We believe that just like imagination learning has no boundaries. Student success and growth is achieved when children discover their own talents and interests through music, art, drama and dance. We believe that the arts serve as a vehicle for teaching and learning. We value the development of community partnerships that enrich our students' artistic and academic experiences. We are committed to improving student achievement and to helping all students realize their full potential. Student growth is enhanced when staff members and parents share responsibility in the development and education of the child.

Dance Education allows the students to not only learn to dance, but dance to learn. Movement is essential to learning as it activates the mind and body. Skills and dance concepts are explored through creative movement, folkdance, jazz, hip hop, tap, musical theatre, line dance, and Pilates ball dance. It is an inclusive learning environment where all students have the opportunity to feel successful and gain confidence in their own body awareness. Dance is taught as a specific subject as well as integrated into all areas of the curriculum to allow students to gain knowledge kinesthetically.

All the World’s a Stage

At Afton School of the Arts, children create through drama games and exercises, movement, speech, and scripted text taking theatrical stories from the page to the stage. Students explore theatrical elements in our drama studio as well as in classrooms and found spaces. The four fine arts: visual art, dance, drama and music are all woven together to create a whole-school main stage performance showcase at least once a year. Young Afton theatrical artists may explore weekly classes, artist in residence condensed workshops, or integrated lessons with core subjects. Cultural diversity is reflected in a variety of performance and technical theatre experiences.

Visual Arts education at Afton is aimed at supporting and extending studies across curricular areas using a variety of 2D and 3D media and techniques such as printmaking, drawing, painting, sculpture, fabric arts, and digitally created images.  By encouraging qualities such as perseverance, open-mindedness,confidence, creativity, and problem solving skills, the study of the Elements of Visual Art and the creation of visual art enhances academic success and builds positive social skills.

Afton students explore sounds in time during music classes. Our school musicians sing, move, respond to music, compose, and play instruments including Orff orchestrations, handbells, tone chimes, recorder and ukulele. Our students have performed at Edmonton Public Schools Night of Music, the Alberta Legislature, the International Airport as well as at annual school performances. Music rounds out the four arts experiences at Afton School of the Arts.