflects individual talents and areas of interest.

This semester, participation in PORTFOLIO DEVELOPMENT will be limited to students who have completed ART CHALLENGE within Cherry Court’s middle school program. This foundation in the fundamentals of design is a critical platform on which to build new skills.

Course offerings within the PORTFOLIO DEVELOPMENT program include:

Intensive Skills: Life studies that include still life, people and environments, will increase the student’s ability to observe and record, while better understanding the artist’s role as visual poet. Students have an opportunity to take this course as early as grade 9, and may already have completed this requirement in Cherry Court’s middle school program.

Creative Exploration of Media: Prerequisite – INTENSIVE SKILLS. While continuing to improve observational skills, students will use art materials in increasingly creative ways and begin to make selections that reflect a personal style.

Personal Style: Prerequisite – CREATIVE EXPLORATION OF MEDIA. Students will use art elements and materials in unique ways that express their personalities, interests, and experiences.

In-Depth Study: A strong portfolio will represent both breadth and depth of study. While previous courses offer breadth of study, this course will focus on a narrow aspect of art, selected by the student, that is explored thoroughly. Most ideally, this course should be taken in the summer between Junior and Senior year. However, it may be necessary to take this course earlier in order to prepare a portfolio for competition or provide other advantages.

Art & Technology: This is an optional course offered at both the middle school and high school levels. The fall covers the basics of Photoshop and CorelDraw, while the spring explores animation.