The visual arts offer a unique opportunity for students to explore their creative, intuitive, and imaginative talents. Art making involves time management, creativity, tactile development, problem solving and tapping into deeper thoughts and emotions. It is essential for human development, especially in young minds. Portfolio Preparation offers a deeper study and investigation into advanced skills and focuses more on the overall creative process.  Students will gain a high level of drawing and painting skills by focusing on the detailed processes associated with creation of art.  After focusing on advanced skills in drawing, painting, and printmaking, students will focus on the advanced stages of the creative process of given topics, which will include proposals, sketches, mockups, completed works, and both individual critiques and class critiques.  Creation of a focused, sustained portfolio topic later in the year will help to create either a portfolio ready to be used as a college entry portfolio, or as a stepping stone into their sustained investigation for AP Art.