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...

Sherlock Holmes had fantastic skills of observation. Your super sleuths will examine the pattern, rhythm, texture, and color of a painting to uncover the symbolism beneath. A great instructional activity, that incorporates...

Young scholars investigate different painting techniques by studying classic works of art.  For this art history lesson, students observe the famous Madonna and Child with Saints painting and describe the texture and images they...

Even the littlest learners can become art historians if they have the right training. For the instructional activity, your preschoolers discuss the piece Long Jakes as they point out all the details they notice. They discuss what...

Construction projects of any kind require learners to use spacial reasoning, creative thinking, and critical analysis skills. They design and make a twig/leaf structure out of natural and recycled materials. This project would be great...

Celebrate Eric Carle’s beloved children’s books, especially those about animals. Teachers and readers alike engage in Carle’s books as they explore the art and color in each of his stories, and how these elements support comprehension.

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...

Kids look at a beautiful work of art to practice grammar, make connections from life to art, and sketching. They identify all the parts of grammar they see in the image, discuss what they see and do on a picnic, and then draw an imaged...

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,...

An interesting presentation that shows the work of four masters. Learners view paintings of Van Gough, Picasso, Matisse, and Renoir and then express their opinions about the pieces of art. The final slide asks learners to choose their...

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...

Students imagine they are animals in the Palace Facade painting. In this Palace Facade lesson plan, students observe and discuss the geometric and organic shapes in the painting shown to them.

A silk rank badge was a symbolic emblem worn by high officials during the Qing Dynasty. Your class will get a chance to examine the details, symbolism, color, and design of such a badge as they make their own symbolic trading cards....

Fully analyze the elements of art and unexpected beauty in the William Merritt Chase's Still Life with a Fish. The class will examine the painting very closely, then use photography to express unexpected beauty in still life. This is a...

You can learn a lot from a robe, especially if that robe is from the Qing Dynasty. Examine the beauty and symbolism that covers a functional and piece of clothing entitled Winter Dragon Robe. The class will consider and analyze all...

Students examine plot and setting of Cinderella, and how it changes as it is translated into different cultures, discuss universal literary elements of the Cinderella story, and write narratives with original settings and plots...

After discussing the artistic elements and design process needed to construct the modern sculpture, Lao Tzu, kids get logical. They consider the purposeful use of space in the sculpture, design a modern piece for a specific space at...

High schoolers examine the grid in terms of a method of organization in our society as well as graphic design. In this "Making and Breaking the Grid" instructional activity, students design solutions to common problems and draw...

Enjoy the thrill of the movies with this ESL activity! Not only can learners talk about their favorite films, but in creating riddles about their chosen movies, they can practice the skills of context clues and deductive reasoning. This...

Middle and high schoolers explore the concepts of architectural rigidity. They analyze a variety of polygons, and explain why some shapes add more strength to structures than others. The PBS video, "Building Big," is utilized in this plan.

This worksheet provides a wonderful scaffold for those learning how to analyze art in a critical and thoughtful way. It describes what art historians do, then requires learners to view and analyze one of the listed works. Twelve...

Wouldn't it be great to be able to get inside an artist's mind, or be able to question the artists about who they are, why they create, and why they think their work is important?  An illustrative resource asks artists to provide...

Young scholars investigate similarities and differences between popular films made in Asia and those made in the West.