DANVILLE – This week, some Danville High School American Literature students had to draw a picture of junior Tatiana Atcher standing on a desk mid-room striking a pose. The catch: They had only 30 seconds to finish, and they couldn't lift their crayon or marker off of the paper.

Science students had to observe a subject – in this case, Assistant Principal Phil Cox – who later disappeared into the hall to alter three things about his appearance. When Cox returned, students had to identify what he had changed. And in the new Contemporaires show choir class, students had to stand facing a partner, then take turns mirroring each other's body movements and facial expressions as music played in the background.

"It's fun, but with a purpose," Cox said, adding those exercises and others are preparing students for the new Artful Learning curriculum, which ACE (Academy of Creative Experiences) House is kicking off this year.

The Leonard Bernstein Center's Artful Learning program is a nationwide educational reform model that infuses arts and creativity into core subjects, and it's the cornerstone of the high school's arts-based small learning environment, which has 450 to 500 sophomores, juniors and seniors.

"We're really excited about this new adventure, " said Cox, the ACE House's administrator. "We have a whole group of students who chose ACE because they're interested in the arts and being creative. Infusing that into the curriculum will increase engagement, relevance and student learning."

Under the program, the academic year will be divided into units of study. During each unit, students will study a concept, or central theme, and master work of art such as a painting, symphony, important document or architecturally significant building. The concept and master work of art will guide the unit and be the basis for their own group or individual project that requires them to engage in research and critical thinking, design and creation and reflection on what they have learned.

Teachers also are creating large interdisciplinary units that will share the same master work, concept and significant question that students must flesh out, Cox said. "They will be able to apply it to math, science, all of the different areas," he said.

But first, students must learn the arts-based skills and strategies, which will be used throughout the learning process. Cox said the Artful Learning curriculum has 23 skills, and ACE teachers – who trained this summer – have added some of their own.

"The strategies are designed to get the kids up and out of their seats, engaged in the lessons, and thinking creatively," Cox said.

For example, the students in Libbie Cline and Carol Huddleson's American Literature class were practicing the "quick draw" strategy. "You don't have to be an artist. I'm not," Cline told her class, as she scribbled an outline of Atcher. "It's not about being perfect; it's about the process."

In addition to getting their creative juices flowing, Cox said, the strategy teaches students about perspective, what they've drawn based on their point of view and experience. They can apply that to many lessons, whether it's reading a novel or discussing a social issue.

In the science class, the "alteration observation" strategy aims to hone students' observation and critical-thinking skills, teacher Wendy Barnes said. "In science, you have to observe things and notice all of the details," she said.

Meanwhile in a "postcard" exercise in geometry, students drew a picture of one of the most significant times in their lives. Then they flipped their postcard over, and wrote about the event.

Math teacher Megan Luke said the arts-based skills and strategies are designed to build students' trust in each other. "The more trust we build, the more comfortable the kids will be in taking part in their own learning," she explained.

Once students learn the strategies, teachers will start making the connection between them and the curriculum, Cox said. For example, he said, a history teacher could use the postcard strategy to explore a particular era, then use another called "letters in time," to have students write a letter as if they were living in that era.

"Now you're assessing whether or not they understand the concepts," he said. "It's also teaching students the skill of empathy, putting yourself in someone else's shoes and seeing things through their eyes."