Given that a school year is 36 weeks, 4-week chunks can be devoted to a particular NC artist. Some teachers may put up an "Artist of the Month" bulletin board. Others may devote a portion of every class period to a short study on an NC artist. Activities could include biographical information, visual examples, mimicry of style, etc.

Feel free to search geographically on the Selected Artist Map or in the Selected Artist Index.

Ethnography can seem like an intimidating topic, but there is really no better way for students to engage into their local art forms. Ethnographic research takes a little training to be done properly: crafting insightful questions is a skill challenging even for high school students. However, with a little practice and some teacher guidance, ethnographic interviews of local artists, grandparents, or community members can be some of the most powerful information regarding true NC art forms!

Check out these resources:

Local Kids Guide to Local Culture

Local Learning Network Toolbox

Have the students do all the heavy lifting! Have each student choose a North Carolina visual artist to study and present to the group. Partner with Social Studies and/or English teachers to create a joint project and double (or triple) the amount of time students have to work on their research!

NC Artist Spotlight (Grade 4 - Can be modified for Visual Arts)

Traditional Crafts have explicit ties to Social Studies content. Videos, recordings, and works of art can be treated as primary sources and text for close-reading practices. Topics like African American Story Quilting speak directly to the role of conflict and cooperation in the development of NC, along with understanding how individuals have impacted and shaped North Carolina for societal reform. The TNCAP Economics lesson is another easy entry point. Many of the music forms evolved because of geography. Additionally, studying artistic expression is explicitly stated in the 4th grade social studies standards.

Using primary documents in the classroom will engage your students in asking questions, thinking critically, and making inferences about the topic being studied. Your students will gain a greater understanding of history as they unlock the mysteries from North Carolina's past. Read more about using Primary Resources in the ELA classroom in this Library of Congress Article.

How do you want to teach the content? Contact us, and we would love to share your expertise with others in the state!