Why Art History?

I didn't major in art history, and I certainly didn't ever plan to incorporate it into childrens' lives. But I've found "studying" art can be a really fun and meaningful learning experience with and for kids. Whether it involves taking your kids to an art museum, creating art inspired by an artist, using a time period in art history as a springboard for examining other historical events, or playing around on http://www.googleartproject.com/ (it's amazing), these experiences lead children to create meaning and develop critical thinking skills. As a mom, a teacher, and a museum educator, I've seen how kids react to "recreating" their own versions of "Starry Night," to seeing a John Singleton Copley painting in class and then "discovering" it at the museum two months later (shrieking), to understanding a reference made by an adult ("That was surreal"). It can be surreal. I am amazed by what even my 3-year-old learns and retains and connects every day. Incorporating art and art history into kids' lives - at home and at school - is fun and easy to do!