Infinitely Remixable: The IPMM 2021/22 Art Education Curriculum

Last year, we launched the First Edition of the IPMM Arts Education Curriculum. Informed by our work in and out of art classrooms all over the City of Chicago and the gaps that we saw within existing arts education frameworks, the curriculum was a labor of love and a long time coming. 

The 2020/21 Edition was obviously influenced by the constraints of the pandemic, and the unique landscape of teaching virtually. It was focused on flexibility, customization, and support for teachers during a tough time in American education. 

Although we’ve kept many of the best ideas from last year’s curriculum, we’ve updated the 2021/22 Curriculum to reflect the return to the classrooms and to highlight our infinitely remixable lesson plan structure. (More on that later!) 

Plus, it satisfies National Art Standards! 

Our Unique Pedagogy: See, Think, Do

Intended to be a holistic resource and support tool for art teachers in all types of classrooms, the IPMM Art Education Curriculum includes 15+ lesson plans, a Living Artist list of 32 working artists in the IPMM Permanent Collection, and year-round support from a team of experienced education professionals. 

Animated by our central See, Think, Do pedagogy, the Curriculum operates with the fundamental belief that when students dive into appreciating, discussing, and establishing context around art, they’ll be inspired to create art of their own. 

We work with dozens of incredible artists at IPMM, who work in a variety of mediums and styles, come from diverse backgrounds, and live all over the country and the world. 

When it comes to art education, especially in elementary school settings, most curriculums only include white, male, and already long-dead artists. This alienates students, especially in a diverse, multiethnic classroom. If kids can’t see themselves in the artists they’re learning about, they won’t find these points of common connection, experience, and inspiration. 

At IPMM, we believe that teaching and connecting students with living, working artists, will empower them to believe they can be artists as well. 

Students are inherently creative, collaborative art lovers, and our curriculum guides them towards realizing these qualities within themselves! That’s why we ask students to consider art they already love, search for public art around their homes, and otherwise get in touch with the art they experience in their daily lives. 

Through exposure to working artists, activities to build context, and developing the ability to vocalize what they students like and connect with in a piece of art, you’ll inspire confidence in your classroom when it comes to analyzing and discussing art. 

In the final phase of the art curriculum, students will synthesize what they’ve learned and use it as a jumping-off point for creating their own unique works of art. The ultimate project is a class-wide art gallery, where students will hang their work. 

Infinitely Remixable

The IPMM Arts Education Curriculum is built to be reused, revisited, and remixed. Our simple 3-step process is in place to help you, the teacher, best put this content and framework to use. 

All you have to remember is:

• Pick An Artist
• Pick An Activity / Lesson Plan
• Do It Again!

Each of our 15+ lesson plans can be made fresh and used again by simply swapping out the artist you chose from our Living Artists Section. They won’t get old or stale, because each one is designed to generate new information, connections, and discussions with each new artist you may choose.