The Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery has provided an excellent online tool for analyzing Stuart's (1796) famous portrait of the U.S.'s first president. When the portrait is launched, the user can explore the painting through features highlighted as symbolic, biographic, and artistic representations. For example, a symbolic feature of the painting is the clothing Stuart selected for his subject. For this topic of clothing, the online tool provides a revealing look at another portrait from the same time period, that of French King Louis XVI. With a little guidance, the juxtaposition of these two portraits can help students compare and contrast the ideals of two (somewhat) abstract concepts: democracy and monarchy.
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label art. Show all posts
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Thursday, November 19, 2009
New York State Archives - Throughout the Ages
Last weekend, I attended and presented at the National Council for the Social Studies Annual Meeting in Atlanta, GA. I was more than impressed with the variety of sessions I attended and the generous vendors at the exhibition hall. (Those conference freebies are always great.) One of the true highlights of the conference was a session that introduced teachers to the resources available at the New York State Archive. The educational materials available at this site are amazing, and--as the presenter shared during the session--the result of the archives being part of the state's department of education (a rarity in the US). The point is that the site's resources are some of the more accessible ones I have seen for teachers.
A great resource on the New York State Archive site is Throughout the Ages. Here, the user can select sources (arranged by topic for US and New York history) from the document index and create a printable worksheet with contextual information, questions, and state standards, to name a few.
Many of the sources already have questions (indicated with an asterisks next to the title) and links to state standards provided; however, the user can adapt these in any way by simply clicking on the section (e.g., "Questions" or "Standards").
A great resource on the New York State Archive site is Throughout the Ages. Here, the user can select sources (arranged by topic for US and New York history) from the document index and create a printable worksheet with contextual information, questions, and state standards, to name a few.
Many of the sources already have questions (indicated with an asterisks next to the title) and links to state standards provided; however, the user can adapt these in any way by simply clicking on the section (e.g., "Questions" or "Standards").
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Teaching with Political Cartoons
Political cartoons show up a lot in social studies curricula, including textbooks, worksheets, and now standardized state and national exams. In these cases, students are asked to analyze the cartoon's content or the cartoonist's point of view. In classroom instruction, teachers might try to "diversify" their instruction and have students create their own cartoon related to a historical or current event. The following sources provide some guidance for one way to include political cartoons as an authentic and legitimate part of any social studies teacher's instruction.
As a way to teach critical thinking, the Center for Media Literacy has built a curriculum around five key questions. All of these queries apply to analyzing any source--an advertisement, a newspaper article, or a political cartoon--but an important question is #2, "What creative techniques are used to catch my attention?" To further conceptualize this analysis, the Library of Congress has created a web-based activity, "No Laughing Matter," to help students evaluate cartoons with five basic concepts: Labeling, Irony, Analogy, Exaggeration, and Irony. I point out these concepts because they provide a helpful framework students can apply to any cartoon (or written source, for that matter). For example, "How does this cartoonist use irony to illustrate her point of view?"
Finally, students need not be a professional artist to create stunning political cartoons. A free online tool, Toondoo Maker, on the Toondoo site allows them to select from hundreds of images to construct their own visual commentary on a historical or current event. Teachers can then require their students to describe how they used irony or analogy to make a visual argument. I've uploaded an example I recently created on the topic of immigration.
As a way to teach critical thinking, the Center for Media Literacy has built a curriculum around five key questions. All of these queries apply to analyzing any source--an advertisement, a newspaper article, or a political cartoon--but an important question is #2, "What creative techniques are used to catch my attention?" To further conceptualize this analysis, the Library of Congress has created a web-based activity, "No Laughing Matter," to help students evaluate cartoons with five basic concepts: Labeling, Irony, Analogy, Exaggeration, and Irony. I point out these concepts because they provide a helpful framework students can apply to any cartoon (or written source, for that matter). For example, "How does this cartoonist use irony to illustrate her point of view?"
Finally, students need not be a professional artist to create stunning political cartoons. A free online tool, Toondoo Maker, on the Toondoo site allows them to select from hundreds of images to construct their own visual commentary on a historical or current event. Teachers can then require their students to describe how they used irony or analogy to make a visual argument. I've uploaded an example I recently created on the topic of immigration.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
URLs for Creating Art, Comic Strips, Newsletters...
Here are a few of my favorite free programs for creating digital cartoon strips, collages, and other images.
Collage Maker I (Collage)
Collage Maker II (Collage)
Creating a Still Life (Still Lifes)
ToonDoo (Comic Strips)
Letter Pop (Newsletters)
Collage Maker I (Collage)
Collage Maker II (Collage)
Creating a Still Life (Still Lifes)
ToonDoo (Comic Strips)
Letter Pop (Newsletters)
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