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3.9.9 Integrating Art and the Smithsonian Learning Lab in the Gifted Language Arts Classroom

This presentation will focus on how to use the resources of the Smithsonian Learning Lab, a free online tool that allows teachers to create interactive collections from all the Smithsonian museums, to infuse the study of art into their curriculum and cultivate the creativity of their students.

Although both art and the Learning Lab are tools that can be used in any classroom, these resources promote the expression of language, such as symbolism, metaphor, or inferences at a level distinctive to the abilities of gifted students. This session will review research and strategies from Harvard’s Project Zero Visual Thinking Program, such as See/ Think/ Wonder or Think/ Puzzle/ Explore, that guide students to observe, think, and articulate ideas about art, just as they might discuss a challenging novel or poem. For instance, controversial themes regarding race, social class, or culture found in both art and literature such as The Westing Game can inspire short stories, personal analogies, or poetry.

At its more advanced levels, the Learning Lab allows both teachers and students to collect, differentiate, and share primary sources and multimedia with unprecedented access to all the Smithsonian museums. Connect to the desperation and hope of a Great Depression novel while examining art from Roosevelt’s Public Works of Art Project (PWAP). Students can then be differentiated into groups to research and debate about the tone, mood, or even politics of the times by examining other primary sources such as PWAP art, photography, presidential letters, speeches, or jazz/blues music. The possibilities are infinite.

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