Get ready to ponder the past and explore art and history with a fun, flexible social studies activity your whole class will love. In this social studies project, students will research a historical painting that depicts an important person or event from history and share their findings with the class. This activity is super versatile and is a perfect combination of social studies, art, reading, writing, and speaking skills. Read on to find out more!
We love educational activities that are not only easy to do but can be adapted in a variety of ways to meet the needs of your class. This social studies research project checks all the right boxes! You can use this activity with your third grade, fourth grade, or fifth grade students and adapt it for any number of social studies units: Colonial America, the American Revolutionary War, the Founding Fathers, U.S. Presidents, and more. However, this social studies project isn't limited to American history; students can explore European artwork, Native tribal art and artifacts, and other historically significant works from practically any time period or location they are currently learning about in their lessons.
Before you begin the activity with your class, think about how much guidance and direction you want to provide for the project. Here are a few points to consider:
Your preferences for the activity will depend on the age and grade level of your students, as well as the unique needs and abilities of your class.
There is no right or wrong way to do this social studies activity with your class. If you prefer a more structured activity, we offer a few guided questions to consider, next.
Here are a few questions you may want your students to answer about the piece of artwork they choose:
Here are some tips for helping your students get the most out of this social studies research project:
There are so many ways to make this social studies activity your own! Use these suggestions to guide your students through the discovery process as they explore historical artwork that brings to life the people and events you cover in class.
How do you incorporate artwork and other historically significant materials into your social studies lessons? We want to hear from you! Please leave us a comment below.
Remember to tag @superteacherworksheets on social media so we can check out your social studies adventures!
Looking for more awesome social studies activities to try with your class? Visit the Super Teacher Worksheets Social Studies Collection!
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