Enrich history
Enriching History
By: Rebecca Anderson
For: Art for Elementary Teachers February 25, 2006
History/Social Studies is a wonderful subject that can be enriched by adding art into the curriculum. Children are very hands on and learn best by doing. After studying about cave art, children can use their imaginations, picture themselves living then, and draw their own pictures. After learning about the Romans, children can make their own mosaics. Once they study China, children can learn about origami and make their own examples. Paula’s Archives has a wonderful website containing over twenty art projects to replicate art works in various cultures. Architectural designs have reflected various ages in which the buildings were erected. The Green Parthenon represents the Classical Age, Notre Dame the Gothic, San Pietro the Renaissance, and St. Peter’s Basilica the Baroque. Paintings, images, drawings, and sculptures allow children to see actual key details they would miss during a lecture. A third way to incorporate art would be to allow children to see artworks representing various gods and myths from Greek, Roman, and Norse legends. Children read about Hercules but seeing a bust of him makes him more “alive.” Paintings of the Trojan Horse, Torpor Romulus and Remus allow children to relate better to history. Much of our history has been captured through cartoons. Many famous moments in time, especially infamous political moments, have been immortalized through these often-satirical drawings. The teddy bear was “born” from a political cartoon of Teddy Roosevelt’s infamous bear hunt (Jeffus). Thomas Nast secured a place in history when he gave America the Democratic donkey, the Republican elephant, and Santa Claus (Wikipedia).
R. Anderson2Art allows children a closer look at famous people throughout history. We all know that the British were coming, but actually seeing Paul Revere’s famous ride through paintings and Dallin’s sculpture allows children to picture themselves there. Leonardo da Vinci’s drawings, paintings of Washington crossing the Delaware, and so many more allow children to place themselves in historical moments. A final example of incorporating art into history classed would be using paintings of the Greek Pantheon, the Theater at Epidaurus, and the Globe Theater. These famous buildings literally spring to live when seen versus having them simply described to students. Overall, art greatly enriches history lessons and should be incorporated into each unit of study.
Bibliography
Paula’s Archives. “Chronological Art Lessons for Art History.” 25 February 2006. http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/art_history
Jeffus, Sharon. “Visual Manna.” 2001. 25 February 2006. http://www.visualmanna.com/uploads/16/2001-07_july_august_sep.pdf
Wikipedia. “Thomas Nast.” 17 February 2006. 25 February 2006. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Nast