Visual Arts

With the support of the Felta Education Foundation, West Side School offers an Artist-in-Residence program, which brings in local qualified artists who provide a strong elementary art instruction that offers unique learning experiences at each grade level. Art increases children's awareness of their physical environment, extends and develops the use of the senses, and encourages inventive thinking. Art programs support individual interpretation of ideas, thoughts, and feelings while providing opportunities for experimentation in a variety of media.

Art experiences utilize creative problem solving by encouraging children to be original and to use their imaginations. Group projects offer students opportunities to exchange ideas and to work collaboratively. As students encounter art and produce their own art based on personal experiences, they begin to understand that people often have different responses to similar experiences. Visits to museums and galleries (or combining outdoor field trips with art projects) foster students' interest in art and help them relate art to everyday life.

An annual public exhibition of West Side students’ art projects features the development of each grade level and highlights the cooperation between West Side School and the Healdsburg community. Participation is encouraged on every level as parents, staff, teachers and students collaborate to present a collective approach to creative expression.