In this interview with poet and teaching artist, Dave Johnson, he talks about how he got started as a teaching artist at Poets House, a poetry library in New York City. His teaching artist career led him to teaching poetry workshops to older adults in Brooklyn libraries, but mostly in senior centers, day centers, nursing homes and live-in facilities. Dave also shares his experiences working with older adults, along with the skills, challenges, surprises and rewards.
Keyword: Poets House
Myriad Ways to Tap Older Adults’ Creativity and Combat Social Isolation
While our campaign, “Connect Through Creativity Now,” highlights teaching artists, arts and service organizations working within the traditional Creative Aging model (sequential learning, skill-building, social-engagement) while stay-at-home orders prohibit in-person social gatherings, there are a number of other efforts emerging that warrant mention.
In this article, we include others working outside the traditional model, who are using arts education as a catalyst for social engagement and expression during the challenging COVID-19 era.