Research output Expressing from the he(ART) Narratives from our classrooms Read our research output here! Parveen didi, a parent of one of our students shares in an interview featured in the Expressing from the he(ART), on why access to Visual Art and SEL is so crucial for her child and the changes it has brought out. Hear what Parveen didi has to say! Narratives from our classrooms Arbaaz | Grade 8 “I can use my imagination! When you take us through the exploration process and introduce different artist’s work or different styles of art and topics, I imagine how it should look, and then I draw it. It feels amazing to create something from my ideas & imagination." Urvi | Grade 7 "I created art to show what happens around me. Gender is given to us at birth, and nobody can be blamed for it, we should be good to everyone.” Datta Sir “The importance of art education is a means for students to express their emotions and experiences , which is particularly valuable for their personal and social well-being. ” Kalyani Miss “Children will build many skills by learning about art.” Download your copy here

Research output Evidence of the Impact of Visual Arts & SEL Education within the Indian context What happens to a child when they engage in arts? Visual art is a powerful tool to enhance children’s social-emotional skills and yet there's limited research on its impact in emerging democratic societies like India, home to one of the world's largest marginalized child populations. Read about the impact as we answer the question with first-hand research and bring forth the evidence! Read our research output here! Evidence of the Impact of Visual Arts & SEL Education within the Indian Context Our Approach Through first-hand understanding, we have observed the development of skills and competency outcomes through Visual Arts & SEL. This enabled us to dive deeper into understanding the manifestation of behavioral outcomes in students. We have intended to measure SEL within the art classroom contexts where these skills are facilitated, practiced, and lived. Key Findings Over the year, the research affirmed our belief: sustained engagement in Visual Arts & SEL nurtures skills like imagination, critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and perseverance- preparing students not just for school, but for life. The key findings of the study are summarised below: Through visual arts & SEL, students didn’t just learn to draw, they learned to think critically, express their emotions, and work collaboratively with their peers. Classrooms became safe, joyful spaces where students were free to explore, experiment, and engage with each other, sparking their curiosity and creativity. Joy as an experience played a crucial role in nurturing collaboration, student participation and interest in the classroom. When students felt happy, they were eager to share ideas, ask questions, and work together, creating a co-learning environment. Respect, compassion, and confidence grew naturally. Students learned to value their own work and that of their peers, offering help and encouragement without being asked. With facilitators guiding rather than instructing, students felt empowered to express themselves, turning the classroom into a space of discovery rather than judgment. Highlighting On-ground research Capturing stories "Pop art makes my Happy look like it is breaking a wall and coming out - thats how much happy I feel when I am drawing in art class!" - Yusuf, Grade 3 "I want to turn the city into a village and the village into a city, and hence added metro and car in a village and then farmer, cows and fields in a city" she said as she discussed which border she wanted to cross. - Tairin, Grade 7 Download your copy here

Awards Cognitive Inc. Prize Penn-GSE Business Plan Competition, 2024 Runner-up, Social Impact President's Innovation Challenge at Harvard Innovation Lab, 2024 Media Features Voices | University of Oxford Addressing the complex challenges of childhood in India with art-based learning Harvard Innovation Labs Celebrating AAPI Innovators and Entrepreneurs at Harvard The Indian Express | Newspaper An exhibition aimed at integrating art in low–income schools, a first in Pune Mid-day | Newspaper How art makes low-income kids future ready Harvard Innovation Labs Bridging India’s Art Education Gap Glific | Case Study Saturday Art Class’s journey into leveraging Whatsapp Chatbot to scale Our Voices & Stories Harvard Podcast Art of Education: How Saturday Art Class is Shaping India’s Next Generation TEDxNMIMS How can the arts change you? Our Why The Nudge TEDxISME Cultivating Minds Through Art InnovatED Manasi Mehan | TFI Cohort'18 End of Year Exhibition 4.0 2023 TEDxYouth@NMS Relief and Recovery during COVID-19 Load More

Evidence of the Impact of Visual arts & SEL Education within the Indian context First Name Last Name Email Company (optional) Phone (optional) Submit

