What are the benefits of a Fine Arts education? With the advent of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2000, extreme pressure has been put on schools to concentrate the majority of their efforts and resources on reading, math and science skills. Yet, NCLB also states that every child should be well-versed in the arts. Some research has shown that when…

This book is for art teachers looking for a new approach to the traditional lesson. The projects can be used at most grade levels. While the book's organization is content-centered, it is also strongly student-centered. The lessons are based on the elements and principles of design. New skills and techniques are introduced, and most of the lessons…

After providing a historical context for art education, this text explores the implications for art education from the broad themes found in art across the cultures. Discussions focus on how art education programs promote cross cultural diversity in art, affirm and enhance self-esteem and pride in students' cultural heritage, and address issues of…

A truly inspirational form of art is not always displayed on gallery walls. It can be found by looking out the window, down the street, at the edge of town, or even on the train tracks. This teacher finds it rare to hear people--except graffiti writers themselves--speak about graffiti as a form of art. Graffiti writing is usually equated with…

Students delight in making books. This bookmaking project merges the idea of sketchbooks with artist's books--books made by, and for, the artist in which ideas and memories get formulated and stored for later use or reminiscence. Young art students can be taught to appreciate the important qualities of sketchbooks. For many students, making a…

Discipline-based art education has received increased respect as a valuable component of the core curriculum. The arts integrate active learning, encourage non-linear thinking, and provide interdisciplinary connections. The National Standards for the Arts present clear, realistic levels of achievement and provide benchmarks of skills. Students…

This monograph presents the views acquired over an art educator's 40 years of teaching. Divided into four sections, the book's first section is a basic introduction to the purpose and intentions in writing the book. The second is on philosophical bases and derivative principles. This section contains four parts: (1) democratizing the range of…

Based on concepts of discipline-based art education, this instructional resource presents art experiences which use a variety of media to integrate art across the curriculum. Basic concepts of art are introduced in the first five lessons. The remaining 14 lessons are aimed at developing knowledge and skill bases in art processes, skills, media,…

This article presents four Idea-Sparkers that were submitted by Jason McKinney, a graduate student at Southern Mississippi University and a 1st-grade teacher at Pisgah Elementary in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. First is entitled, "Raceway in the Classroom." This activity can help increase children's fluency and ability to identify numerous…

Profound differences exist between the ways in which arts educators and artists personally value the arts and the rationales offered via arts advocacy campaigns for public arts support. The author argues that those discrepancies carry grave consequences for K-university arts education. The author describes means by which to better reconcile…

In this article, the authors describe the outcomes of a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) course that offered a pedagogical innovation called "Imagination Quest." This CPD course was a part of a 2-year project entitled Teaching to Reach Potential. Participants were all from Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools' (MCPS')…

In K-12 classrooms, as well as on the college and university level, the incorporation of digital games has played a vital role in the educational system. While introducing teachers to new fields, these digital games have been designed and implemented for the classroom and have shown positive results at a variety of educational levels. Cases on…

These activity/workbooks use drawings done in the style of great women artists in order to promote a knowledge of female art history through a variety of educational experiences. Volume 1 and 2 present 26 women artists (one for each letter of the alphabet) that can be used as an entire year's curriculum. Volume 1 features artists whose names begin…

These student materials and teacher lesson plans focus on presenting the fundamental knowledge necessary for mastering basic drawing skills. The devises that create the illusion of reality are introduced as concepts critical to the development of accurate, high-fidelity drawing. These structured materials encourage students to learn to draw…

This resource unit is designed to be integrated into a secondary school art foundation course. The unit is aimed at providing connections between the views and purposes of art and the students' environment. Connections are made between art and world-wide views of art cultures, communities, families, and the individual student. The unit lessons,…