Five K-12 art activities are described. Elementary students study the paintings of Paul Klee. Junior high students do tempera paintings of flowers. High school students make black and clear glue drawings, learn about the cup paper art of Henri Matisse, and study and interpret leaf forms of the magnolia trees. (RM)

Bipolar adjective scales and bipolar graphic scales for visual ratings were validated. The study suggests a stable structure of graphic ratings of art unaffected by race or artist or viewer and art style that should prove useful in cross-cultural studies and in studies among children and the verbally impaired. (Author/RM)

Discusses features essential to good art software or paint systems and provides descriptions of 10 art software packages to illustrate range available to home computer artists--Complete Graphics System, E-Z Draw 3.3, Flying Colors, Graphics Magician, Micro-Painter, Paint, Paint Magic, Paint Master, Poor Man's Graphics Tablet, and Rainbow Graphics.…

Comparing the works of two artists whose subject is similar but whose formal qualities are different helps students understand how the use of formal qualities contributes to expression. Having students compare the works of different composers as well as different visual artists helps students understand how expression is achieved. (IS)

The visual arts can play an important role in the adolescent's struggle to link the inner world of thoughts and feelings with the outer world of expressive form. The Summer Visual Arts Institute, organized by Boston University for adolescents, is described. (RM)

Creating a collage can be an effective way to help elementary children develop good compositional habits, drawing skills, and confidence. Students first gather pictures and photographs and create a collage. They then create a work of art from the collage, by drawing and painting it. (RM)

The part that words play in teaching art has been underestimated. In a good art class, there is an interplay of ideas about the ongoing work. By using the right words, the teacher can help students develop their creative faculties. (CS)

Describes the chemistry of dyeing, including acid, basic, vat, and disperse dyes. Includes laboratory experiments. (MLH)

In October 1995, the Australian Parliament received the report of the Senate's Environment, Recreation, Communications and the Arts Reference Committee, entitled "Arts Education." This report was released just prior to an election and, as a result, its recommendations were subsequently ignored. These recommendations, some responsibility…

This paper discusses the development and implementation of the system-wide assessment of arts learning in primary and secondary schools that took place in Western Australia in September 1996. The paper describes the background to the assessment, the design brief, and the assessment package as a whole, focusing on the visual arts tests. It…

Mary Cassatt's paintings and graphics depict the world of 19th-century women, mothers, and children. Her exploration of intimate domestic life is informed by an unsurpassed ability to capture the natural, sometimes awkward poses of her figures and her refusal to "prettify" her subjects. This teaching guide gives an overview of Cassatt's…

The Peale family could be termed the "first family" of U.S. art. The patriarch, Charles Willson Peale, was an accomplished painter, scientist, inventor, founder of museums and art societies; his dynasty included his nine children and his younger brother, James Peale. This teaching guide discusses their diverse contributions to U.S. art…

What types of considerations are appropriate for selecting artists to represent key themes in the history of art? How do minority artists in the United States fit into this selection process? Previously, most art history courses and texts emphasized the highlights of significant creative expression as evolving in the Western world antiquity. In…

This book is intended as a guide for parents, teachers, and others interested in developing creative art talent in young people. The book is based on the following assumptions: (1) being able to recognize and knowing how to identify creative individuals with special talent in art, guidance can be given to maximize the achievement of their…

Author feels that it is important for child artists to relate to the art forms of given periods and societies in their understanding of artistic influences. (Author/GB)