Discover the Arts at NAFA: Customised Workshops for Secondary School Students
At NAFA, we believe in nurturing creativity through immersive and hands-on experiences. Our customised workshops offer secondary school students a unique opportunity to explore the exciting world of design, visual arts, and performing arts.
Led by our passionate and experienced NAFA lecturers, these workshops are designed to be engaging, experiential, and tailored to your students’ interests. Whether it's crafting a design project, expressing through movement, or discovering the magic of performance, there's something for every aspiring young artist.
We warmly invite teachers to collaborate with us in organising these enriching experiences. To find out more or to plan a workshop, please reach out to us at [email protected] or call us at 6512 4071.
Let’s inspire the next generation of artists—together.
| Design Thinking Made Visible
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| Design Thinking
A beginner-friendly workshop to explore ideas and tackle simple problems through making, with a special emphasis on rendering one’s thinking visible by tracking reasons, assumptions, and evidence throughout the observe-define-ideate-prototype-test-refine process, so participants discover that good design goes far deeper than appearance.
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| Synopsis
| This workshop offers a gentle, hands-on introduction to design thinking as a way for beginners to explore ideas, respond thoughtfully to everyday problems, and learn by making things. Rather than focusing only on the steps of the process, special emphasis is placed on making thinking visible - a central practice that turns abstract reflection into something concrete and shareable.
Through a design challenge, participants will be guided through the creative process of observing, defining, ideating, prototyping, testing, and refining ideas using resources already at hand. They will pay close attention to the rhythms of divergent thinking, where possibilities are opened up, and convergent thinking, where thoughtful choices are made. By writing, sketching, and externalising their ideas at each stage, learners make their thinking visible, question assumptions, and refine their decisions. Participants will learn that good design goes beyond aesthetics; it involves making thoughtful, evidence-informed choices visible so that ideas can be examined, improved, and translated into stronger outcomes.
This approach invites curiosity, honesty, and collaborative growth - qualities that serve creators well beyond any single workshop.
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| Think Like A Designer
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| Speculative Thinking
Explore the heart of design thinking by first observing how everyday objects are shaped by thoughtful decisions, then stepping into the year 2050 to invent future-focused creations in small groups - brainstorming, sketching, and prototyping with simple materials, before sharing their ideas and discovering the creative problem-solving and visual communication skills central to fields like Fashion, 3D Design, and Design Media.
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| Synopsis
| ‘Think Like a Designer’ is a hands-on workshop designed to introduce participants to the creative process of design thinking. Through a short interactive activity, “See Like a Designer”, participants begin by examining everyday objects and exploring how design decisions influence the way products look, function, and communicate.
Building on this idea, participants will then imagine themselves as designers in the year 2050, tasked with creating a new object, wearable item, or visual concept that improves everyday life in the future. Working in small groups, participants will brainstorm, sketch, or prototype their ideas using simple craft materials.
The workshop concludes with a short sharing session where groups present their designs. Through this experience, participants gain insight into how designers generate ideas, solve problems creatively, and communicate visually, skills developed in programmes such as Fashion, 3D Design, and Design Media.
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| Make It Yours
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| Contemporary Craft / Object-based Design
Build small personal object from wire, air-dry clay, or both, guided only by the open invitation to make a tiny thing that truly feels like their own, discovering through direct experience how working with a material’s natural character, rather than against it, leads to meaningful making, while leaving every participant with something genuinely theirs regardless of prior experience.
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| Synopsis
| Students make a small personal object from wire, air-dry clay, or both - guided by one brief: make a tiny thing that feels like it belongs to you. No template, no right answer.
Along the way, they encounter a foundational idea in craft practice: that materials have a personality, and that working with what a material does naturally - rather than against it - is where the most interesting making happens. It is a simple idea, but participants arrive at it through their own hands rather than through instruction.
The workshop is designed to be accessible regardless of prior art or design experience and works well across all secondary levels. The open brief accommodates a wide range of working styles - students who are decisive dive straight in; students who need more direction have a clear scaffold available. Everyone leaves with something they made that is genuinely their own.
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| Design Your Hideout
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| Spatial Design
Craft and personalize a private miniature interior, 'this is your space, no one enters unless you invite them', revealing how thoughtfully chosen elements silently express identity, atmosphere, and character through hands-on discovery, accessible and engaging for learners of every level regardless of prior experience.
