The Art Museum - English Template, Intermediate high

Created Feb. 7, 2024 by Amber Hoye, Camille Daw, Mimi Fahnstrom

Please Note: Many of the activities on the Pathways Project OER Repository were created by upper-division students at Boise State University and serve as a foundation that our community of practice can build upon and refine. While they are polished, we welcome and encourage collaboration from language instructors to help modify grammar, syntax, and content where needed. Kindly contact pathwaysproject@boisestate.edu with any suggestions and we will update the content in a timely manner.  — The Pathways Project

Looking for the Spanish Version of this activity to adapt for your language?  CLICK HERE

About the Boise State World Languages Resource Center (WLRC) Language Activity Repository

The activities provided by the Boise State World Languages Resource Center (WLRC) serve as foundational activities which can be adapted by any language and scaled up or down on the proficiency scale. Many of these activities offer an English Version that is “language-agnostic” to provide language instructors from around the country a platform to remix these instructional materials, infusing them with their target language and culture! The activities within the Pathways Project OER Repository seek to help students solidify their interpersonal speaking and interpretive skills through task-based situations or communicative activities. These activities should be facilitated in the target language for approximately 90% (or more), per the recommendation of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages.

How to use the WLRC Repository’s Activities:

1. Use the Activity as is:

Before you begin:

  • Most activities are 30 minutes in duration, unless otherwise specified.
  • Be sure to read through the activity description, and review the list of required materials. You will notice that the activity materials are also highlighted in yellow throughout the activity instructions.

If you have any suggestions about grammar, syntax, and content, please kindly contact pathways@boisestate.edu.

2. Remix for Your Language Classroom:

When you are ready to begin remixing the activity, in order to adapt it for the needs of your language classroom, simply click the blue “Remix This Resource” button at the top of your screen. This will then take you to a screen with a NEW, editable version of this activity. The text provided in purple is a suggestion of what you might say to your students in the target language, and may be altered for different levels and age groups. All activities have “NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do” statements, a warm-up, a main activity, and a wrap-up.

Many of the activities include printable cards and other instructional materials such as Google Slideshows. If you would like to make changes to these materials for your classroom, follow the instructions below:

  • Google Slideshows:
    • To begin, go to File -> Copy to create an editable version of the slideshow.
    • Once finished with your changes, please complete the following steps to share:
    • Click on Share
    • Who Has Access
    • Ensure link sharing is on and allow external access.
  • Materials Saved as PDF: Please email pathwaysproject@gmail.com and we will provide you with an editable copy. Please allow up to two business days for a response. For YouTube videos and other websites, hyperlinks are provided. 

The art

Description:

In this activity, students will have the opportunity to share their personal interpretations on artwork created by artists from the target culture. To begin, they will start the activity with a fun warm-up using the Google Arts and Culture app to find paintings that look like themselves. Then, during the main activity they will focus on expressing their opinion and answering discussions questions with a partner or in a group. Students will answer questions across different time frames (past, present, future). 

Proficiency Level:

Intermediate High

Culture:

  • Products: Selection of paintings by artists from the target culture
  • Perspectives: Discussion of how art is represented in the target culture

Keywords:

art, museum, gallery, paintings, artists, painters, paint, conversation, questions, describing, compare and contrast, technique, hypothetical questions, prediction 

World-Readiness Standards:

  • Standard 1.1 Students engage in conversations, provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions.
  • Standard 1.2 Students understand and interpret spoken and written (target language)  on a variety of topics.
  • Standard 1.3 Students present information, concepts, and ideas in (target language) to an audience of listeners or readers on a variety of topics.
  • Standard 2.2 Students demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the products and perspectives of (target culture).
  • Standard 3.2 Students acquire information and recognize the distinctive viewpoints that are only available through the (target language) and its cultures.
  • Standard 4.2 Students demonstrate an understanding of the concept of culture through comparisons between (target culture) and their own.

Idaho State Standards:

  • COMM 1.1 - Interact and negotiate meaning (spoken, signed, written conversation) to share information, reactions, feelings, and opinions
  • COMM 2.1 - Understand, interpret, and analyze what is heard, read, or viewed on a variety of topics.
  • COMM 3.1 - Present information, concepts, and ideas to inform, explain, persuade, and narrate on a variety of topics using appropriate media in the target language.
  • CLTR 2.1- Analyze the significance of a product (art, music, literature, etc...) in a target culture.
  • CLTR 2.2- Describe the connections of products from the target culture with the practices and perspectives of the culture.
  • CLTR 2.3- Justify the underlying beliefs or values of the target culture that resulted in the creation of the product.
  • COMP 1.1 - Observe formal and informal forms of language.

NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do Statements:

  • I can participate in a spontaneous conversation centered around artists and paintings
  • I can describe what I see in a painting to a friend and discuss the possible significance
  • I can share my interpretations of a piece of art with someone else while respecting their interpretation

Materials Needed:

Warm-up

1. Begin by introducing the Can-Dos for today’s activity and opening the Google Slideshow. 

“Today, we are going to chat about art across different times frames. We will discuss ways to share our interpretations on a piece of art or music with someone else or in a group." 

2. Before beginning, introduce students to reaction words using the Google Slideshow. 

Continue by using the Google Arts and Culture App have students take picture of themselves to see what famous art work they look like. Have students share their famous art lookalike with the group.

Main Activity

1. Put the art cards up around the room with a question caption underneath. Have the students walk around the room with a partner or small group (no more than 3) and have them discuss the question under the card. Make sure to mention that each student should share their opinion. 

“Now you are art critics. With a partner you are going to walk around the gallery and observe the pieces of art.” 
                
2.  Tell your students:
1. “There is a question for each art piece.” 

2. “You are going to have a few minutes to answer the question and talk about it.” 

3. “After that you will keep walking around until you have done this for every piece of art.”

3. Use this model for an example: 
            1 . If I had the opportunity to create the painting, I would create it with physical materials so that it would be more 3D.

3. Have the students continue the process until time is up. If students have seen every piece of art, have them answer the wrap-up questions as a group or in pairs. 

Wrap-up

Ask the following questions to finish the lab: 

What were your favorite pieces of art? Why?

 Did you recognize any of the artists?

Who is your favorite artist? How would you describe their style?

End of lab:

• Read Can-Do statements once more and have students evaluate their confidence. 
(Use thumbs up/thumbs down or download our student cards.) 
• Encourage students to be honest in their self-evaluation.
• Pay attention, and try to use feedback for future labs!

NCSSFL-ACTFL Can-Do Statements:

  • I can participate in a spontaneous conversation centered around artists and paintings
  • I can describe what I see in a painting to a friend and discuss the possible significance
  • I can share my interpretations of a piece of art with someone else while respecting their interpretation

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