September Art Class Newsletter: What We Are Learning

The September art class newsletter sets the relationship between the art program and every family for the entire year. Get it right in September and you have invested parents who know what their child is learning, why it matters, and how to support it. Miss September and you spend the rest of the year reintroducing yourself.

Introduce yourself and your teaching philosophy

New families and returning families alike benefit from a brief reintroduction in September. Share your name, how long you have taught, what drew you to art education, and one thing that excites you about this school year specifically. A paragraph of personal voice makes the rest of the newsletter feel like it comes from a real person rather than a department notice.

Describe the year's curriculum arc

Give families a map of the year. Name the major units, the skills each unit develops, and the sequence logic. Why does drawing come before painting in this curriculum? Why are students studying abstraction before representation, or vice versa? Families who understand that the curriculum has a logic they can follow stay more engaged across the full year than families who see each project as independent and unconnected.

Name the first unit specifically

Tell families exactly what students are doing right now. What medium are they working in? What skill are they building? What will the first finished piece look like, and when should families expect to see it come home?

"We are starting September with blind contour drawing. Students will draw their hand without looking at the paper. This exercise builds the habit of looking at the subject rather than the hand, which is the single most useful drawing habit to develop early. Do not be alarmed if the drawing looks strange. That is the point."

List supplies with specifics

If families need to provide any materials, name them clearly. Include brand names if there is a specific product that works best. Note which items are optional versus required. Give a date by which supplies should be brought in. If the school provides everything, say so, because many families assume they need to contribute and may feel anxious about not having received a supply list.

Sample newsletter template excerpt

Dear Art Families,

Welcome to a new year in the art room. I'm Ms. Yates, and this is my fifth year teaching visual arts at Lincoln Elementary. This year we will move through four main units: drawing, color and painting, printmaking, and three-dimensional sculpture. Each builds directly on the one before it.

We are starting this week with observational drawing exercises. No supplies needed from home yet. I will send a separate supply request before the painting unit begins in October.

Explain how families can see and engage with student work

Tell families where student work is displayed, how they can view it, and whether you share photos of classroom work. If there is a class Instagram or a digital portfolio system, introduce it now. Families who know how to stay connected to the class are more likely to stay connected.

Set the tone for the year

Close the September newsletter with something that captures what kind of art room you run. What do you want students to feel when they walk in? What does success look like in your class? A short, honest paragraph about your values as an art teacher gives families a sense of the environment their child is spending time in, and that matters to parents at the start of every new year.