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| Synopsis
| Participants design and personalise a miniature interior around one brief: this is your space, nobody else is allowed in unless you say so. Make it feel like yours.
The workshop surfaces a deceptively simple idea - that space communicates identity without saying a word - and lets students discover it through their own design decisions rather than through explanation. The choices they make, and the ones they instinctively avoid, reveal how much they already understand about atmosphere and character.
It works well across all various educational levels and requires no prior design background. Participants with strong visual or aesthetic sensibilities find an immediate home in the brief; participants who are less confident are supported by the personal framing, which removes the pressure of getting it "right."
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| Fashion Design By Making
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| Fashion Making
Discover fashion design through pattern making as a way of thinking and prototyping, transforming simple 2D shapes by cutting, folding, and reshaping them into 3D quarter-scale paper garments, with a focus on how each decision shapes form, volume, and structure.
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| Synopsis
| In this hands-on workshop, fashion design is explored through the intimate language of pattern making, not merely as a technical skill, but as a conceptual way of thinking, seeing, and prototyping ideas into wearable form.
Participants begin with flat, two-dimensional shapes and discover how these humble planes can be transformed into three-dimensional garments. Through deliberate cutting, folding, and reshaping of simple pattern templates, participants will construct delicate paper garments at quarter scale. Each decision, every notch, dart, curve, or seam, becomes an act of inquiry: how does this line alter the way fabric drapes over the body? How does that fold give birth to volume, movement, or silhouette?
The emphasis lies not in perfection, but in the process itself. As you assemble your quarter-scale wearable prototype, you will witness firsthand the intimate dialogue between two-dimensional thinking and three-dimensional reality. This tactile journey reveals the architecture hidden within every garment and cultivates a deeper sensitivity to material, proportion, and the poetry of construction.
Whether you are new to fashion or seeking to refresh your creative foundations, this workshop offers a contemplative space to slow down, experiment boldly, and develop a more intuitive understanding of how garments come into being. Come prepared to think with your hands and discover the quiet power of pattern making as both method and muse.
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| From Everyday Realities To Runway: How Fashion Designers Find Ideas And Shape Them Into Compelling Collection
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| Concept, Fashion & A.I.
Discover how fashion designers transform everyday realities and personal observations into original concepts, using limited inspiration to create compelling mood boards and runway imagery through thoughtful hand-sketching and rigorous editing.
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| Synopsis
| Participants will explore how professional fashion designers draw inspiration from the textures of daily life : people, places, stories, and personal encounters, rather than chasing fleeting trends or surface appearances. Fashion, at its heart, is a deeply human endeavour, grounded in purpose and genuine observation.
An initial examination on how designers transform ordinary realities into original creative concepts will be made. Participants will use a single, carefully chosen moment of inspiration as a spark, gathering references and exploring possibilities, before setting it aside to focus on their own vision. The real work then unfolds through thoughtful sketching by hand, where abstract feelings and observations are carefully translated into coherent visual themes.
From there, the workshop will move into building mood boards that bring together narrative and aesthetic harmony, refining these into powerful imagery suitable for the runway. True creativity reveals itself in the editing: the patient, decisive choices that trim away the excess, sharpen the focus, and elevate the work to something meaningful and distinctive.
This workshop nurtures thoughtful, innovative designers who value both fresh possibilities and the irreplaceable human touch. By balancing openness to new tools with rigorous personal discernment, participants leave with a stronger sense of their own creative voice and a deeper appreciation for the craft of turning life into fashion.
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| Design A Dress
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| Actualization of the design using AI application.
Discover the quiet strength of simplicity in garment creation, drawing from personal inspiration and collage to build expressive designs using fundamental shapes, while nurturing intuition, spatial awareness, and bold creativity that challenges traditional fashion boundaries.
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| Synopsis
| In this workshop, participants explore the transformative power of simplicity in garment creation. Drawing directly from personal inspiration and collage explorations, participants learn to visualise and construct garments using fundamental shapes as their primary building blocks.
Emphasising creative intuition over complexity, the workshop nurtures spatial awareness, imaginative confidence, and innovative pattern-making. Through hands-on experimentation, participants discover how restrained forms can yield sophisticated, expressive designs that challenge conventional fashion boundaries.
At NAFA|UAS, FOAD, this approach reflects our commitment to thought-provoking workshop that empower emerging designers to elevate their craft with originality and purpose.
