This paper focuses on the play, "Pictures of That Summer ('Ano natsu no e')," which is inspired by the "Paintings of the Atomic Bomb" project in Hiroshima. Through an analysis of its dramatization, the paper develops a theoretical framework for investigating the generation of the collective memory of catastrophes through works…

The United States has a visually stunning history of documenting its natural lands. In the late 1800s, Hudson River School painters captured national parks in the west (National Park Service, 2017). Ansel Adams is famously known for his rich black-and-white photographs of Yosemite and other national parks from the 1920s. In the 1930s, the Works…

There is a critical need to consider ways to enrich the educational experiences and well-being of adolescents when the lack of empathy in the world is high. This paper presents the concepts of "Artful Empathy" and "Artful and Empathic Learning Ecology." The concepts are exemplified from a multi-site case study within Australian…

In this article, a teacher-curator pedagogy is taken to mean an assumption of the role of both educators and curators in the planning, creation, and implementation of teaching units and lesson activities within the context of an online exhibition. For their part, students are engaged in developing the exhibitions and self-directed learning…

Jane Card's previous work on the power of images in conveying particular interpretations and her advice about how to use visual material effectively in classrooms will be familiar to readers of "Teaching History." In this article she focuses specifically on the capacity of visual representations to convey a compelling message about the…

While empirical studies on the use of hip-hop music in social studies spaces is limited, the work that has been done offers encouraging perspectives. Some research suggests that incorporating hip-hop lyrics into the classroom leads to increased student engagement and greater curricular relevance. Other scholars have centered hip-hop as a way to…

Entrenched compartmentalisation of subjects in secondary school means that students lack opportunities for learning how disciplines relate to each other and how knowledge can be applied in real-world contexts. This article examines what it means to 'think like a scientist in a multidisciplinary arena' and why this is (and should be) an integral…

For the past 10 years, Creative Classrooms has partnered with schools to develop learner-centered visual arts programs for students in kindergarten through 8th grade. This program is part of the Children's Arts Guild, a New York City nonprofit. The program works with schools to train art educators through monthly professional development…

In this article, I share ways in which I have used the artworks of contemporary artists to encourage middle school students to reflect on the concepts of identity, diversity, and social justice. Specifically, I focus on the "Comfort Hair" series by Yuni Kim Lang, a Michigan-based Korean American artist, and a piece from the "Giant…

The educational needs of young adolescents require that curricula include a more expanded set of multiple integrative approaches, including new literacies, and that it be "challenging, exploratory, integrative, and relevant" (National Middle School Association, 2010). Although educators are now focusing on the addition of digital formats…

An arts-based approach to secondary social studies can promote active learning, develop critical thinking skills, and advance the study of social institutions.

Located in Napa, California, the Oxbow School is a 1-semester boarding program for visual arts, critical inquiry, self-discovery, and community. Oxbow's pandemic story concentrates on a series of assignments designed to help students cope with the transition to emergency online instruction amid isolation and uncertainty. The images illustrating…

In this paper, we present a novel approach to defining, teaching, and assessing creativity by examining its origins and delineating the processes involved. The rationale for introducing this framework developed from studying existing thinking and questioning the current metrics for measuring creativity, which we posit are unfit for purpose. We…

Freddie Gray's death tore Baltimore City apart; but a classroom of shaken teens at Mergenthaler High School found their power in the aftermath. Art teacher Sia Kyriakakos used the arts as a vehicle to help her students process the racial trauma that is part of their everyday lives--being young, black, and often unjustly targeted by the city's…

In this article, the authors reflect on their experiences of integrating visual arts, specifically painting, into an English language arts curriculum. Although each of them had previously used art as a response to literature with our students, neither of them had before collaborated with professional artists or been as intentional about…