Explore how art education can contribute to a more just and sustainable planet. Making the case that ecopedagogy and eco-art can transform and enrich art education, Bertling introduces these two burgeoning movements and then outlines how they can be infused into K-12 art education. Seven innovative curricular strands are presented to help art…

This full-color resource will help educators teach about current art and integrate its philosophy and methods into the K-12 classroom. The authors provide a framework that looks at art through the lens of nine themes--everyday life, work, power, earth, space and place, self and others, change and time, inheritance, and visual culture--highlighting…

Writing lesson plans is often considered busywork, but it can be a useful path for discovering what is important about artmaking and teaching. This book shows teachers how to slow down, breathe, and linger over the process of unit and lesson plan writing to uncover how much this process can support them professionally, creatively, and personally.…

Digital culture and creativity are often framed as immaterial (Casemajor, 2015), distinct from traditional media, such as paint and clay, and divorced from the immediate, embodied, and political realities of the arts classroom. 3D printing troubles this distinction, providing a concrete way for students' digitally created artifacts to manifest in,…

Students of all ages can learn to think like artists! "Studio Thinking: The Real Benefits of Visual Arts Education" changed the conversation about quality arts education. This new publication shows how the eight Studio Habits of Mind and four Studio Structures can be used successfully with younger students in a range of socioeconomic…

In this article Christine Woywod contemplates what her students' artworks would look like if she taught in a way where art was transient, not about objects, but rather experiences. As an example, she describes experiencing an exhibit including interactive works by Nathaniel Stern where she got to jump and swat at projected words that floated past…

It's easy to see the connections between science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics (STEAM) in daily life, but they may not be so obvious in the classroom. This month's lessons allow students to explore the components of STEAM through a favorite art supply, the crayon, and a beloved American tradition, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day…

Engaging with the quilts of Gee's Bend offers a rich opportunity for students in grades four through eight to develop appreciation for pattern, rhythm, and innovation while learning about history, entrepreneurship, and political activism. By easily accessing print, film, and Internet resources teachers can include these vibrant quilts and…

This article describes how contemporary costumes, expressive techniques, and mixed media can take "the ordinary" out of figure studies. To pique student interest and create a meaningful figurative study, students are instructed to bring in their latest fashion accessories (hats, shawls, neck warmers, denim jackets, etc.), or shop the local thrift…

Suggesting that the annual museum field trip does not provide students with sufficient exposure to great works of art, the author advocates daily use of quality art reproductions in the classroom, supplemented by discussion, puppetry activities, and games. (SJL)

Each sixth-grade student contributed one square for a class Halloween quilt, made by printing with fabric crayons. Techniques are described. (RM)

Four art activities for high school students are described: (1) weaving using a vegetable sack; (2) creating kaleidoscope designs, from which students selected a unique, basic shape for a personalized belt buckle; (3) making boomerangs which, when thrown, return to the point of departure; and (4) constructing a mosaic in the school hall. (RM)

Images created with copy machines make children feel successful, as their work acquires the authority of being printed. Students can learn advanced processes like electrostatic image-making and can get involved in projects like making collages. They acquire an appreciation of design and of two-dimensional composition. (CS)

The work of master artists is an inspiring motivational source for students in their formative years. First and second grade students can create stylized athletes with pipe cleaners after the works of Alberta Giacometti. Fifth grade students can create paper sculptures in the style of Eugene Delacroix. (AM)

A shadow puppet project for elementary students is described. Making the puppets, the stage, the light source, and the performance are discussed. (RM)