Big Ideas in the Arts

What do we want our students to know or remember long after they have left our classrooms?  These are often called Enduring Understandings or Big Ideas.  These are the main concepts around which we construct our lessons. They are apparent in the curriculum as well.

     The Arts are purposeful, human endeavors.
     The Arts attain value, purpose and meaning from the personal, social and cultural dimensions of life.
     The Arts raise philosophical issues and questions.
     The Arts can be interpreted many ways.
     Change is fundamental to the Arts.

from: Transforming Education Through the Arts, report

"10 Lessons that the Arts Teach" (Eisner)is a good document to highlight the purpose and value of the Arts in our life.

Students in our division created this short video response to Eisner's lessons - you can view it at:

"Lessons the Arts Teach".

Bloom's Taxonomy of Knowledge has been revised and it places Creating as the highest level of comprehension.

This website has some excellent links with questioning strategies and descriptions of each level in the taxonomy that are practical for the classroom.