Summer is a great time for educators to enjoy learning opportunities without missing a day of school. We’re offering a series of terrific, hands-on Universal Design for Learning-based workshops through the end of August, designed for teaching artists; classroom, arts and SPED teachers; para-educators; administrators; out-of-school providers; librarians and media specialists; parents; and all those interested in inclusive education. Check out our Arts in Inclusive Learning page to read about and register for these low-cost workshops: “Universal Design for Learning” in Concord; “The Art of Writing (Turning words, sentences & stories into unique, student-created books)” in Rochester; “Successful Inclusion” (a workshop for teaching artists) in Concord; and “Singing Books” for early-childhood educators and care providers, in Plymouth. These workshops address the needs of all learners, including students with disabilities and other learning challenges; they’re all hands-on, stimulating, interactive, and fun - and they all offer ideas you can immediately use in your classroom or other learning settings. Professional development credits are offered and scholarships are available to all who need them.

Join us Saturday, August 26, at 10:30 am at Pease Public Library, Plymouth, for a free program for young children and families, as Deborah Stuart and Will Cabell link books and music through songs, instruments, “big books,” and lots of moving, clapping and dancing. Following the program, Deborah will offer a workshop for early-childhood educators, providers, and interested family members, sharing a wealth of information about books made from songs, creating your own homemade instruments and other ideas to promote early literacy for all children. You can download a poster here.

Free classes for adults 55 and older continue to be offered as part of our "Experience/Arts" partnership with the Grafton County Senior Citizens Council, made possible by one of only 15 national grants awarded by Aroha Philanthropies through its Seeding Vitality Arts initiative. These programs are intended to inspire and enable older adults to learn, make and share the arts in ways that are novel, complex and socially engaging. Community members are invited to a special celebration of our “Nature Phorography” class Thursday, August 17, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm at the Littleton Area Senior Center. There will be light refreshments and a chance to hear from the photographers about their work. And watch for our second round of classes this fall, in Plymouth, Lebanon, Littleton and Haverhill! Read more about "Experience/Arts" here.

We’re excited to partner again with the NH State Council on the Arts as it presents its annual statewide Arts Education conference – and even more excited that it is coming to Littleton this year. Read more here and stay tuned for an opportunity to register early!

Our Annual Reading/Writing Conference for educators, dedicated to the memory of Donald Graves, will take place Saturday, March 31 at Kennett High School, North Conway. Presented in partnership with the Conway School District, the 2018 conference features Kylene Beers, a tuhor of many highly respected books on literacy. Register by September 15 and save! Learn more here.

Our 2017 WMNF Artist in Residence Steve Wilkes, a professor in the percussion department at Berklee College of Music in Boston, spent three weeks with us this summer – watch (and listen) for upcoming segments on Chronicle and NHPR! Steve started his Hear the Forest project, a process of creating an aural map of the Forest through field work that will include recordings of wildlife and insects, waterfalls and rivers, as well as human activity. The recordings are being mapped and made accessible online at heartheforest.org. Read more here and let Steve know about your favorite forest sounds! Read more here and let us know if you'd like to be involved!

We’ve designed a great program list – including exciting regional residencies – for 2017-18. As we prepare for the 2017-2018 school year, we're eager to work with you. If you're interested in cultural programs, partnerships and outreach opportunities, we encourage you to email or call us to let us know, and we'll be glad to talk or meet with you. Early fall programs include a residency with theater and film actor Christian Camargo (a partnership with the Plymouth State University English Department), six days with wonderful children’s author Alicia Potter, author of Miss Hazeltine’s Home for Shy and Fearful Cats (a partnership with VCFA Young Writers Network) and multiple programs with the music/theater/songwriting duo of Ross Malcom Boyd and Jamie Feinberg. In November, watch for Mexican music and dance with Boston treasure Veronica Robles.

Summer is going by so fast! We're soaking up sun -- and finalizing plans for next year. Watch for news about all our fall programs, coming soon. Meanwhile, we invite educators, administrators, parents' groups, librarians, and all those interested in cultural programs throughout our region to help us plan by completing this Program Survey. And educators and youth workers are also encouraged to fill out our Professional Development Survey -- click here to access it . Your feedback is hugely important to us! We also welcome comments, ideas and suggestions now and throughout the year.

We spent the month of May showcasing our member/partner organizations and member artists as part of our 30th anniversary celebration; click to see the 30 slides posted, honoring the work of individual artists, cultural organizations and nonprofits and businesses whose work incorporates the arts.

Are you a high-school or college student who'd like to learn more about the arts this summer? We're creating a series of opportunities for involvement for young people who'd like to experience hands-on arts and nonprofit work as part of their summer activities. Contact us at info@aannh.org if you'd like to hear more - or if you know someone who might.