Art in the Classroom - Picturing America

Have you applied for a Picturing America grant? Picturing America is an initiative from the National Endowment for the Humanities that brings masterpieces of American art into classrooms and libraries nationwide.

Successful applicants will receive:

• An innovative, free resource that provides educators with an engaging way to teach American history, culture, and other subjects through the use of artistic images.
• Public, private, parochial, and charter and home school consortia (K-12), as well as public libraries in the United States and its territories, may receive a total of 40 high-quality, laminated reproductions (approximately 24” x 36”). (Preview the art by visiting the image gallery or downloading a PowerPoint presentation of the images in the collection.)
  
• An illustrated Teachers Resource Book, with activities organized by elementary, middle and high school levels. The resource book will help K-12 teachers use the images to teach core curriculum subjects such as: American history, social studies, civics, language arts, literature, science, math, geography, and music. (Preview these resources by downloading the entire resource book.)
• Access to the Picturing America Web site, which contains additional information and resources, including innovative lesson plans.

In return for receiving the Picturing America reproductions and Teachers Resource Book, schools are required to encourage teachers to use the reproductions in the classroom. Schools and libraries are required to keep as many of the reproductions as possible on continual exhibit in classrooms or public locations in the school or public library during the April 2009 – April 2010 grant term, and to retain the reproductions for future display and educational use.

If your school hasn't yet applied, please encourage your principal or librarian to do so. While individual home schools are not eligible to apply, consortia or alliances of home schools may apply for Picturing America materials to place in a common resource center.

The submission deadline is November 14. So, what are you waiting for?