Bring the Arts Into Your Classroom—and Deepen Student Thinking
Joy2Learn Professional Development for Middle School Educators
Discover practical ways to use the arts to strengthen the thinking students already need in English language arts, mathematics, and social studies!
- Classroom-ready approaches
- Music, visual art, performance, architecture, sculpture, and dance
The goal isn’t to add “arts activities” to an already crowded curriculum. It’s to use the arts as meaningful entry points for the rigorous standards already central to middle school learning.
Course Structure/Expectations
- 90-minute live and interactive webinar
- Design and submit a lesson plan
Each professional development session includes:
- 3 CEUs
- A standards alignment document
- Two related lesson plans designed for middle school classrooms
- Access to related Joy2Learn educational resources
- Opportunities to plan for classroom application
Registration is $25 per session. Choose one session, or explore all three!
CEU Information
Joy2Learn has been approved as a professional development provider by the New York State Department of Education, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the Nevada Department of Education, the Texas State Board of Education, and the Washington Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. Educators who complete the course can earn valuable professional development education credits from New York, Massachusetts, Nevada, Texas, and Washington. Check with your state or district to see if you can earn professional development credits for this course.
Reading Beyond the Page
Grades 6–8 English Language Arts
Explore how music, visual art, and performance can become engaging “texts” for building essential literacy skills. Participants will experience the NOTICE → INTERPRET → SUPPORT routine, which helps students attend closely, construct meaning, and support their interpretations with evidence—the same habits they use when reading and responding to written texts. Educators will explore practical ways to use arts-based experiences as entry points to close reading, discussion, and writing.
90 minutes | 3 CEUs | $25
November 4, 2026 from 4-5:30 PM Eastern
Groups of six or more may contact us to schedule sessions at a custom date and time!
Explore the Standards Alignment Document and Lesson Plans connected to this PD:
Lesson Plan 1: Reading Beyond the Page
Lesson Plan 2: Reading Beyond the Page
Alignment Document: Reading Beyond the Page
Seeing Mathematics Everywhere
Grades 6–8 Mathematics
Discover how architecture, sculpture, and design can help students see mathematics as meaningful, interconnected, and relevant. Participants will explore how observation can lead to mathematical reasoning across geometry, measurement, proportional reasoning, algebra, estimation, and modeling. Educators will practice strategies for creating multiple entry points into mathematics and helping students explain and justify their thinking.
90 minutes | 3 CEUs | $25
November 11, 2026 from 4-5:30 PM Eastern
Groups of six or more may contact us to schedule sessions at a custom date and time!
Explore the Standards Alignment Document and Lesson Plans connected to this PD:
Lesson Plan 1: Seeing Mathematics Everywhere
Lesson Plan 2: Seeing Mathematics Everywhere
Alignment Document: Seeing Mathematics Everywhere
Expressions of the Past
Grades 6–8 Social Studies
Explore how music, dance, performance, and other cultural sources can deepen historical inquiry. Participants will experience the OBSERVE → QUESTION → INVESTIGATE → EXPLAIN routine, which moves students from careful observation and questioning to investigation and evidence-based historical explanation. Using tap dance as a central example, educators will explore ways to place cultural sources alongside traditional historical sources while engaging students in contextualization, corroboration, and evidence-based reasoning.
90 minutes | 3 CEUs | $25
November 18, 2026 from 4-5:30 PM Eastern
Groups of six or more may contact us to schedule sessions at a custom date and time!
Explore the Standards Alignment Document and Lesson Plans connected to this PD:
Lesson Plan 1: Expressions of the Past
Lesson Plan 2: Expressions of the Past
Alignment Document: Expressions of the Past
This course changed my thinking around creativity in the classroom and gave me some awesome practical exercises to try in my classroom.
Theodore Follini-Press Middle School Teacher