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Even in this "back-to-basics" teach-to-the-tests era, most educators recognize the value of the arts in fostering brain development, creativity and thinking skills. When it comes to integrating the visual arts into school curricula, two barriers are often cited: lack of experience in teaching art and budget constraints.
Art in Action, a California-based nonprofit organization, addresses those concerns with a reasonably-priced, comprehensive online curriculum and lesson-specific art supplies. They provide the content, training and support to classroom teachers, and the teachers make it their own.
"Ninety-eight percent of teachers say they lack confidence to teach art, and many schools cut art instruction so they can focus on ‘the basics,'" writes director Judy Sleeth. "At Art in Action, we believe that art is basic."
Sleeth, an art teacher, founded Art in Action in 1982 when her daughter was entering kindergarten and Proposition 13 was gutting art programs in California public schools. Incorporated in 1999, its curriculum is now used in 228 schools around the world. The largest concentration is still in California, but nine schools in Washington state use it, including John Muir Elementary in Kirkland, Tillicum Elementary in Lakewood, St. Michael School in Olympia, Odyssey High School in SeaTac and the Puyallup Arts Club enrichment program.
The online studies, launched in 2009-10, are aligned with national Standards for Visual Arts Content and can be easily integrated with language arts, math, science, social studies and music curriculum. There are nine program levels arranged into three groups: Primary (grades kindergarten to two), Intermediate (grades three to five) and Advanced (grades six to 12). The primary group's three topics are "Art around the World," "Art Tells a Story" and "The Artist's Vision." The three intermediate topics are "Perspective in Art," "Modern Art," and "American Art." Advanced students study "Ancient Art," "Renaissance Art" and "Art and the American Experience." Each of these nine programs has 12 lessons, for a total of 108 available lessons.
The culturally diverse curriculum spans 19,000 years of art history, from cave paintings through African/Greek/Roman/Chinese/Indian/Japanese cultures, to contemporary American artists. Each lesson is based on a masterpiece by a great artist, with works including portraits, landscapes, still lifes and abstracts. Students look at the artworks projected on a screen or mounted as prints or even viewed on iPads or cell phones. They analyze the work in a guided, open-ended discussion, learning about the artist, the style and the principles of art, such as perspective or color theory. The curriculum handbook and the online lessons provide teachers with questions and descriptions of concepts and terms to guide successful discussions.
Students then make their own artwork inspired by the artists, styles and techniques they've seen. The curriculum handbook provides detailed, recipe-style directions for guiding successful projects, including material lists and set-up directions. Teachers or parent docents can provide the materials or buy the supply boxes provided by Art in Action. Each lesson is 45 to 90 minutes long. Teachers can do one long lesson or divide it into two 45-minute sessions – one discussing the masterpiece and one doing the art project. Schools are encouraged to put on an art show in the spring, and information is provided to help teachers and parent volunteers organize it.
The license fee is $200 per class per grade, and gives access to 12 lessons and online and/or in-person, hands-on training for teachers and parent docents. Homeschool parents can buy each 12-lesson program module for $39.99. Complete art supplies – pre-cut, counted and labeled by lesson – plus paints, papers, curriculum guides and masterpiece reproductions cost $399 for 24 students or $489 for 30 students. The art boxes are not available in smaller amounts.
For more information, including research on why art is important in education, a huge list of art websites and resources, and directions on getting started with an Art in Action curriculum in your school, call 1-888-566-1982 or visit www.artinaction.com.
