Sunday, November 29, 2015

Art and Music Resources for Educators

This collection of resources was compiled in 2008, as part of studies related to the Masters of Education program at Vermont College (Union Institute and University), and is republished here for reference. 

###


ArtsConnectEd. (2005). “Art Gallery.” Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Walker Art Center. Retrieved March 21, 2008 from
http://www.artsconnected.org/art/
This site documents over 1600 images of artifacts, and background data, found in the collections of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and Walker Arts Center. This archive is searchable, with access to over two hundred library items available online, as well as a small collection of corresponding K-12 lesson plans.

Art Institute of Chicago. (2008). Collection Holdings. Retrieved March 20, 2008 fromhttp://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artists
This site represents the holdings of the Art Institute of Chicago, in a database that is searchable by genre, title, artist name, or geographic region. This site provides biographical information on artists, as well as related events and external links to themes in visual art. 

Asia Society. (2002). “Art and Creative Writing.” Asian Art Outlook Teacher Resources. Retrieved March 18, 2008 fromhttp://www.askasia.org/features/AsianArt/lessons.writing.htm
This lesson plan utilizes online images from the Rockefeller Collection of Asian Art. Students are offered writing prompts on each of six images of artifacts, from Japan, Chine, and the Indian Subcontinent. Historical and cultural background is provided for each image.

Chapman, J. (2007). A Treatise on the Aesthetics of Symmetry. Retrieved March 17, 2008 fromhttp://home.earthlink.net/~jdc24/symmetry.htm
This site provides useful visual and textual explanations of the appeal of symmetry in art and design. Rotation, translation, reflection aid in a discussion of symmetrical ‘operations,’ as a criteria of a viewer’s ‘interest level’ is established. This resource may be used to enliven a discussion of repetition and new methods of revision in poetry.

Dharkar, A. & E. Flaherty. (2007). Impressionist Artwork. Retrieved March 14, 2008 fromhttp://www.adobe.com/education/instruction/adsc/pdf/dc_lesson_impressionism.pdf
This short lesson plan employs digital cameras and Adobe Photoshop; students review concepts of “light, surface, color, and capturing fast-fleeting moments” at work in impressionism, as they manipulate their own digital photography. This may be used as an introduction to advanced methods of descriptive writing.

Getty Trust. (2008). “Grade-by-Grade Guide to Building Visual Arts Lessons.” J. Paul Getty Museum. Retrieved March 21, 2008 from http://www.getty.edu/education/for_teachers/building_lessons/guide.html
This site contains detailed instructions for constructing lesson plans about visual arts materials. Separate grade-specific guides offer learning goals, prompts for student discussion, and suggestions for art projects to introduce. A handful of example lessons are provided as well. This information may be used in the development of lesson plans for use in the language arts classroom.

Harden, M. (2008). Artchive. Retrieved March 19, 2008 from http://artchive.com/ftp_site.htm
This site represents an encyclopedic reference list of artists whose work is readily available via the Internet. Artchive provides biographical information for each artist, and a listing of links to images of the artist’s work. While this site operates through pop-up advertising, this massive resource may be useful to educators seeking to supplement their curriculum with visual art.

Kohl, A. (2008). Art Images for College Teaching. Retrieved March 14, 2008 from http://www.arthist.umn.edu/aict/html/
This site provides an extensive image archive, available for download and educational use, without licensing. The collection is divided in five sections: ancient, medieval, renaissance, 18th-20th century, and non-western. Concordance to a number of modern art history textbooks is provided for each image.

Ruder Finn Interactive. (2008). “Mr. Picassohead.” Retrieved March 14, 2008 fromhttp://www.mrpicassohead.com/create.html
Remarkable interactive animated canvas on which face elements from Picasso’s line drawings may be manipulated, resized, flipped, rotated, and colored. Students are implored to utilize elements of abstraction and abstract design; each unique virtual painting may be saved or emailed, or may be displayed in a gallery of images online. Educators wishing to teach students concepts of graphic design and composition, in both visual art and writing, may use this resource as an introduction.

Sotto, T. “Dali & Desnos: Surrealism in Poetry and Art.” ArtsEdge. Retrieved March 18, 2008 from http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/content/3798/
This lesson plan introduces the work of surrealist painters, alongside the poetry and imagery techniques of Robert Desnos and Andre Breton. Directly serving educators in both the art education classroom as well as the language arts environment, these lesson plans help teach students concepts of surrealism, abstraction, and their utilization in visual and written expression.

