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Look Before You Think: How To Appreciate a Painting
Students develop an elementary understanding of the history of art. They study the basic elements of a painting including perspective, composition, color, light and symbolism. They look at each selected painting and analyze it, moving...
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Shaping the View: Composition Basics
Students view images from the Metropolitan Museum of Art web site, and list the objects and figures in the image. They discuss the way their eyes move around the canvas and take note of where their eyes fall, follow and finish. Students...
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Exploring A Streetcar Named Desire
High schoolers investigate the dramatic elements of a Streetcar Named Desire. In this drama instructional activity, students explore the theme of the Tennessee Williams play as they read the play and watch performances of some of the...
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Noh Theater
Learners take a closer look at Japanese drama. In this Japanese culture lesson, students study the attributes of Noh theater and compare it western theater. Learners conduct independent research on the art form prior to acting out a Noh...
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Let's Get Critical!
Young scholars write a letter to a classmate recommending a favorite book and brainstorm ways in which a person would encourage others to read a book, focusing on specific elements of novels.
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Laurence Yep's, Dragonwings
Students discuss vocabulary words and compare definitions. They read chapters 6-9 of the novel, Dragonwings, and discuss point of view, and complete a plot diagram. Then they review the four types of conflict and identify the conflicts...
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Combating Corrosion
Students perform an experiment to show the chemical reactions that occur when metal corrodes. They apply the results of the experiment to the conservation efforts of art curators trying to restore an ancient Greek bronze. This lesson...
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Creating Comic Strips
Students recognize the elements needed to create a comic strip. In this comic strip instructional activity, student understand that comic strips need words and pictures. Students find differences and similarities in comic strips....
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Portrait of Nadine Dumas
Students explore a portrait and then create their own portrait as a gift. In this bust art lesson, students use model techniques to create a three dimensional bust portrait. Students analyze the elements of the design...
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Goodnight Goon
Students identify fictional story elements. In this reading comprehension activity, students read the book Goodnight Goon, which is a parody of Goodnight Moon, and discuss the story elements. Students use an included worksheet to record...
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Notating a Rainy Day
Young singers learn how to notate the rhythms and melodies of a familiar song using Kodaly hand signals and manipulatives. Individuals then create their own compositions and sing them using Kodaly notation.
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Adapting a Musical
Students transform literature into musical productions. In this integrated arts lesson, students discuss how musicals are written and produced. Students then select literature they are familiar with to adapt into musical productions.
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Rhythm & Improv: Jazz & Poetry
High schoolers analyze the elements of poetry and jazz. In this critical thinking skills lesson, students take a closer look at the rhyme, rhythm, alliteration, form, free verse, lyricism, and imagery that exist is jazz as well as...
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The Monkey Dance: Exploring Balinese Culture
Young scholars explore Balinese culture. In this Balinese integrated fine arts activity, students listen to a podcast of "The Monkey Dance," taking notes about important features of the dance. Young scholars participate in a jigsaw...
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Friendship Portraits
Students explore sculpture. In this instructional activity about sculpting, students create a portrait bust. Students choose a classmate to make a bust of and apply all of the necessary elements to their bust. Students will have a better...
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Arthur Miller and The Crucible
Young scholars investigate the dramatic elements of The Crucible. In this drama lesson, students explore the elements and themes of the Arthur Miller play as they read the play and watch performances of some of the acts. Young...
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Tall Tales Today
Young scholars explore the attributes of American tall tales. In this folklore lesson, students read several tall tales, describe the elements of tall tales, and then use hyperbole to write their own tall tales.
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Playing with History
Students consider the elements that make computer games compelling, then use these elements to develop game 'narratives' based on historic events.
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Taiwan on Shaky Ground
Students, in groups, examine how various elements of Taiwan's infrastructure were affected in the September 21, 1999 earthquake by analyzing a number of newspaper articles on the quake and its aftermath.
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Showing Good Taste
Students distinguish the important elements of well-written restaurant reviews by analyzing and evaluating reviews from The New York Times and by writing their own reviews of favorite dining locations.
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'Twasn't the Night Before Christmas
Students describe the elements that make up particular writers' styles. Small groups then choose an author, write something in his or her style, and invite other groups to play 'literary detective' in identifying whose style they have...
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To Freeze or Not to Freeze
Young scholars examine the non-verbal elements of a theatrical performance. They read an article, answer discussion questions, conduct Internet research, and stage frozen tableaux based on lines from Shakespeare's works.
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Teens on Screens
Students articulate the ways in which they use the Internet and envision and propose new uses for the Internet. They examine one teenager's vision and expression of teen culture and individual personality online by reading and...
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Laurence Yep's Dragonwings
Students read independently the novel, "Dragonwings," by Laurence Yep and make connections between a text and the world. They summarize, paraphrase, analyze and evaluate skimming and scanning techniques when reading a novel. Each student...