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| Fashion Branding And AI: Understanding Brands Through Products And Creative Concept Development
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| Fashion & Branding
A hands-on introduction to fashion business and marketing by exploring how brands across luxury, premium, and mass-market categories express their identity through signature products, starting with a matching activity that builds understanding of positioning, target audiences, and visual language, before guiding groups to develop original product concepts for chosen brands and reflect on creative and strategic possibilities in the industry.
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| Synopsis
| This workshop introduces participants to key ideas in fashion business and marketing through an engaging, hands-on exploration of fashion brands. participants will first be exposed to a range of brands across different market categories, such as luxury, premium, and mass-market, and learn how brands communicate identity through iconic products. Through a matching activity, participants will identify and connect well-known products to their corresponding brands, developing an understanding of brand positioning, target market, and visual identity.
Building on this foundation, the workshop will then introduce an AI component in which participants work in groups to create a new product concept for a selected brand using generative AI. This segment encourages students to think critically about branding, consumer appeal, market category, and product development while also introducing them to how AI can be used as a creative and strategic tool within the fashion industry.
The workshop is designed to be both educational and interactive, allowing participants to move beyond passive observation and into analysis, discussion, and idea generation.
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Art Teaching| Title | Creative Design |
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| Outline | This workshop aims to introduce participants to a set of design principles through a range of activities, images and worksheets. Participants will share their personal responses and interpretation through classroom facilitation.
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| Duration | 2 hours |
| Class Size | 25 |
Fine Art| Title | Embracing The Charcoal Dust |
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| Outline | The Embracing The Charcoal Dust Workshop introduces students to visual composition through the principles of positive and negative space The workshop encourages students to practice drawing fundamentals with experimental interpretations of the digital space as a theme. The workshop emphasises communication and collaborative work (key 21st Century skills) in pairs/groups to create an artwork.
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| Pre-Workshop Requirement | Items that the students should bring for the workshop:
• Cartridge Drawing Paper (at least A3 size), 1 piece/student.
• 2 pieces of old handkerchief, cloth or rag to be used to dust charcoal dust/student.
• 1 face mask/student.
• To wear an old T-shirt or apron over their school uniform as the charcoal dust will likelyb settle/dirty the clothes.
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| Materials for Workshop | • Vine or Willow Charcoal sticks (5 – 7 mm thickness): 25 to 50 sticks
• Kneaded Eraser: 10 pieces
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| Duration | 2 hours minimum |
| Class Size | 20 pax maximum |
| Title | A Day In The Life Of A NAFA-UAS Dance Student |
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| Outline | Through the observation of NAFA’s conservatoire-styled dance training and performance repertoire, you will be introduced to NAFA students’ life as a full-time dance student and the hallmark of the diploma programme at School of Dance. You will also learn how the dance programme/ curriculum has helped to shape their journey as performing artists through the experience of a dance workshop. Come and discover the excitement as a dancer at NAFA UAS!
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| Who Is It For | Students who have:
1. An interest in Dance
2. An interest in knowing what to expect if studying Dance at tertiary level
3. A desire to obtain a higher education qualification in Dance
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| Duration | 2.5 hours |
| Class Size | 25 |
| Title | Acting, Actors, and How to Be One
An Introductory Workshop on the Craft of Acting |
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| Outline | What does it mean to be an actor? How do you bring a character to life? Whether you’re a beginner curious about acting or an aspiring performer looking to sharpen your skills, "Acting, Actors, and How to Be One" is the perfect starting point.
This hands-on workshop explores the fundamentals of acting, from understanding stage presence and emotional connection to developing strong character work. Through engaging exercises, games, improvisation, and scene work, participants will learn the essential tools of an actor—body, voice, imagination, and intention—while gaining confidence in performance.
Led by an experienced theatre practitioner, this session will introduce key acting techniques and insights into the craft, helping participants step into the world of performance with creativity and authenticity. Whether you’re looking to improve self-expression, enhance storytelling skills, or simply explore the magic of theatre, this workshop will unlock the actor within you. The workshop also includes a 30 min Q&A to answer your questions on why Theatre is useful for a arts and non-artistic career!
No prior experience needed—just curiosity, enthusiasm, and a willingness to play!
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| Duration | 2 hours |
| Class Size | 25 |