The Visual Arts Program at Hamburg Elementary School is designed to give the children an introduction to a broad spectrum of art media, techniques, and experiences, as well as the opportunity to use the language of the arts and humanities to describe their own and others’ art. While all the state standards for art production, history, criticism, and aesthetics are addressed, at every grade level there is an emphasis on drawing, giving the students an opportunity to relate visually to both the world around them and their own imaginations.

Traditional arts, like quilting, are taught side by side with newer technologies and popular crafts, such as scrapbooking. The move to the Tilden elementary Center will make it possible for computer applications to again be included in the visual art curricumum.

At both the primary and intermediate levels, visual arts projects are strongly tied to academic curricula. Math and language arts concepts are reinforced through technical drawing and artistic criticism. 4th and 5th grade art units are correlated with social studies lessons. Students at every grade level also participate in a world arts project or unit , team taught by Mrs. Binns and Mrs. Hallman. The resulting student work was displayed in the schools and at spring arts festivals. The pinatas made by the third grade classes at Hamburg Elementary were finally filled with treats and broken as part of their field day activities.

Annually, the work of Hamburg Elementary students is exhibited at the Fine Arts Festival, held at the High School each spring. Upper Bern art work was exhibited at a Specials Extravaganza, held at the Middle School in May 2007, and this event will be repeated in the spring of 2008. Children are given the opportunity to apply the skills and concepts learned in art class in competitions and exhibits outside the school district, such as the Kinder Konzert Student Exhibit at the Sovereign Center for the Performing Arts in Reading and at the Young Artists Exhibit held at the Banana Factory in Bethlehem. In 2007, ten pieces of work by Upper Bern and Hamburg Elementary students were included in the Banana Factory K-8 juried art show, and D.J. Gromlich, who had 2 pieces included in the exhibit, received the 3rd Prize for work from students in grades 3-5.