This chapter shares a suite of collaborative artmaking projects, designed to use Arts-based inquiry through an a/r/tographical lens to enable deep learning and the development of pedagogical content knowledge. These projects are underpinned by a desire to provide authentic and engaging learning experiences for Visual Arts pre-service teachers in a…

School bullying is a complicated aspect of violence. It can be difficult for teachers to identify bullying and hard for students to report. This can include behaviors that are "offensive, abusive, malicious, insulting, and/or intimidating" (Quigg, 2011, p. 1). Some students struggle with bullying in the classroom and in the general…

For this Instructional Resource, the author interviewed contemporary sculptor Michael Beitz, who uses art to explore the role of designed objects in human communication and emotional experience. This column was written in response to calls for using Enduring Understandings/Big Ideas (National Coalition for Core Arts Standards, 2013; Stewart &…

This article reports the results of a quartile analysis of the "2008 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Visual Arts Report Card." The analysis was made from original datasets supplied by the National Center for Education Statistics. It focuses on 8th-grade students who were currently taking art or recently had taken art.…

Art educators can "critique" senseless violence--mistreatment, exclusion, intimidation, bullying, violation, abuse, corruption, murder, and war--by unleashing the power of students' creativity. In this article, the author, sharing her philosophical context, discusses how art is preventative medicine with the power to transform the cycle…

Despite the significant role of pottery in preserving cultural identity and providing a source of livelihood to the people of Nanumba, their artistic development of pottery production has been stagnant. This has resulted in low patronage of their products, which is further accentuated by the influx of the plastics industry on the market. This in…

Creative youth development (CYD) is a dynamic area of community arts education that successfully bridges youth development and arts education. CYD is an intentional, holistic practice that combines hands-on artmaking and skill building in the arts with development of life skills to support young people in successfully participating in adolescence…

Students often have a hard time equating time spent on art history as time well spent in the art room. Likewise, art teachers struggle with how to keep interest in their classrooms high when the subject turns to history. Some teachers show endless videos, with the students nodding sleepily along to the narrator. Others try to incorporate small…

Masks can represent so many things, such as emotions (happy, sad, fearful) and power. The familiar "comedy and tragedy" masks, derived from ancient Greek theater, are just one example from mask history. Death masks from the ancient Egyptians influenced the ancient Romans into creating similar masks for their departed. Masks can represent many…

The purpose of this study was to explore the anxiety and stress-reducing effects of drawing, using different drawing materials by promoting the development of student confidence. The drawing activities were designed to foster the exploration of identity, emotion, and sense of self, while encouraging the exploration of materials and mark making.…

This qualitative study looks at how an art studio run by children in crisis impacts what we can learn about art and relationships. Room 13, an art studio on school grounds managed by children ages 7-11 years old, began in Scotland in the 1980's and is now worldwide. Room 13 young artists manage the studio, raise funds, and even hire an adult…

Like a tapestry woven with one outstanding thread from beginning to end, the author's forty-year tenure as an art educator has its golden thread in her Van Go art outreach project. Quite literally, she takes students in a "van" and they "go," mostly on dirt roads, taking art to rural schools in Idaho, some of which have no more…

The earliest teapots are known for their fine clay texture and thin walls. They were made from purple clay that had a natural color anywhere from light buff to deep maroon once fired. In the 1970s, novelty teapots were being made, with the vessels resembling animals and people. In these humorous designs, the tea was poured from the animals' noses…

Dallas artist Jon Flaming's deep love of Texas is evident in his paintings and sculpture. Although he has created one sculptural Texas theater, his work primarily showcases old Texas barbershops, vacant homes, and gas stations. In this article, the author describes how her students, inspired by Flaming's works, created three-dimensional historical…

As a middle school art teacher, the author has learned that it is difficult to get to know students in just one quarter. At her school, each student in grades six through eight takes one quarter of art every year. This means she has roughly nine weeks to teach them content, proper use of tools and media, and art history. The author describes a…