Using Museum Resources in the Classroom

Over the years, I have loved bringing art and artifacts into the curriculum and using them as part of student learning. I feel that artistic examination and expression is essential in opening up and forming pathways for thinking, empathy, and communication. It has taken me a while to figure out how to integrate artwork into the curriculum in a meaningful way and find time to research and collect resources. I have found that the Smithsonian Learning Lab is a wonderful resource and starting place. If you haven't had the chance yet to explore it, I encourage you to do so. 

When looking for resources either on the Learning Lab or in other places, it's good to have some questions in mind to guide your thinking about why you are choosing particular pieces or artists.

• Look for pieces that are "juicy" or challenging for your students. In other words, think about what will have them stop and think for a bit, consider another perspective, or have to reason with evidence. Collect a wide range to meet the needs of the students in front of you.
• Consider what kind of thinking you'd like students to engage in. This will help you figure out which thinking routine (or routines!) to use. I find it helpful sometimes to start with a basic routine such as See, Think, Wonder to warm up, and then move on from there. The Project Zero Toolbox is a helpful resource when trying to figure out routines.

• Consider your purpose for sharing this work. Is there something in the artwork that speaks to a part of your curriculum? Is there something about the artist that you want to highlight? 
• Think about student interactions with the piece and each other. Do you want to examine the piece as a whole group? Would small groups work better? Do you want students to all use the same piece or do you want student small groups to each have a different piece and consider the connections? 
• Think about how you want to share the piece. Do you want to project the image on the board? Learning Lab has magnifying tools that allow users to zoom in and out. Do you want to print out a photo of each piece for students to be able to have their own copy? If using the Learning Lab, will you create student accounts for them? How will students record their thinking? Here are two examples of how I have had students record their thinking in the past.

On Google Docs, with a teacher recording student thinking.

Printed out on paper with students recording their steps in different colors.

• Remember it's ok to not know EVERYTHING about a piece. As students ask questions about either the artist or artwork, record them and find out the answers together!

It takes time to build collections and research artists, but it is worth it in the end. Before you know it, you will have lots of collections that you can draw from!