Creative and Wellbeing in Education - Inaugural Ecosystem Gathering (26th April, 2025 | Parle Platina Centre) Agenda 26th April, 2025 SYMPOSIUM 2025 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM Parle Platina Centre, Ville Parle Join the waitlist! Wellbeing through Creative Expression in Education Time Session 9:00 am - 10:15 am Creative Kickoff - Doors Open to Inspiration Registration & Welcome Refreshments Ecosystem Showcase Stalls Art Installation Showcase The day begins with a warm welcome! Sip on your morning brew, mingle with fellow changemakers, and explore interactive art displays and ecosystem stalls. Don’t miss the vibrant children’s art exhibition showcasing collaborations with renowned artists. Plus, pick up your symposium zine to guide your creative journey throughout the day! Starting the Conversation - Welcoming the Creative Revolution 10:15 am - 10:30 am Opening Address Keynote Address Speakers: Amita Chauhan, SVP India | Louisa Zondo, Ricky Rick foundation | Deepika Mogilishetty, Ek Step foundation | Anis Barnet, Community Arts Network Foundation | Manasi Mehan, Saturday Art Class We’re setting the stage for transformation. Join us for an opening address by our collaborators, inviting you to explore how arts and wellbeing can reshape the future of education. Our supporter of creative education will join the conversation as she shares insights on the impact of art in education, especially for underserved children. Get ready for an inspiring start to the day as we set the tone for a creative revolution in classrooms. A Vision Unveiled - The Power of Art 10:30 am - 11:00 am Inauguration and Opening Address Impact Evaluation Report Launch Speakers: Brinda Upadhyaya, Upadhyaya foundation | Payal Jain, Populi Join us as we unveil the SArC Impact Report. Discover the findings on how arts and SEL foster long-term wellbeing in students, with a focus on building an evidence-based approach to creative education. Get insights from the experiences on ground on designing reflective tools, qualitative insights, and the state of evidence within our ecosystem. Beyond Metrics - Reimagining the Future of Arts Education 11:00 am - 12:00 pm Panel Discussion Speakers: Bina Shah, Harish & Bina Shah Foundation | Deepika Mogilishetty, EkStep Foundation | Jyothi Vynatheya Oberoi, Dalberg | Suchetha Bhat, Dream a Dream | Sandeep Rai, The Circle India (Moderator) Join changemakers for a conversation on how we can go beyond traditional teaching to foster holistic impact of arts education. This discussion will explore creative evaluation, storytelling, and funding strategies that drive meaningful change in classrooms. Our Vision, Our World 12:00 pm - 12:30 pm 12:30 pm - 1:30 pm Art Work Presentation Facilitator: Saturday Art Class While the day filled with conversations and insights unfolds, we have something interesting brewing at the backdrop of the Symposium. This unique session will give voices to some of our delegates whose voices are often unheard. Building Bridges - Lunch With Purpose Lunch & Networking Enjoy lunch while engaging in conversation about the future of creativity in education. Participate in our 'Get to Know Your Neighbour activity to deepen connections and foster new collaborations. Different Voices, Shared Futures: Creativity and Wellbeing at the He(art) of Learning 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm Panel Discussion Speakers: State Government Education Department Representative (Name disclosed closer to the date) | Balasaheb Kanke, Shankarwadi MPS | Mehek Shaikh, Youth Artist and Facilitator | Suchitra Shinde, Udaan India Foundation | Ikpreet Singh, Ek Step Foundation (Moderator) This one-of-a-kind panel brings together a diverse range of voices - a student-turned-youth artist associated with SArC since the age of 7, an academic educator championing art education, a visionary principal who helped lay SArC’s foundation, a government official advancing arts-based programmes, and an ecosystem changemaker driving collective action. Together, they’ll explore why integrating arts and wellbeing in education is no longer a luxury, but a necessity. How do we move from ‘nice to have’ to ‘must have’? Shaping a future where every classroom nurtures the whole child? 2:30 pm - 2:45 pm A Creative Recharge Movement-Based Activity Facilitator: Manzil Mystics Join us for a fun, interactive activity designed to re-energize the group. Through movement and creative expression, we’ll celebrate the power of togetherness and creativity. 2:45 pm - 4:00 pm Dive into the Ecosystem - Workshops & Research Dives Hands-On Workshops Research Presentations Presenters: ARISA | MANN Foundation | Nazaria Art Collective | Dream A Dream Choose your adventure! Engage in a hands-on workshop where you can explore your creativity. Alternatively, attend research presentations that uncover how creative expression is driving change in education and wellbeing. 4:00 pm - 4:15 pm Creative Pause - A Moment to Reflect Tea & Mingle Recharge with a warm cup of tea or coffee, catch up with fellow changemakers, and spark new ideas for collaboration in a relaxed environment. Unlocking Potential - Funding the Future of Arts Education 4:15 pm - 5:15 pm Panel Discussion Speakers: Bina Joshi, Forbes Marshall | Prabhir Correa, Waterfield Advisors | Ekta Sheth-Balya, Dentsu Good | Swati Apte, The Arts Quotient | Maharshi Vaishnav, Motilal Oswal Foundation (Moderator) Join funders, philanthropists, and sector leaders in a powerful discussion on how strategic funding can transform the landscape of arts and wellbeing education in India. Art-in-Action - What’s Next for Art and Wellbeing? 5:15 pm - 5:30 pm Closing Remarks & Reflections Facilitators: Collective of Art Education Organizations (The Circle India) | Saturday Art Class We’ll close the day with reflections on the insights gained and actionable steps toward continuing the work of integrating arts and wellbeing into education systems nationwide. 5:30 pm - 6:00 pm Final Connections - The Creative Send-Off Networking & Tea Before you leave, make sure to explore new ideas with fellow changemakers, and take the last opportunity to spark potential collaborations. Don’t forget to fill in your zine! *The agenda is subject to change. Register to join the waitlist now! For any support please reach out at dharmeshm@saturdayartclass.com , where our team members can further assist you. Join the waitlist!

