Art Appreciation

"Learning to Look" is a monthly art appreciation course taught for students in Grades 1 through 8 by trained parent volunteers. The "Learning To Look" program is used in public and independent schools nationwide.

The program is designed to introduce students to art history and help them develop an appreciation for many different types of art. Each grade focuses on a different period and concentrates on the work of certain artists. Each class involves a slide show and a hands-on art project for students to enjoy. The area of concentration at each grade level is chosen to complement the social studies or history curriculum, as follows:

Grade 1: European Art of the 19th Century
Grade 2: Early Colonial American Art
Grade 3: American Art from 1790-1890
Grade 4: French Impressionism
Grade 5: Art from the Ancient Period
Grade 6: Medieval Art
Grade 7: Contemporary Art
Grade 8: American Art, with a focus on Connecticut

Students create their own "Learning to Look" notebooks during the year which include information on artists, photographs of artwork studied, student reflections, and student projects. For students in Grades 1-5, the culminating activity is a visit to The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City; students in Grade 6 visit the MMA at the Cloister and Grade 7 students visits DIA Beacon. Students in Grades 7-9 also visit museums during the course of the school year.