Teaching Tolerance
Community Arts Showcase
An art showcase encourages class members to explore the themes of social justice and tolerance. They create an original artwork, engage in group discussions, and journal writing. The art gallery also provides a chance for families and...
J. Paul Getty Trust
Narrating a Family Tradition
After examining a piece of art, scholars discuss what they see, paying close attention to details and space. A read-aloud introduces the topic of family traditions. Pupils interview their family members about a tradition in preparation...
EngageNY
Preparation for Performance Task: Using Writing to Make Prompt Cards
Writing becomes dynamic in a presentation. Presenters transform a piece of writing they have already composed about the Little Rock Nine into a presentation. The focus is transferring ideas from their writing into short prompts on cards...
J. Paul Getty Trust
Historical Context: Discovering a Painting
Class members are presented with the image of a painting and asked to record their first impressions and analysis. They then research the time period in which it was painted and discuss how their research impacted their first impression...
Incredible Art
Painting with Dots - Kirkland Style
Pointillism is the focus of a lesson that asks young artists to compare Vance Kirkland's painting style with aboriginal dot art, and then to produce their own piece of dot art.
Dick Blick Art Materials
Glue Paint Symmetry Prints
Add watercolors to white glue, paint onto clear film paper, fold, open, and voila, a butterfly! This art project, designed for special education classes, but perfect for any classroom, is sure to engage your young artists.
Dick Blick Art Materials
Very, Very Simple Decorative Papers
Combine art and science with an activity that has kids gathering items from their environment to include in the decorative paper they create.
Curated OER
Lesson Plan: A Miniature Game
Art inspires art, as children work to understand artistic forms that come from the imagination. They analyze the installation piece, Fox Games and then discuss the design process. They then use clay to create imaginative dioramas,...
Curated OER
Simple Suminagashi
What a wonderful way to meld art and culture! Learners create art work in the Suminagashi style using this detailed lesson plan. This art form, which is Japanese in origin, employs ink to create beautiful results. This will be a hit with...
Dick Blick Art Materials
Simple Suminagashi
Go ahead. Spill the ink! Combine the study of art, social studies, and science with a Suminagashi (spilled ink) activity that produces "unique and unreproducible" works of art.
Curated OER
Exploring Optical Movement in Art
Students describe, represent and analyze patterns and relationships using shapes. They create simple geometric patterns. They demonstrate increasing technical ability and skill to complete visual arts assignments.
National Gallery of Canada
Reinventing the World
After examining and discussing Guy Ben-Ner's Treehouse Kit, a contemporary art installation with a sculptural and video element, small groups work together to create short silent films. The films should be built around a particular topic...
Dallas Symphony Orchestra
Musical Families
Planning a trip to the symphony? Prepare first-time attendees for the experience with overheads that identify the roles played by the concertmaster, conductor, musicians, and even the audience. The musical families are introduced and...
Curated OER
Visual Arts - Mexican Indian Yarn Painting
Have you ever seen a Mexican yarn painting? They're beautiful! Create a Mexican yarn painting with your class using this instructional activity. Start by discussing Mexico's culture and viewing different yarn paintings. After reading...
National Gallery of Canada
My World
Art can tell viewers about an artist's personality and background. Have your learners look at Inuit art and consider subject matter and how it relates to the artist and his or her world. The related art project requires pupils to create...
Curated OER
Lesson Plan: Newsflash!
Fox Games is an Installation piece that allows observers to walk through a clay environment. Kids analyze the piece, considering storytelling and perspectives of light. They imagine how different the piece would look at various times of...
SoundTree
When The Saints Go Marching In: A Lesson for Middle School Keyboard Lab Students
After listening to a variety of interpretations of "When the Saints Go Marching In," partners compose and then perform their own renditions of this classic before joining a full-class jam session.
Shakespeare in American Life
Performing Modernized Shakespeare
“All the world’s a stage…” What do Leonardo DiCaprio, Heath Ledger, and Kenneth Branagh have in common? They have all starred in modern adaptations of Shakespeare’s plays. After viewing a series clips from modern Shakespeare videos,...
Curated OER
Lesson: Elizabeth Peyton: Pictures of Rock Stars: The Imagined
Youth, fame, and beauty are marks of modern society. Artist Elizabeth Peyton has captured all three in her series of imagined rock star portraits. The class analyzes her use of technique, emotion, and imagination in each of six pieces,...
Curated OER
Three Arts in Retrograde
Middle schoolers make connections between music, the other arts, and other curricular areas. They compare characteristics of two or more arts within a particular historical period or style and cite examples from various cultures.
Curated OER
Talk About Art
In this visual arts worksheet, students view two examples of Christian Art and complete the five short answer questions by comparing the two art pieces.
Curated OER
3-D Texture Painting (Impasto)
A neat art project is on the horizon. Your class can experience impasto, or textured painting with this expressive art lesson. They design and then paint using the impasto technique. This is done by mixing toilet paper into the paint....
Curated OER
What Shapes Can You See?
Students investigate shapes in art. In this visual arts lesson plan, students examine the ancient Panamanian "Plaque" and identify the geometric shapes in the art piece. Students combine basic shapes to make an artistic picture of their...
National Gallery of Canada
Panoramic Landscapes
Combine landscape with collage to create unique art pieces. Class members examine works of art before creating their own pieces with photos of a special place. Learners create a panoramic image and add in figures.