Teachers First - Thinking Teachers Teaching Thinkers

Thousands of Teacher-reviewed Resources!

American Artist Appreciation Month

August is American Artist Appreciation Month, the ideal time to recognize and celebrate the many amazing American artists throughout history. Share these resources, online museum exhibits, and lessons with your students to bring art into your classroom and activities. 

Grades K-12

National Gallery of Art - African American Artists

Explore a selection of works by African American artists such as Kara Walker, Jacob Lawrence, Romare Bearden, Alma Thomas, and Sam Gilliam. Click on the images to view information about the photographs, paintings, drawings, and sculptures on this site.

Grades 6-12

Mary Cassatt

Treat your students to the artwork of Mary Cassatt, a late 19th-century impressionist. Cassatt was one of the few Americans who painted in the impressionist style. Share her art with your students and have them write comparisons to other types of art.

Grades 8-12

Winslow Homer in the National Gallery of Art

View oil paintings, watercolors, drawings, and prints by American artist Winslow Homer. This exhibit spans his career, from early oil paintings of the Civil War era to classic images of 19th-century American life. Compare his art to historical events.

Grades 5-12

Oh Freedom! Teaching African American Civil Rights Through American Art at the Smithsonian

“Oh Freedom!” is an introduction to the Civil Rights movement through the art of the Smithsonian. Explore the Educator section to learn ways to visually teach about the Civil Rights movement. The activities include interactive timelines and lesson plans.

Grades K-12

Philadelphia Museum of Art Teacher Resources

Use this resource to correlate art with other curricular areas, including language arts, math, science, and social studies. Choose a primary curricular area, select one of the Academic Art Standards, then click the lessons to view a downloadable PDF.

Grades 3-12

The Museum of Modern Art Exhibition History

This simple site offers images of art and history from 1929 through the present, ideal for art or history class. Browse through collections by date, or filter by type of exhibition (including film series and performance programs) or by artist.

Grades 5-12

Yale University Art Gallery

Peruse this collection of African art; American painting, sculpture, and decorative arts; ancient art; art of the ancient Americans; Asian art; coins and medals; and early European, modern, and contemporary art. Find resources to use in your lessons.

Grades 9-12

Evaluating Art as Historical Evidence

Stanford History Education Group created this list of lessons and assessments that use art to teach about world and United States history. Find resources related to American history topics that you teach in your lessons.

Grades 6-12

Google Arts and Culture

Take your students on a field trip! Visit more than 2,000 museums without leaving your school through the lens of Google Arts & Culture's presentations. Explore the studios of famous artists, take tours of historical cities, and visit museums virtually.

Grades 2-12

MetKids

MetKids offers 5,000 years of art that you can explore in three exciting ways on their vibrant, interactive site. Click to explore the map, watch videos, or hop in the time machine to view American artwork from different time periods and discuss in class.

Grades K-12

ArtsEd LAB (AKA) STEAMed Magazine

This outstanding site shares lesson plans, videos, podcasts, and more, many of which relate to American art and history. Be sure to share the podcasts with your students. “The Artist Chronicles” podcast features a mystery artist in each episode.

Grades 3-12

Smarthistory Art History Conversation

Smarthistory started as a blog featuring free audio guides, podcasts, and videos. It’s since become an interactive exploration of eras, styles, and artists. Search through topics to share with your students, such as art that brings U.S. history to life.

This Week at TeachersFirst

If you missed our summer OK2Ask series, we invite you to view all sessions on demand. Our next Twitter chat takes place this week—join us to discuss media literacy. We are also sharing a blog post and kindly request your input on our weekly poll.