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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What's in a Picture? An Introduction to Subject in the Visual Art

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners discuss the subject and meaning of examples of visual art. They analyze various paintings found on the Metropolitan Museum of Art website, answer discussion questions, complete online interactive activities, and write an essay.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Art Criticism: Understanding Wayne Thiebaud's Salads, Sandwiches, and Desserts

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Analysis consists of an understanding and interpretation of evidence and elements found in any number of expressive mediums. Upper graders critique the work of American Realist Wayne Thiebaud through a series of excellent guided...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan: A Bird's Tale

For Teachers K - 5th
Who wouldn't love to get a letter from a blue bird? Elementary art enthusiasts analyze the social and historical context of Ason Yellowhair's Navajo piece, Bird and Cornstalk Rug. They examine the construction and images on the rug...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Skin Fruit: Propaganda of the Deed

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Art can express acts of injustice and move society to action. Upper graders analyze contemporary art relating to specific moments in history. They discuss propaganda, anarchy, sociology, and violence as activism. After researching and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan: Before and After a Moment in Time

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Think about a moment, frozen in time. Now take a critical look at the painting, Better, Homes, Better Gardens. This painting works to provide learners the opportunity to analyze art, critique artist's choices, and write a story inspired...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Emory Douglas: Here and Now: Looking at Contemporary Struggle

For Teachers 9th - 12th
After looking into the life, art, and social contributions of artist Emory Douglas, learners analyze several social art pieces. They use Emory Douglas as an example of social art, then consider 10 other pieces. They write a paper...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Tomma Abts: Abstract Painting

For Teachers 9th - 12th
One must first learn how to analyze art before they can properly respond to it. Here, young analysts examine six abstract pieces in a systematic and formal way. They then respond to one of the pieces in either a poem or an essay. An...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: I Am the Wall

For Teachers 6th - 12th
The Maya created amazing stone carvings and sculptures, but what were they for? Kids analyze the significance and purpose of a Maya stela and then write a creative piece. They imagine they are the stela, and write a story about what life...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Before You Go...Travel Recommendations from the Experts!

For Teachers K - 5th
Here is a lesson plan that sounds like a lot of fun. Kids discuss the artistic elements and motives for the painting, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. To get the scope and scale of this oversized masterpiece, they use butcher paper and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Snake Handling

For Teachers K - 5th
Are the studies of art and archeology connected? You bet they are! Young scholars research the ancient temples of Mexico by visiting an archaeology site. They describe the various temples they see, taking note of shapes, stairs, details,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan: Letting Go

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Why would an artist destroy his own work? Kids examine the Malagan practice of creating and then destroying art. They talk about the cultural and spiritual significance of this practice, as well as how it relates to consumerism in...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What is Art?

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students become familiar with the art and architecture and history of the Chicago World's Fair.  In this public arts project lesson plan, students compare and contrast fine art and public art through a study of the exhibits at the...
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Lesson Plan
J. Paul Getty Trust

Looking and Learning in the Art Museum — Lesson 1

For Teachers 6th - 12th
To prepare for a field trip to a local art museum, art class members journal their initial reactions to a reproduction of the work they will focus on during their visit. The whole class then considers the artistic elements in the piece...
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Lesson Plan
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National Endowment for the Humanities

The Metamorphoses and Later Works of Art: A Comparison of Mythic Imagery

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
In a lesson on The Metamorphoses, scholars compare how graphic artists use mythic imagery to represent Ovid's tales. Each group selects a work of art paired with Ovid's version of a myth and compares how both present the story.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: After Nature: Dystopia and Detournement

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Werner Herzog's film, Lessons of Darkness is the topic of this lesson on art, politics, and culture. Learners discuss the concepts of utopia, dystopia, detournment, and Scorched Earth then compose a paper which describes dystopian reality.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Elizabeth Peyton: The Self in the Other's Image: Portraiture and Identity

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Art, identity, and an imaginary community, three components that should make for an interesting lesson. Critical thinkers explore and evaluate the work of contemporary artist, Elizabeth Peyton. They discuss her use of subject and art to...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Looking Closer: The Artwork of Shinique Smith

For Teachers 9th - 12th
A critical discussion regarding the nature of Shinique Smith's second-hand clothing art is the foundation for the instructional activity. Critical thinkers fully analyze the meaning behind her work, taking close consideration of where...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Urs Fischer: Controlling our Logic, Metaphors, and Semantics

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Kids use poetry and contemporary art to start thinking about logic and personal expression. They read Sylvia Plath's poem "Metaphor," and critically examine the art of Urs Fischer. After working though a few logic problems they write...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Urs Fischer: Reviving the Past Art Movements

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Seven major abstract art movements are analyzed by learners in groups. Each group analyzes various works by determining which work belongs to which movement. They then read Flatland, engage in an art and literary analysis discussion,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Text Messages

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Can a neon sign be considered art? Kids consider two different works that use neon text as the basis for conveying artistic social messages. They then analyze a truism from Jenny Holzer's web site that holds meaning to them personally....
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Urs Fischer: Your Choice: Reality or Illusion?

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Young analysts write a comparative essay, but about what? They compose a paper based on several critical discussion about reality and illusion, and how both are blurred in art. They analyze several theatre pieces that exemplify Brechtian...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Art Critic for a Day!

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Middle schoolers practice evaluating art by creating a research project and presentation. They use the Internet and library to discover a piece of art or artist whom they feel has an impact on the world of art. Next, they create a...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Step into the Painting: Social Studies, Literature, and Art

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Travel back in American history to the era of slavery and abolition. After reading about the Underground Railroad, young historians examine a painting depicting the event, and write a narrative from the point of view of a person in the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson: Dongducheon: A Walk to Remember, A Walk to Envision: Interpreting History, Memory, and Identity

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Cultural discourse can start through a variety of venues. Learners begin to think about how our minds, memories, and identities shape our attitudes toward culture and history. They analyze seven pieces from the Dongducheon art exhibit...

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