Art & Design
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Free Resources for Art and Design Teaching from Museums and More
There are lesson plans, worksheets and interactives galore online for teachers of art and design. And the wonderful thing is that the internet can bring paintings, sculptures and installations to life for your students. For ideas on making craft and design at KS1 go to this section. KS2 art and design teachers can source lesson plans dealing with colour, pattern and texture, line and tone, shape, form and space, and how these elements can be combined and organised for different purposes. For brilliant classroom ideas at KS3 there are some great links to museums and galleries, and inspirational artists and compositions are in the KS4 section.
Museums and galleries have wonderful free lesson plans and teaching ideas for art and design.
There are lots of sites that teachers can use to show students the classics. So if you are looking for ideas to inspire budding artists there is lots of information on painters and their paintings from van Gogh and his landscapes to Picasso and his abstracts.
The British Museum has an extensive set of resources for both primary and secondary classes. The collections at the museum have been the inspiration for artists for hundreds of years and are a great source of ideas for teachers and students. The museum has created a series of guides to help teachers at primary and secondary use the objects in its collection as the starting point for an art and design project. Topics include African art and design, Death and the afterworld, the human form, gallery workshops, Japanese printmaking and much more.
Many companies offer free teaching resources for art and design teachers too. Crayola, for example, have some good lesson plans ranging from how to draw Aboriginal pictures to projects on a new zoo opens ideal for primary lessons. For secondary teachers they offer a range that deals with topics such as pond life and acid rain.
Some websites have a nice range of slide shows for teachers which can be really useful to show in class. Themes from a textiles inspired site include tie and dye, make a loom and make a silk painting.
Looking for a craft and design trade union?
The National Society for Education in Art and Design (NSEAD) can give education professionals up to date news and information, as well as helpful links and ideas. The society helps to promote the interests of its members and promotes art, craft and design to the educational community.
The society represents all phased of education and see themselves as providing a coherent and comprehensive source of information for teachers and lecturers. They publish their own newsletter, organise conferences, and have extensive in-service training opportunities.
