Integrating the Arts into the Regular Ed Classroom and Curriculum

I have to admit that my students are probably leaving my room not as 'culuturally sound' as they should be. I never really thought about integrating the arts into my lessons, I know, I know how awful of me! When we studied Ancient Greece and Rome the arts of these ancient civilizations were obviously discussed because so many forms of art flourished in these wondrous civilizations. And when we studied the explorers in science we sang a song about how Christopher Columbus landed on San Salvador and Juan Ponce de Leon searched for the fountain of youth, but somehow as I write this I don't feel that I helped shape the young minds of the children in my class in a cultural sense. And I have to say that it is just because I never thought about it. As I write this I am running through all of the ways I can do better in this area next year! When we discuss Rome we can actually make a mosaic, not just look at pictures. Oh, I am so excited! I can't wait to read about how others in my graduate class are already integrating the arts into their classroom everyday.

Integrating the Social Studies and Reading Curriculum

Integration of curriculum is a very hot topic today among teachers, administrators, researchers, etc. Most of these individuals agree that integration is a key element in student success, I happen to agree. Whenever a classroom teacher can effectively build in one subject what was learned in another she is activating prior knowledge of the students and reinforcing the content that was previously taught. Holding the student accountable for knowing the information in a cross curricular manner will encourage the student to make connections in the classroom. I am a self contained teacher, teaching Reading/ Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Studies. I find it easier to implement this method in a self contained classroom, but would encourage all teachers and team members to take on the challenge of integration and begin watching your students thrive even more in their studies.

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Hi friends! I hope you will enjoy reading my blog! Happy blogging!
Brooks