Art-Connect is a tool to strengthen the effectiveness of our Art for Educator program by adopting a low-tech intervention and digitizing our engagement with educators. Try our Chatbot here! An interactive chatbot tool by Saturday Art Class that enhances our engagement with educators across India. It efficiently disseminates resources and collects real-time data, driving program enhancement. As a pivotal component of our Art-for-Educator program, it creates access to multilingual resources and live support on WhatsApp, supporting educators to effectively implement Visual Arts and Social Emotional Learning (SEL) classes for children. Understand more about the resources we dissiminate through out chatbot here! Our curriculum Understand more about our Art for Educator Program here! Art for Educator

Pioneering in-depth study into inferring student outcomes, best practices and insights from classrooms achieved through engagement in visual arts in our current context. We aim to identify best practices and gather insights and narratives from our classrooms that can inform how visual arts & SEL can be a crucial medium to build lifelong learning skills and agency to thrive in children. To study this in-depth, we intervened with students from a local government school by providing them regular access to Visual arts and SEL from Grades 1-8 Know more about Our Research Approach with Art Labs Research Reports Opportunities for exposure through excursions Book a Smile India invited us for a unique art workshop led by renowned Italian artist Lorenzo Vitturi as a part of the Olympics In Reel Life Festival by the Film Heritage Foundation. Through Art labs we took 5 children for this workshop where they gathered materials from the ground - waste, leaves, feathers, and more - to create unique collages. Lorenzo captured and guided the children to click portraits, merging everything together to create artwork from their imagination. The result? Extraordinary masterpieces! We partnered with to Coexist by Alia Bhatt. A platform created that highlights and works towards the issues of animal and ecological welfare. Our children worked their magic as these mini-planeteers shared their love for animals and nature through art! They made posters that they would put up in their communities during Diwali to prevent burning firecrackers.

Aiming to build skills in educators through a visual arts and social-emotional learning approach to equip them as Creative Visual Arts Facilitators for their students. Reach out to us! A training program for all educators! Aiming to build skills in educators through a visual arts and social-emotional learning approach to equip them as Creative Visual Arts Facilitators for their students. The program focuses on teachers' training, mirroring NEP's emphasis on empowering educators for effective teaching and recommends integrating art as an important part of classroom learning. We partner with non-profit organizations and schools to train educators in low-income communities for a 9-month period. Partner with us We provide our curriculum, tools, and resources to support this process. Our curriculum Impact is measured through assessments of educator and student growth throughout the year. Impact Report Our curriculum and resources are shared through Art Connect our easy to use WhatsApp bot Art Connect Artworks from our partner organizations' classrooms around the country!

