Arts Every Day

The arts aren't a break from learning. They're how we teach it.

At SLArts, students don't just read about history; they turn it into art. They don't just memorize ideas; they perform them, build them, and design them. When kids create with what they learn, they understand it more deeply and remember it longer.

How it Works

An hour of arts, every day.

Every student has at least one hour of arts instruction every day of the school year.

Five full-time arts educators. 

Dance, Drama, Music, Visual Art, and Digital Arts are taught by dedicated specialists, as a core part of every student's day.

Woven into every subject. 

The arts show up in Math, Science, and Humanities, giving students more ways to understand, explore, and show what they know.




Why it Works

  • Daily arts give students a reason to love coming to school, and that energy carries into every subject.
  • In arts classes, nearly 2/3 of SLArts students say something interesting happens every day.
  • Students are 2-to-3 times more likely to be deeply engaged in their arts classes than in other subjects.
  • 87% of SLArts students work in teams or small groups daily or weekly across all their classes.

The five arts disciplines

Dance


Students train in technique, create and perform original choreography.

2025-26 Highlights
Two full-length concerts of original student choreography; Repertory Dance Theatre's Heritage Project Showcase; flash mobs at Halloween, SLArts Fest and last day of school.

Drama


Students write, direct, and perform.

2025-26 Highlights
Six student-written plays, video perfromances, and a three-day residency with award-winning playwright Laura King.


Music


Students practice, perform, compose, and collaborate.

2025-26 Highlights
22nd Annual Holiday Concert; spring Pop and Jazz Concert; a practice session with The Brothers Comatose.


Visual Arts


Students draw, paint, build, and exhibit.

2025-26 Highlights
Monthly hallway exhibits; a top prize at the Great Salt Lake Bird Festival art contest; an exhibit at The City Library's Teen Space.



Digital Arts


Students design, illustrate, and exhibit.

2025-26 Highlights
Create artwork for performances; participate in the school's first sticker contest; design the school yearbook.




SLArts taught me to value the arts in the world around me, especially in a field that requires an eye for that sort of thing.

Kuper Dyke, SLArts Alum, who went on to study architecture at the University of Utah.