University of Michigan School of Information. SILS Art Image Database. Retrieved March 15, 2008 fromhttp://www.si.umich.edu/Art_History/demoarea/htdocs/index.html
A free-use image database created “to investigate ways of providing intellectual access to images in electronic databases.” This site allows searching by a number of parameters, including nationality, object type, date, and subject. Utilizing the search function of this database, in the language arts classroom students may be asked to evaluate similarities and differences between different works of art from the same country of origin, subject, or time period.

Appendix 2: Internet Resources for New Applications
of Music Education with Annotations

Daft, M., Geroge, L., Hasse, J., & Schoenberg, L. Smithsonian jazz classes. Retrieved April 2, 2008 fromhttp://www.smithsonianjazz.org/class/jc_start.asp
This resource presents a wealth of information on jazz history, performers, styles, and recordings. Language arts educators may utilize this information to provide the historical, musical background of a work of literature. As well, this material would prove useful in creating lesson plans on beat poetry, modern hip-hop, and spoken word.

Metropolitan Opera Guild. (2008). Macbeth teacher study guide. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from
This comprehensive guide to Verdi’s operatic interpretation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth provides a wealth of background information about Shakespeare’s play, Verdi’s life, and the process of production at the Metropolitan Opera Company. In conjunction with the teaching of Shakespeare, a language arts educator could utilize this resource in whole or in part.

Library of Congress. (2000). Band music from the Civil War era. American Memory. Retrieved April 1, 2008 fromhttp://memory.loc.gov/ammem/cwmhtml/cwmhome.html
Part of the Library of Congress’ American Memory online collection, this archive of Civil War band music provides historical information, images of original sheet music, and includes an extensive catalog of recordings. This site may be used in conjunction with any unit of Civil War history; in the language arts classroom, this music might help educators conjure a 19th century sense of patriotism, to accompany the teaching of Whitman’s “Drum Taps.”

Library of Congress. (2008). Recorded sound reference center. Retrieved April 2, 2008 from http://www.loc.gov/rr/record/.
The archive of audio recordings found within this online center spans the history of sound recording technology. While some recordings are available as audio streams or downloadable files, this site features resources that allow for the digital capture of information and media that might otherwise be lost—internet radio broadcasts are an example of this. In the language arts classroom, an educator may benefit directly from the catalog of extensive poetry recordings made available by this site. Also, educators may lead a discussion with students regarding this quality of permanence, as present in music performance, recording, and expressive writing.

Library of Congress. (2002). Music for the Nation: American Sheet Music 1870-1885. Retrieved April 2, 2008 from http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/smhtml/smhome.html
This extensive resource includes audio and image files documenting over 47,000 works of sheet music, printed between 1870 and 1885.ArtsConnectEd. (2005). “Art Gallery.” Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Walker Art Center. Retrieved March 21, 2008 from http://www.artsconnected.org/art/
This site documents over 1600 images of artifacts, and background data, found in the collections of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and Walker Arts Center. This archive is searchable, with access to over two hundred library items available online, as well as a small collection of corresponding K-12 lesson plans.

Art Institute of Chicago. (2008). Collection Holdings. Retrieved March 20, 2008 from http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artists
This site represents the holdings of the Art Institute of Chicago, in a database that is searchable by genre, title, artist name, or geographic region. This site provides biographical information on artists, as well as related events and external links to themes in visual art. 
Asia Society. (2002). “Art and Creative Writing.” Asian Art Outlook Teacher Resources. Retrieved March 18, 2008 from http://www.askasia.org/features/AsianArt/lessons.writing.htm
This lesson plan utilizes online images from the Rockefeller Collection of Asian Art. Students are offered writing prompts on each of six images of artifacts, from Japan, Chine, and the Indian Subcontinent. Historical and cultural background is provided for each image.

Chapman, J. (2007). A Treatise on the Aesthetics of Symmetry. Retrieved March 17, 2008 from http://home.earthlink.net/~jdc24/symmetry.htm
This site provides useful visual and textual explanations of the appeal of symmetry in art and design. Rotation, translation, reflection aid in a discussion of symmetrical ‘operations,’ as a criteria of a viewer’s ‘interest level’ is established. This resource may be used to enliven a discussion of repetition and new methods of revision in poetry.

