Creative Launchpad

Igniting Imagination and Innovation

Creative Launchpad Logo

Arts Huntsville’s Creative Launchpad is inspiring today’s youth and tomorrow’s workforce. Founded in 2018 as a program of the Alabama Artistic Literacy Consortium funded by the Alabama State Council on the Arts, Creative Launchpad serves six school districts across the greater Huntsville metro area.

Vision

As an education partner of AmpUp Arts , Creative Launchpad’s vision is based on the belief that EVERY student in Alabama should have access to high-quality arts education that enlightens, inspires, and develops the creative and innovative thinking necessary to ensure college and career readiness.

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Mission

In order to develop and promote creative and innovative thinkers, Creative Launchpad seeks to equip students, educators, families, and the community with the tools and resources needed to provide each student with quality arts instruction, arts experiences, and creative teaching across curriculum. 

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Programs

Arts On The Move

On average, area elementary students receive only 40 minutes of visual art or music instruction a week. Furthermore, dance and theatre are largely absent in Alabama elementary schools. Arts on the Move aligns the Alabama dance and theatre courses of study with Alabama’s physical education content standards, bringing dance, creative movement, and theatre games to elementary P.E. classes. Launched in 2022, Arts on the Move now introduces dance to K-3 students in five Huntsville City and Madison County public schools.

Mission AI - Arts Integration

What do you get when you combine a dynamic teaching artist with a dedicated classroom teacher? Deeper student learning and engagement across the curriculum. Arts integration units ensure that students master standards in both the core curriculum area and the selected arts discipline. Examples of Creative Launchpad AI missions include:

  •  Creative Writing & Visual Arts – Students create comic book stories and characters using basic drawing techniques and character development models.
  •  English & Drama – Students learn performance skills and stage combat techniques while creating their own scene adaptations from Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
  •  Science & Music Technology – Students produce music videos to showcase their knowledge of the periodic table.
  •  Science & Music Performance – Students build cigar box guitars and receive introductory guitar lessons while studying sound and sound waves.
  •  Science & Visual Arts – Students create cell models with clay and use stop-action animation techniques to replicate cell life cycles while studying plant and animal cells.
  •  Science & Dance – Students explore concepts of movement and choreography while studying the muscular and skeletal systems of the body. 
  • Social Studies & Music Technology – Students compose music and create songs and raps based on their research of ancient African civilizations and cultures.
instructor and students who have made cigar box guitars and are learning how to play them

CTS - Creative Teaching Strategies In The Classroom

When teachers use Creative Teaching Strategies, research shows that student engagement and academic learning increase. Creative Teaching Strategies are easy to learn techniques from all artistic disciplines – theatre, dance, music, and visual arts – that can be incorporated into lessons in any core subject. The Creative Launchpad offers school-based, district-level, and regional professional development to train educators to use these dynamic teaching tools.

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Classroom Arts Mission Manual

Classroom Arts Mission Manual

The Launchpad’s 2022-23 Classroom Arts Mission Manual is a detailed guide to arts field trips, in-school performances, lecture demonstrations, and classes for students in grades PreK-12. The Mission Manual features programming from Huntsville-area arts organizations and teaching artists, and these arts education experiences include:

  •  Arts Integration
  • Arts Enhancement
  • Arts Exposure
  • Arts Competitions and Scholarships
Classroom Arts Mission Manual
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Mission Specialist Application & Training

Creative Launchpad Mission Specialists provide arts-based learning to area students. We partner with local artists and arts organizations from all arts disciplines to provide training and professional development in a variety of instructional techniques. 

Apply here to become a Creative Launchpad Mission Specialist

The Arts Huntsville YouTube Channel

Our YouTube Channel offers a variety of arts education videos highlighting current and past programs. Some videos provide at-home or virtual learning opportunities parents and teachers can use today, and other videos offer a first-hand look at Creative Launchpad programming in area schools.

Subscribe to our Channel