Lesson Topics

• A is for Art Museum
  Inspired by the Museum’s children’s book, this lesson offers a fun, alphabetical introduction to the collections, elaborating on the works featured in the book through games, activities, and additional images of the works.
• Art Museum Opposites
  This lesson uses the Museum’s second children’s book as a springboard for talking about art by comparing and contrasting, and elaborates on the works featured in the book through games, activities, and additional images of the works.

• Learning to Look
  Students utilize visual perception skills and learn specific strategies for looking at and understanding works of art.
• Stories in Art
  Sometimes when art speaks, you want to talk back. Students join the conversation and discover the wealth of stories art can tell as they explore paintings, decorative arts, and sculpture through a variety of structured looking, writing, and role-playing activities.
• World of Art
  Take a trip around the world with art as your guide. Students explore the art of several cultures as they journey through the Museum's period rooms and galleries. Tell us the country you are studying, and we will make sure to visit a related gallery.

• African American Artists
  This lesson introduces a variety of works by influential artists such as Horace Pippin, Henry Ossawa Tanner, and Elizabeth Catlett.
• American Art
  Our American Art lessons allow students to explore history through primary sources. Each lesson focuses on a specific period in American history and uses art as a lens for discussing political, economic, and social change. Choose from one of the following time periods. Please contact us for more information.
  • From Colony to Nation
    If your class is reading Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson, let us know so that we can adapt the lesson to complement the novel.
  • 1800-1900
    Explores a diverse selection of artworks related to the Civil War, Industrial Revolution, and Gilded Age.
  • 1900-1945
    Follows the evolution of early 20th-century art and its significance in the decades surrounding the Great Depression.
  • 1945-1970
    Focuses on the development of modern art in America during the decades following World War II.
• Art of Asia
  Students investigate and compare works of art from Asian countries including India, China, Japan, and Korea.
• The Art of the Japanese Tea Ceremony
  Students discover the customs, aesthetics, and philosophies associated with this centuries-old tradition.
• The Art of Math
  Students explore how artists from different eras and cultures used math concepts in their art. The content of this lesson is adjusted to fit the grade level of each class. Possible topics include pattern, symmetry, one-point perspective, and number series.
• Days of Knights
  This lesson provides an introduction to the history, use, and aesthetics of armor and includes a live demonstration of armor pieces from the Museum's collection.
• The Impressionist Era
  What makes Impressionism so intriguing? Students learn about artists such as Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Edgar Degas, Mary Cassatt, and Claude Monet, and their impact at the turn of the 19th century.
• Medieval and Renaissance Art
  Students discover how art flourished in medieval Europe by studying a variety of artistic mediums that reveal clues about life in the Middle Ages and Renaissance.
• Modern and Contemporary Art
  These lessons investigate the changing role of artists, their methods, and conceptual approaches in 20th and 21st-century society. Students will interpret and analyze a variety of artworks and will discuss emergent styles of art. Older students will explore art through the social and political context of the time-range featured in the lesson. Choose from one of the following time periods. Please contact us for more information.
  • 1890–1920
    Investigates the origins of modern art in industrialized Europe of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Artists discussed may include Paul Cézanne, Pablo Picasso, Fernand Léger, and Marcel Duchamp.
  • 1920–1945
    Follows the development of modern art and the impact that events in the world had on artists. Artists discussed may include Salvador Dalí, Paul Klee, Diego Rivera, and Georgia O'Keeffe.
  • 1945–1970
    Focuses on the evolution of modern art in the decades following World War II. Artists discussed may include Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko, Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol, and Alice Neel.
  • Contemporary Art: The Art of Today
    Explores the vibrant, challenging, and ever-changing art of our time. Artists discussed may include Thomas Hirschhorn, Zoe Strauss, Sidney Goodman, Michelangelo Pistoletto, and Faith Ringgold.
• Mythology
  For centuries, Greco-Roman mythology has shaped Western civilization. Its influence has resonated throughout history, even impacting our vocabulary. Explore these fascinating stories of epic love, heroic sacrifice, triumph, and tragedy. Due to the nature of this material, images containing nudity will be shown during this lesson.
• Photography
  Highlighting works from the Museum's photography collection, this lesson discusses the ways in which this medium is used to record and alter our perception of the world.
• Seasonal Lessons
  The Distance Learning Program offers seasonal lessons focused on special themes, holidays, and occasions.
  • Valentine’s Day
    Celebrate Valentine's Day with a virtual field trip to the Philadelphia Museum of Art! This fun and interactive lesson explores artistic celebrations of love through the ages and across cultures.
• Spanish and Mexican Artists
  This lesson introduces students to the art of Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Diego Rivera, and others whose works reflect the rich cultures of Spain and Mexico.
• Special Exhibitions
  Each year the Distance Learning Program offers new lessons in conjunction with the Museum's special exhibitions.
  • Home Style
    This lesson is related to several ongoing exhibitions occurring in the Perelman Building and is centered on families and home life. Images and discussion focus on portraiture, photography, clothing, toys, and household items that span decades.
• Women Artists
  This lesson introduces students to a broad range of works by influential women artists such as Georgia O'Keeffe and Faith Ringgold.

• Program Overview (30 minutes)
  Do you want to learn more about how the Museum's Distance Learning programs can support and enrich learning in your classroom? This free overview for educators and administrators demonstrates the basics of virtual fieldtrips and provides an opportunity for us to answer your videoconferencing questions.
  Cost: Free
• Learning to Look: 20 Works of Art Across Time and Cultures (1 1⁄2 hours)
  This in-service workshop introduces art from around the world as a resource for classroom learning through four themes: stories, people, things we use, and nature. The images and resources explored help teachers (K–12) motivate students to identify shapes, lines, colors, and patterns; learn new vocabulary; decode symbols; understand narrative elements and structures; formulate hypotheses; find and organize supporting evidence; tolerate and respect unfamiliar perspectives and opposing opinions; and apply math concepts to real-life situations. Up to ten kits are provided with each workshop.
  Cost: $200
• Hands-on Teacher Workshop: Identity (1 1/2 hours)
  In this workshop, teachers will explore issues of identity through the Museum’s vast collection of portraiture and will create their own mixed media self-portraits. A materials list will be provided at the time of the workshop’s booking. Schools are responsible for providing the necessary materials.
  Cost: $150
• Using the Visual Arts to Teach Math and Language-Arts Skills (1 1⁄2 hours)
  Works of art provide a rich ground for students to practice verbal and written language skills and math processes. Museum educators and teachers (K–12) explore writing and language exercises and math connections using images from the Museum's teaching poster sets, which can be purchased online or over the phone from the Museum Store.
  Cost: $150