Fine Arts

The Fine Arts program gives students a means to express themselves creatively and to respond to the artistic expression of others.  As a record of human experience, the fine arts provide distinctive ways of understanding society, history, and nature.

At Allen Academy, the arts represent one of our core areas of learning.  While other schools may view the arts as elective offerings, Allen views the arts as a critical and required aspect of a superior education.  To that end, all students in Kindergarten through Eighth grade are required to participate in both visual and performing arts.

Upon entrance into the Upper School, students have a wide variety of courses to choose from while fulfilling their Fine Arts requirement.

In music class, students learn to appreciate and share their musical experiences in a meaningful way. They gain knowledge of composers and their history, the progression of music through history and culture, and how different styles and types of music of different environments and generations are influenced. Students learn how to read music and use musical terms, and acquire an appreciation for different musical genres including concerts, symphonies, operas, ballets, and musical productions.

Visual Arts

The goal of the Visual Arts Department is to develop students who have the skills and craftsmanship necessary to express themselves effectively in the arts, and to give them an informed appreciation for the art produced by others.  This is accomplished by instructing them in various media and techniques, both 2D and 3D.

To give students respect for their own original creative expression as well as a sensitivity and responsiveness to the expression of others, individual and class critiques are conducted after each major project.

Art History is a component of each art class to give the student an appreciation for the contribution the arts have made in various cultures throughout the ages, and a basic art vocabulary is learned to give the student an understanding of the nature, structure, and meaning of the arts in order to have an intellectual foundation for making and justifying aesthetic judgments.