The Salisbury School ~ Arts

Art

The Lower School art program, housed in our beautiful, well equipped art barn, gives students a wonderful foundation in the production and appreciation of visual art. Students are introduced to a wide variety of art materials and techniques with an emphasis on the process rather than the product, allowing for self expression. Artists of all ages explore painting, drawing, printmaking, collage, construction and clay, building on their skills and experiences each year. Though art is highly valued as a stand alone subject, art lessons are often literature based, or integrated with other areas of study, helping students to make creative and cognitive connections.

Music

The music curriculum at The Salisbury School uses music techniques, theory, technology, performance and composition to create a diverse musical education for all Lower School students. Students attend two weekly classes and are encouraged to explore their musical talents through singing, instruments, theory, movement, and desk work.

Music theory concepts start as early as kindergarten and gradually develop throughout the years. All students can properly read music notation by the second grade. This advanced skill set is imperative when entering the third grade where instruction on the recorder is introduced.

The Salisbury School offers all fourth and fifth grade students the opportunity to attend weekly band classes. The skills carried through from their early music education provides a smooth transition to instrumentation. Students opting out of band class may continue General Music where they start an intense curriculum on the history of Broadway, Rock and Roll, composers, and advanced theory.

Every grade, Pre-K through fifth, is given numerous opportunities throughout the academic year to work on their performance skills during in-school, after-school, and community concerts.

Starting in first grade The Salisbury School offers Chorus as an extracurricular activity. Chorus, like band, spans all three divisions and aids in the development of musical skills that your child will carry throughout his or her life.

Lower School Band

The Salisbury School Band program begins in the Lower School and continues through all three divisions. It is an accelerated performance program with a strong emphasis on music theory. Our band students not only perform concerts for the TSS family, many further their instrumental music education by participating in other honor and community instrumental ensembles.

TSS Band instruction begins 1-2 years earlier than most other schools in the area. Fourth grade and new 5th grade students spend time at the beginning of the year exploring all the band instruments during music class. Those students who want to join the band class choose their instrument after finding a perfect fit. Unlike other beginning band programs the students in Band do not miss other academic classes. Band becomes their music class and we learn to apply everything they have learned in General Music and take it to the next level. The 4th and 5th grade band students combine as the Lower School Band for our annual concerts and assemblies.