Dharkar, A. & E. Flaherty. (2007). Impressionist Artwork. Retrieved March 14, 2008 from http://www.adobe.com/education/instruction/adsc/pdf/dc_lesson_impressionism.pdf
This short lesson plan employs digital cameras and Adobe Photoshop; students review concepts of “light, surface, color, and capturing fast-fleeting moments” at work in impressionism, as they manipulate their own digital photography. This may be used as an introduction to advanced methods of descriptive writing.

Getty Trust. (2008). “Grade-by-Grade Guide to Building Visual Arts Lessons.” J. Paul Getty Museum. Retrieved March 21, 2008 from http://www.getty.edu/education/for_teachers/building_lessons/guide.html
This site contains detailed instructions for constructing lesson plans about visual arts materials. Separate grade-specific guides offer learning goals, prompts for student discussion, and suggestions for art projects to introduce. A handful of example lessons are provided as well. This information may be used in the development of lesson plans for use in the language arts classroom.
Harden, M. (2008). Artchive. Retrieved March 19, 2008 from http://artchive.com/ftp_site.htm
This site represents an encyclopedic reference list of artists whose work is readily available via the Internet. Artchive provides biographical information for each artist, and a listing of links to images of the artist’s work. While this site operates through pop-up advertising, this massive resource may be useful to educators seeking to supplement their curriculum with visual art.

Kohl, A. (2008). Art Images for College Teaching. Retrieved March 14, 2008 from http://www.arthist.umn.edu/aict/html/
This site provides an extensive image archive, available for download and educational use, without licensing. The collection is divided in five sections: ancient, medieval, renaissance, 18th-20th century, and non-western. Concordance to a number of modern art history textbooks is provided for each image.

Ruder Finn Interactive. (2008). “Mr. Picassohead.” Retrieved March 14, 2008 from http://www.mrpicassohead.com/create.html
Remarkable interactive animated canvas on which face elements from Picasso’s line drawings may be manipulated, resized, flipped, rotated, and colored. Students are implored to utilize elements of abstraction and abstract design; each unique virtual painting may be saved or emailed, or may be displayed in a gallery of images online. Educators wishing to teach students concepts of graphic design and composition, in both visual art and writing, may use this resource as an introduction.

Sotto, T. “Dali & Desnos: Surrealism in Poetry and Art.” ArtsEdge. Retrieved March 18, 2008 from http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/content/3798/
This lesson plan introduces the work of surrealist painters, alongside the poetry and imagery techniques of Robert Desnos and Andre Breton. Directly serving educators in both the art education classroom as well as the language arts environment, these lesson plans help teach students concepts of surrealism, abstraction, and their utilization in visual and written expression.

University of Michigan School of Information. SILS Art Image Database. Retrieved March 15, 2008 from http://www.si.umich.edu/Art_History/demoarea/htdocs/index.html
A free-use image database created “to investigate ways of providing intellectual access to images in electronic databases.” This site allows searching by a number of parameters, including nationality, object type, date, and subject. Utilizing the search function of this database, in the language arts classroom students may be asked to evaluate similarities and differences between different works of art from the same country of origin, subject, or time period.

Appendix 2: Internet Resources for New Applications
of Music Education with Annotations

Daft, M., Geroge, L., Hasse, J., & Schoenberg, L. Smithsonian jazz classes. Retrieved April 2, 2008 from http://www.smithsonianjazz.org/class/jc_start.asp
This resource presents a wealth of information on jazz history, performers, styles, and recordings. Language arts educators may utilize this information to provide the historical, musical background of a work of literature. As well, this material would prove useful in creating lesson plans on beat poetry, modern hip-hop, and spoken word.

Metropolitan Opera Guild. (2008). Macbeth teacher study guide. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from
https://www.metoperafamily.org/_uploaded/pdf/pressrelease/macbethhdfinal.pdf.
This comprehensive guide to Verdi’s operatic interpretation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth provides a wealth of background information about Shakespeare’s play, Verdi’s life, and the process of production at the Metropolitan Opera Company. In conjunction with the teaching of Shakespeare, a language arts educator could utilize this resource in whole or in part.

Library of Congress. (2000). Band music from the Civil War era. American Memory. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/cwmhtml/cwmhome.html
Part of the Library of Congress’ American Memory online collection, this archive of Civil War band music provides historical information, images of original sheet music, and includes an extensive catalog of recordings. This site may be used in conjunction with any unit of Civil War history; in the language arts classroom, this music might help educators conjure a 19th century sense of patriotism, to accompany the teaching of Whitman’s “Drum Taps.”

