Scaling Arts Integrated Program at Title I Schools

K-12 STEAM education

Long Beach

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

In Long Beach, students attending Title I schools—many of whom identify as Black, Latinx, Cambodian, or Filipino—often face systemic barriers to academic achievement and creative expression. These students are more likely to be reading below grade level, experience chronic absenteeism, and have limited access to arts education. Traditional literacy instruction frequently fails to reflect their cultural identities or lived experiences, compounding disengagement. Dramatic Results recognizes that early opportunities for self-expression can dramatically shift a student’s relationship to school and self-worth. By integrating visual and performing arts into English Language Arts, we meet students where they are—centering their stories, honoring their identities, and improving critical literacy skills in the process. The issue we seek to address is not just a lack of access, but a lack of representation, relevance, and affirmation in how literacy is taught.

Write On Arts is a 12-week, arts-integrated literacy program designed to address the systemic disengagement and underperformance of historically excluded 2nd–4th grade students in Title I Long Beach schools. Many struggle with reading proficiency, confidence, and self-expression due to instruction that lacks cultural relevance. Write On Arts bridges this gap through creative storytelling and portraiture that make literacy joyful and identity-affirming.
Co-taught by professional Teaching Artists—many of whom share students’ cultural backgrounds—the program integrates ELA and Visual Arts standards with social-emotional learning. Students build foundational skills through sketchbook journaling, emotional check-ins, and vocabulary building. They then craft cinquain poems, five-line reflections that center voice and belonging, practicing fluency and performance skills.
In the second half, students create self-portraits guided by mirrors, facial proportion tools, and lessons inspired by artists like Frida Kahlo and Faith Ringgold. The program culminates in a gallery walk where students showcase their poems and portraits—tangible evidence of growth in literacy, confidence, and cultural pride.
This grant will support Dramatic Results in expanding Write On Arts to additional LBUSD schools, reaching 400+ students in Spring 2026. It’s a scalable, equity-centered solution that reimagines literacy through creativity and care.

If Write On Arts is successful, more students across Los Angeles County—particularly in historically under-resourced schools—will see themselves reflected in what and how they learn. Young people who once struggled to read aloud or write about themselves will become confident speakers, thoughtful writers, and expressive artists. By integrating identity, emotion, and creativity into core literacy instruction, we help students build skills that are not only academic, but also deeply human.
As our program grows, we’ll develop a new standard for what literacy instruction can look like: culturally relevant, emotionally responsive, and joyful. Educators will adopt new models of co-teaching and artist residencies. Communities will rally around students’ voices through public showcases and school-based exhibitions. In short, success will look like a more connected, confident generation—equipped with both the tools and belief that their stories matter.