This course is designed to help build critical skills that support theme-based teaching practices and build confidence in incorporating modern and contemporary art into interdisciplinary lesson plans. By addressing themes and questions that arise in relation to modern and contemporary art, the course will help you to think creatively about links to your curriculum and the ways that you can tap into students’ knowledge and life experience.
Offered By
Art & Ideas: Teaching with Themes
The Museum of Modern Art
About this Course
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Learner Career Outcomes
50%
started a new career after completing these courses
14%
got a tangible career benefit from this course
Learner Career Outcomes
50%
started a new career after completing these courses
14%
got a tangible career benefit from this course
Shareable Certificate
Earn a Certificate upon completion
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Flexible deadlines
Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.
Approx. 11 hours to complete
Suggested: 5 weeks of study x 2 hours/week, plus 2 hours for final project = 12 hours total
English
Subtitles: English, Italian, Russian, German
Syllabus - What you will learn from this course
1 hour to complete
Module 1: Introduction to Art & Ideas: Teaching with Themes
Be introduced to some of the overall benefits of studying modern and contemporary art through accessible and relevant themes. Understand that themes allow us to make connections with artworks, classroom content, and students’ lives. Become acquainted with the ways that a thematic approach supports student-centered, interdisciplinary teaching.
1 hour to complete
2 videos (Total 4 min), 4 readings
4 readings
1.1 Introduction to Art & Ideas: Teaching With Themes10m
1.4 Required Readings & Additional Resources10m
Tell Us About You10m
Resources: MoMA podcasts, art vocabulary, Magazine, and YouTube channel10m
1 hour to complete
Module 2: Places & Spaces
Discover some of the many ways that artists represent place and take inspiration from their environment. Learn how to engage students with sights and structures that will be familiar to many of them.
1 hour to complete
11 videos (Total 24 min), 3 readings, 1 quiz
11 videos
2.3 Teaching with Themes: Places & Spaces2m
2.5 Vincent van Gogh. The Starry Night. 18892m
2.6 Piet Mondrian. Broadway Boogie Woogie. 1942–431m
2.7 Gordon Matta-Clark. Bingo. 19741m
2.8 Andrew Wyeth. Christina's World. 19481m
2.9 Salvador Dalí. The Persistence of Memory. 19311m
2.10 Claude Monet. Water Lilies. 1914–261m
2.11 Rachel Whiteread. Water Tower. 19982m
2.12 Edward Hopper. House By the Railroad. 19251m
2.13 Louis I. Kahn. Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh (Study for National Assembly Building). 1962–832m
3 readings
2.1 Introduction to Places & Spaces10m
2.4 Slideshow10m
2.14 Required Readings & Additional Resources10m
1 practice exercise
Quiz20m
1 hour to complete
Module 3: Art & Identity
Discover some of the ways artists create works of art to express, explore, and question identity. Gain strategies for using works of art to approach the topic of identity with students.
1 hour to complete
8 videos (Total 20 min), 4 readings, 1 quiz
8 videos
3.3 Teaching with Themes: Art & Identity3m
3.5 Frida Kahlo. Self-Portait with Cropped Hair. 19402m
3.6 Andy Warhol. Gold Marilyn Monroe. 19621m
3.7 Pablo Picasso. Girl Before a Mirror. 19322m
3.8 Marc Chagall. I and the Village. 19112m
3.9 Henri Matisse. The Red Studio. 19112m
3.10 Rineke Dijkstra. Almerisa series. 1994–20081m
4 readings
3.1 Introduction to Art & Identity10m
3.4 Slideshow10m
3.11 Required Readings & Additional Resources10m
Mid-course survey5m
1 practice exercise
Quiz20m
1 hour to complete
Module 4: Transforming Everyday Objects
Discover how artists use everyday objects to challenge assumptions about what constitutes art and how it should be made. Explore a variety of artistic and design choices, and the creative acts of inventing and transforming everyday objects. Gain skills for making interdisciplinary connections and fostering students’ critical thinking abilities.
1 hour to complete
10 videos (Total 22 min), 3 readings, 1 quiz
10 videos
4.3 Teaching With Themes: Transforming Everyday Objects2m
4.5 Marcel Duchamp. Bicycle Wheel. 19132m
4.5 Robert Rauschenberg. Bed. 19551m
4.6 Meret Oppenheim. Object. 19362m
4.7 Décolletage Plastique Design Team. Bic Cristal® Ballpoint pen. 19502m
4.8 Louise Nevelson. Sky Cathedral. 19581m
4.9 Mike Kelley. Untitled. 19902m
4.10 Jessica Rosenkrantz, Jesse Louis-Rosenberg. Kinematics Dress. 20131m
4.11 Doris Salcedo. Atrabilious. 1992–931m
3 readings
4.1 Introduction to Transforming Everyday Objects10m
4.4 Slideshow10m
4.12 Required Readings & Additional Resources10m
1 practice exercise
Quiz20m
4.8
41 ReviewsTop reviews from Art & Ideas: Teaching with Themes
Thank You So Much MoMa and Cousera !! I'm super in love with this courses, it really help me a lot and teach me a lot ..And I will continue to choose any others course in MoMa,in Cousera ! Thank You
This course was a wonderful and thorough introduction to Modern Art. So insightful and informative! I'd recommend it to anyone! It has definitely enhanced my lesson planning and teaching style.
Offered by
The Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is a place that fuels creativity, ignites minds, and provides inspiration. With extraordinary exhibitions and the world's finest collection of modern and contemporary art, MoMA is dedicated to the conversation between the past and the present, the established and the experimental. Our mission is helping you understand, enjoy, and use the art of our time.
Frequently Asked Questions
When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?
Once you enroll for a Certificate, you’ll have access to all videos, quizzes, and programming assignments (if applicable). Peer review assignments can only be submitted and reviewed once your session has begun. If you choose to explore the course without purchasing, you may not be able to access certain assignments.
What will I get if I purchase the Certificate?
When you purchase a Certificate you get access to all course materials, including graded assignments. Upon completing the course, your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
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