Library of Congress. (2008). Recorded sound reference center. Retrieved April 2, 2008 from http://www.loc.gov/rr/record/.
The archive of audio recordings found within this online center spans the history of sound recording technology. While some recordings are available as audio streams or downloadable files, this site features resources that allow for the digital capture of information and media that might otherwise be lost—internet radio broadcasts are an example of this. In the language arts classroom, an educator may benefit directly from the catalog of extensive poetry recordings made available by this site. Also, educators may lead a discussion with students regarding this quality of permanence, as present in music performance, recording, and expressive writing.

Library of Congress. (2002). Music for the Nation: American Sheet Music 1870-1885. Retrieved April 2, 2008 from http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/smhtml/smhome.html
This extensive resource includes audio and image files documenting over 47,000 works of sheet music, printed between 1870 and 1885.

Library of Congress. (2004). Collection connections: Music for the nation: American sheet music, 1870-1885. Retrieved April 2, 2008 from
http://memory.loc.gov/learn/collections/sm/langarts.html.
This site provides interesting concepts and methods that allow language arts educators to utilize a Library of Congress archive of post-Civil War sheet music, found separately in the American Memory collection (listed above). Through identifying themes of history, documentation, and lyric in these works, lesson plans and student writing prompts are presented. In these ‘teachable moments,’ the expression of political and social views through song lyrics during this time period is often utilized to help students better understand and create their own original poetry.

Rivers, J. (2004). Virtual playground. Retrieved April 20, 2008 from
http://www.keyboardmuseum.org/d_machines/vdrums.html
This online database of ‘virtual’ drum machines may provide a fun example of variations on rhythm, as well as exploring virtual editions of antiquated technology. A collection of sampled beats is controllable through a browser window, for each of dozens of machines. This site may serve as a functional and creative metronome for students, both in the music and language arts classrooms. These drum machines may allow students to practice their timing in music, or, experiment with their own spoken-word poetry delivery techniques.

Naxos Digital Services Ltd. (2008). Glossary. Retrieved April 14, 2008 from
http://www.naxos.com/education/glossary.asp?char=A-C.
Provided by a major publisher of printed classical music, this listing of music vocabulary is comprehensive and unique in its insight: many terms found on a printed musical page appear, and are well explained, including a great deal of Latin. Links are provided to a substantial history and categorization of classical music, as well as a classification of instruments. In the language arts classroom, students could be challenged to present an element of musical structure in words: for example, what does an accelerando, or speeding up of tempo, sound like, in poetry? Classroom discussion of the performance of poetry may as well be informed by terms and concepts found in this glossary.

Library of Congress. (2004). Collection connections: Music for the nation: American sheet music, 1870-1885. Retrieved April 2, 2008 from
This site provides interesting concepts and methods that allow language arts educators to utilize a Library of Congress archive of post-Civil War sheet music, found separately in the American Memory collection (listed above). Through identifying themes of history, documentation, and lyric in these works, lesson plans and student writing prompts are presented. In these ‘teachable moments,’ the expression of political and social views through song lyrics during this time period is often utilized to help students better understand and create their own original poetry.

Rivers, J. (2004). Virtual playground. Retrieved April 20, 2008 from
This online database of ‘virtual’ drum machines may provide a fun example of variations on rhythm, as well as exploring virtual editions of antiquated technology. A collection of sampled beats is controllable through a browser window, for each of dozens of machines. This site may serve as a functional and creative metronome for students, both in the music and language arts classrooms. These drum machines may allow students to practice their timing in music, or, experiment with their own spoken-word poetry delivery techniques.

Naxos Digital Services Ltd. (2008). Glossary. Retrieved April 14, 2008 from
Provided by a major publisher of printed classical music, this listing of music vocabulary is comprehensive and unique in its insight: many terms found on a printed musical page appear, and are well explained, including a great deal of Latin. Links are provided to a substantial history and categorization of classical music, as well as a classification of instruments. In the language arts classroom, students could be challenged to present an element of musical structure in words: for example, what does an accelerando, or speeding up of tempo, sound like, in poetry? Classroom discussion of the performance of poetry may as well be informed by terms and concepts found in this glossary.