Workshops that offer a safe and supportive environment for individuals of all ages to express themselves creatively through visual art and social-emotional learning-based activities. If you would like us to host an Art - a -Day Reach out to us here! Art-a-Day is our short-term engagement program offering art workshops that aim to give participants of all age groups an immersive and joyful experience while creating awareness of the need for Visual Arts and Socio-emotional Learning (SEL). We have organised art engagements in diverse spaces, including museums, art festivals, and various organisations. To date, we have organised workshops for 37 partners, engaging 3000+ participants in unique art experiences. Our workshops, inspired by artists and art forms, made art accessible for both adults and children. At the launch of Museum of Solution in December 2023, we organized a paper sculpture workshop where children reflected on space design and what it makes them feel. Exploring that spaces can be designed beyond mere boxes, they re-imagined and crafted sculptures of their favourite places using paper sculpting techniques. Their designs were reflective of their own interpretations of a playground, bedroom, or the city they call home. We facilitated a portrait workshop for young children attending the festival. They reflected on their personalities and how objects or symbols can be used to creatively represent them. Participants created fun whimsical self-portraits to express who they are as individuals. We organised workshops for SVP India’s Mumbai and Pune chapter where artist Henri Matisse and his iconic ‘Drawing with Scissors’ style was explored. In the immersive workshop, participants crafted paper collages about significant moments of their lives. We also sensitized them about the need of creativity, social emotional learning and arts in main stream education. For Pride Month, we facilitated a youth workshop that explored gender norms and representations through the medium of movie posters and how they shape our understanding of identity and sexuality. The youth re-created movie posters by creating a collage with imagery from old magazines and represented stories that were more gender equal, inclusive and stories from reality.

Your support can help create safe spaces for our students to help them creatively express themselves! Donate Here! How is my money used? As an organization, we intervene with schools and organizations to implement our unique program that currently works towards helping students embrace the "new normal" through creative expression and exploration within and in the world around them through visual arts learning. We enlighten our students' mindset by introducing them to the life of new modern artists and their works backed by strong curricular content creation and further help them engage in creativity and exploration within their own personal spaces using art. We greatly strive towards individual physical and emotional wellbeing, by strongly leveraging organizational development and growth; thereby socially and emotionally nurturing our team through support and personal development alongside the students we cater to. For more information, mail us at info@saturdayartclass.com

Impact Report Art Labs in Action: Impact Evaluation Report 2024-25 This study, conducted by Populi, reviewed by University of Pennsylvania GSE, and supported by Upadhyay Foundation, evaluates the effectiveness of the Art Labs Program in developing SEL skills, creativity, and art engagement among students. Read about the impact of our Art Labs program in this first third-party evaluation report! Read the report here! Art Labs in Action: Impact Evaluation Report 2024-25 Study Overview This study is an evaluation of the Art Labs Program run at Shankarwadi Mumbai Public School. This report aims to: Evaluate the Program’s effectiveness towards fostering SEL skill development and creativity Provide evidence-based recommendations for educational stakeholders on integrating arts into schools for under-served communities. The study used a mixed-methods approach utilizing quantitative data from observations and qualitative data from interviews and discussions. Secondary research and Program documents supplemented the analysis by providing necessary context. The Program outcomes from SArC’s theory of change and curriculum objectives informed the development of research instruments and evaluation framework. Key Findings The evaluation insights affirm the program’s effectiveness in developing key SEL skills among students, while also identifying opportunities to strengthen curriculum design, facilitation, and measurement for greater impact at scale. Higher-grade students who have spent 2-3 years with Art Labs demonstrate higher proficiency in SEL skills Early Grades show promising development in SEL Skills, with majority in 'Developing' category Middle Grades show gains in SEL Proficiency, especially in Confidence, Critical Thinking, and Communication Upper Grades excel in SEL Skills, reaching high proficiency in Critical Thinking and Communicatio n Qualitative insights, using classroom observations, field notes and interviews, suggest high levels of student engagement. Overall, the data suggests that student’s SEL competencies strengthen with age and continued engagement in the program. Fig: Areas of Evaluation Grade 5 students sharing about their artwork to the class Download your copy here

Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success! In the education ecosystem, as we all work towards ensuring our children receive the best and enjoy their journey in learning, at Saturday Art Class, the impact we have been able to create until today has been possible through meaningful partnerships we have created with many other non-profits, enterprises and schools across India over the years. Together, we have created impact and we are always to ready to do more! Our Partners