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		Interdisciplinary Arts Lesson Plans Reprinted from August 2006 Issue -by REBECCA PACKARD Since the mid-twentieth century, many music educators have gravitated toward solidarity among educators of different art forms and integrating the arts with other subjects. Across the country, there are a number of organizations that dedicate themselves to improving arts education through encouraging interdisciplinary arts education, hosting various educator workshops, and cooperating with local schools and arts organizations. Unfortunately, these organizations often don’t reach out beyond their local areas of interest except to offer expensive workshops for educators, enforcing the idea that the arts education is a luxury. Two notable exceptions to this rule of practice are the Music Center Performing Arts Center of Los Angeles County, and ArtsEdge, a program of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Both organizations have professional development programs for those who can afford them, but they also offer free lesson plans developed and approved by certified teachers. At www.musiccenter.org/educators/onlineresources.html, there are a number of online resources for ready-made lesson plans and materials to develop original plans. The ready-made lesson plans include those developed by teachers who have participated in the center’s professional development institute and teachers who have won the center’s BRAVO Awards, and award for using the arts to “strengthen student academic achievement and creativity, foster self-esteem, and cross-cultural communication.” There are also lesson plans developed to connect theater with Open Court literature, a reading program used in some of our local schools. At www.artsedge.org/teach/les.cfm, parents and educators can sort through ready-made lesson plans by arts subject, other subject, and school grade. Since the site was specifically designed as an online resource (the L.A. center plans are more a by-product of other programs) there are a lot more options to choose from and more flexibility in finding a lesson to meet teachers’ and students’ particular needs. There is also a link to the Consortium of National Arts Education Associations’ national standards for the arts (what K-12 students should be able to do in the arts). A how-to section addresses assessment and other concepts to assist teachers beyond specific lesson plans.