https://www.tacomaartslive.org

Tacoma Arts Live

Arts Education Intern

July 2020 • Tacoma, WA

What I liked

I liked working with creative and energetic kids every day, gaining more depth in my own knowledge about the performing arts, and customizing my experience to my skill set and interests. The staff who hired me are very caring people who cultivate a friendly and supportive environment.

What I wish was different

I would not make a change to the program itself, but because of COVID the role was mostly limited to virtual capabilities, with few opportunities to work onsite. Obviously, in normal circumstances, I would have loved to engage with the students in person, and provide support for projects around the office and theater.

Advice

My strongest piece of advice would be: Don't be afraid to think outside the box. Even in creative fields, we can get bogged down trying to maintain practices that are traditionally done because they seem effective. I have learned, especially as we worked to make digital learning as engaging as possible, is that your own creativity and resourcefulness is needed. Kids learn in many different ways, and your own unique approach will probably be more exciting and relevant than the tried-and-true methods. If you have an original idea, as silly as it may seem, it's worth talking about it with your coworkers or researching on your own to develop a new activity to bring into the classroom.
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