Curated OER
Roman Art, Architecture, and Engineering
There is no better tool to help you explain art or architecture than an image-filled slide show. Classic Greek art, architecture, and engineering are all described with excellent visual examples and text which defines each form by its...
Smithsonian Institution
Songs, Sounds and Stories from the Georgia Sea Islands
American music is the result of the influence of many cultures, including the traditions brought by the African slaves. Young scholars study the polyrhythms, the call-and-response format, and the vocal improvisations of the Gullah...
Curated OER
Shoes and the Backyard Landscape
Your shoes get a lot of mileage in familiar places. Represent the places you have traveled the most with an art project based on a print of Indian People Wear Shoes and Socks by Juane Quick-to-See Smith. Kids trace their shoes and...
Curated OER
La Raspa, Mexican Hat Dance, and Cinco De Mayo Celebration
Learn two dances that your class can perform at a Cinco De Mayo school celebration. This is really an outline and would be better used if there were plans for how to teach the dance steps. The idea is good to teach the cultural...
Curated OER
Visual Art: Independence Days Around the World
Students research patriotic holidays from around the world. After reading about their own country's independence day, they choose another country and examine the traditions and symbols associated with it. Using cardboard, ribbon, and...
Curated OER
Comparing Cultural Holidays
Third graders explore art that reflects their cultural background. In this writing and research lesson students compare and contrast the Halloween with El Dia de los Muertos. Students study the visual art of these holidays. Then students...
Curated OER
My Own Cultural Traditions
Students complete a worksheet on personal traditions. In this cultural traditions activity, students discuss what a cultural tradition is and why they are important to the members of the culture. Students distinguish between cultural...
Curated OER
The Roots of American Culture
Students explore the notion of culture and the influence of Latino culture on the U.S. They work in small groups to identify ways that Latino and non-Latino U.S. cultures have engaged in cultural 'cross-fertilization.'
Curated OER
Understanding Native American Culture
Ninth graders explore Native American culture. In this early Americans instructional activity, 9th graders will visit several stations around the room and examine native American artifacts then draw comparisons to other cultures. ...
Curated OER
A Nation of Many Cultures
Students create a presentation about themselves to share with the class. They include information from their family and their heritage. They compare and contrast their culture to their classmates.
Curated OER
Cultures and Cuisines WebQuest
Students create and present a powerpoint presentation. In this cultures and cuisines research lesson, students select a country, interview someone from that country and visit a restaurant from that country. Students complete...
Curated OER
Lesson Plan: Carving Through History
Peek into the art and history of ancient Mexico by analyzing the artifact Stone Serpent Heads. Learners examine images of the piece, discuss its origin, history, and significance. They experience the carving process by creating similar...
Curated OER
Lesson: Urban China: Contemporary China
The urbanization and consumerism of modern China is the hot topic up for critical analysis. Kids view a series of photographs that specifically describe Chinese modernization, urbanization, consumerism, and waste. They discuss each...
Curated OER
Studio Art Lessons Based on Latin American Arts
Study three of the basic principles of design: l) designs should create a rhythmic pattern made up of related shapes, 2) colors should be repeated so as to not force the eye to remain with a single part of the composition, and 3) a...
Curated OER
References to Antiquity in Visual Arts (1848 - 1914)
Examine the Latin and Greek language and civilization during the 19th century by exploring the mediums available then. Learners examine scenes related to Greek and Roman literature and compare and contrast them.
Smithsonian Institution
Braiding Rhythms: The Role of Bell Patterns in West African and Afro-Caribbean Music
Africans transported to the Caribbean as part of the transatlantic slave trade brought with them a rich tradition of music and dance. Four lessons teach young musicians the rumba clave rhythm, cascara rhythm, and the 6/8 bell patterns...
Curated OER
Family Origins and American Cultural Pluralism
Students explore, analyze and discuss family origins, special legacies, and racial/cultural groups in literature and art that exposes them to positive examples in African-American history and culture. They encounter examples from dance,...
Curated OER
VH1 AIDS: A Pop Culture History Lesson 3
Students investigate the relationship between music and culture, and how music conveys thoughts and emotions. They write their own song.
Curated OER
Costume Exploration
What a great lesson, upper graders are sure to love. They explore costume design and the relationships between theatre, culture, and history. They research three time periods, write a response about two of them, then create a composit...
Memorial Art Gallery
Learning to Look, Looking to Learn - Peeling Onions
Lilly Martin Spencer's "Peeling Onions" is the subject of a series of exercises that model for learners how to use the elements of art to read a painting. A series of worksheets focus viewers' attention on how Spencer uses...
Curated OER
Basket Making
Students create a basket. In this basket making lesson, students explore the Ojibway culture and discover the history of basket making. Students design and construct a basket.
UTSA Institute of Texas Cultures
Teaching Through Kamishibai and The Art of Chinese Calligraphy
Young learners discover kamishibai, a popular Japanese storytelling art, and explore how these Japanese folktales illustrate the country's cultural themes and values through discussion and storyboarding.
Curated OER
Art and Culture
Students compare and contrast the ways in which human figures are portrayed in rock art made by ancient Native American artists and in the drawings and paintings of historic European and American artists. They use images to identify...
Curated OER
Comparing Cultural Holidays
Students discover facts about the Mexican holiday, Day of the Dead. In this compare and contrast lesson, students explore Halloween and the Day of the Dead. Students create an alter to memorialize a family member or friend that has...