Many people believe that art belongs in schools. But why? Because, “The study of drama, dance, music, and the visual arts helps students explore realities, relationships, and ideas that cannot be conveyed simply in words or numbers,” stated Arne Duncan, Secretary of Education 2011, per the Odyssey Online.
How to Integrate the Arts Into Your Classroom
If you are a teacher who believes the arts belong in schools, you are likely looking for ways to integrate the arts into your classroom. Here are a few ways to immerse your students in the arts, according to the Teaching Channel:
- Encourage speaking, listening, and vocabulary development skills.
- Clarify thoughts, ideas, and feelings by drawing and labeling.
- Encourage role playing.
- Create opportunities for students to perform.
Find out how specifically to do this here.
You Can Bring the Museum Into Your Art History Classroom
If you teach art history, art is your passion. Do you ever wish your students could visit all the art museums you have been to? They may never actually visit these sites, but you can bring the museums to them. The simplest way to do this is by using Google Arts and Culture and Google Street View. These tools allows students to view the interior and exterior of various museums.
There are other ways to bring art museums to your classroom. They include:
- Scheduling a Google Hangout with a museum curator or director.
- Having a local artist visit your classroom. Ask students to prepare any questions they may have in advance.
Another way to bring the art museum to your classroom is by having students participate in interactive art games.
Interactive Art Games for Students
Looking for some interactive games that will familiarize your students with art? “Some museum and gallery websites also contain interactive games that can be played individually (on tablets), or as a whole group. Using the Art Institute of Chicago’s website as another reference, they designed the ‘Curious Corner’ site for students to learn about artworks through games, such as matching, designing, and following along with stories. Students can design masks, create a Cornell shadow box, and match faces to the paintings,” wrote a contributor to Stepping Stones.
Destination Modern Art is another interactive game your students might enjoy. It is offered by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. This tool visits a number of popular modern art pieces housed in the museum.
SegPlay Online may be a great interactive game for your students. SegPlay Online is a Facebook-based art game that enables students to digitally “paint” major works of art by number. This not only familiarizes them with the paint-by-number technique, but also with classic art pieces.
How Do You Include the Arts In Your Curriculum?
Do you believe the arts belong in schools? If so, how have you integrated them into your curriculum? Other readers will benefit from your ideas, so please share your tips in the section below.
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- Celebrating Over 100 Years of Christmas Lights
Be an Artist in 2 minutes with Segmation SegPlay® Online (see more details here)
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