What Do the Arts Look Like at MELA?

What Do the Arts Look Like at MELA? -Ms. Jessica Anderson, Music Teacher

MELA is fortunate to have a wonderful arts program that is continuously growing and changing to meet the needs of our scholars . The arts at MELA can be understood through music class, partnerships with the community, passion projects, afterschool arts programming, and future planning with an arts grant. 

Music
Scholars at MELA have music class two times a week. In music class, students have lessons that follow the national music standards. Within these standards, students experience many different instruments such as bucket drumming, Orff instruments, auxiliary percussion instruments, recorders, ukuleles, boomwhackers, and handbells. Some recent notable music class experiences include field trips to see the MN Orchestra, Heliopsis, a guest artist duo, came to perform for students, and students were able to perform parts of an Opera in music class last year during hybrid learning.

Partnerships
At MELA the arts are able to thrive through our incredible partnerships with many great organizations. Here are our partnerships:

• MN Orchestra: The MN Orchestra provides free bussing and tickets to allow all MELA Scholars to attend an orchestra concert. 
• MN Opera: The MN Opera has brought in free guest artists and has done a workshop with students on how to create an opera. 
• MPR Class Note Artists: MPR Class Notes has brought in guest artists for students to work with. Heliopsis just joined us recently! Heliopsis taught students about instruments from Africa and how to improvise. 
• Heart of Dance: This is a dance program that teaches students seven different styles of ballroom dances, along with teaching teamwork, respect, confidence, and acceptance.
• Northrop: Northrop provided affordable tickets and bussing to allow older students to watch a ballet.
• Artist in Residency Program: MELA continuously brings in other artists throughout the year to work with students and bring them other art experiences.

Passion Projects
On Wednesdays, students have the opportunity to experience the arts as part of their passion project. By the end of the year, each student will have had one trimester of an art themed passion project. Some of the art passion projects include: movement, dance, painting, and the culinary arts. 

​Afterschool Arts Program
MELA’s after school visual arts program offers a unique opportunity for students to experience the arts in a unique way through Capoeirara. Capoeirara is a form of martial arts that combines dance and music elements as well! Capoeira is led by Mestre Guerreiro. Additionally we have licensed art teacher that engages students in an hour of art class as well. 

Art Grant
MELA is fortunate to have received the Comprehensive Arts Planning Program Grant for 2021-2023. With this grant, MELA is creating a strategic plan to help shape and expand the future of arts programming at MELA. If you are curious to learn more about this grant or to take part in this planning process, please contact Jessica Anderson at janderson@melaschool.org.