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For Students + Families + Educators

These resources meant to support teaching and learning in and through arts and cultures in Alaska. As we adjust our approaches to education, we hope this resource will support greater access to the arts for all. Some of these resources have been developed with direct, in-person instruction in mind; not all resources are available in all locations. We hope you will consider how these resources might inspire you to teach/learn a new creative approach.

This resource will continue to build, and we encourage you to recommend units of study, idea generators, and other supportive materials. To make a recommendation, please contact Laura Forbes at laura.forbes@alaska.gov. (lastest update: 4/10/2020 – Resources are ordered from newest to oldest)

ASCA & AACF Updates
Arts and Culture Resources
AK Arts and Culture Organizational Info
Emergency Funding
Engaging with Communities
General COVID-19 AK & National
For Students + Families + Educators
Webinars + Connecting
Working Online

Resources Developed in/for Alaska

  • Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center in Alaska—We invite teachers, students, parents and lifelong learners to explore Alaska Native cultures, museum objects, communities, videos and educational resources shared here. Learn about the peoples of this northern world from elders, culture-bearers, scholars and artists. https://learninglab.si.edu/org/sasc-ak 
  • Project Articulate – This website provides art lesson plans for teachers. All lessons have been developed and time-tested by the specialists at the Art Center in the Fairbanks, Alaska public schools. Although developed for a specific grade, all lessons are easily adaptable to other levels. Please keep in mind that these lesson plans are designed to be taught with an ‘Art Kit’ and may not be easily usable without the visuals in the kit. Developed by the Fairbanks North Star Borough School District and the Alaska Arts Education Consortium. http://www.projectarticulate.com/
  • Baby Raven Reads – Sealaska Heritage sponsors Baby Raven Reads, an award-winning program that promotes early-literacy, language development and school readiness for Alaska Native families with children up to age 5. Baby Raven Reads improves early literacy skills by translating cultural strengths into home literacy practices. Baby Raven Reads provides family literacy events, training for care providers, and professional development for early childhood educators. Included on the Baby Raven Reads page are lesson plans, audio resources, and information about purchasing books in the series! https://sealaskaheritage.org/institute/education/education-programs/baby-raven-reads
  • Aklearns.org | Arts and Action – DEED’s Division of Innovation & Education Excellence is launching this Teaching & Learning Support site to offer information, resources, and leadership to teachers and school leaders across Alaska. The site will serve as a clearinghouse where we share great ideas gleaned from a variety of locations and sources. As schools across the country close in response to the coronavirus situation, many publishers and ed-tech vendors are providing access to their tools and resources free of charge. Links to tools, resources, and publications on this site are for informational purposes only and do not indicate endorsements of the tools by DEED. At this time, we wish to provide our educators with as many “leads” as possible. Teachers should work with their school leadership to ensure selected tools are appropriate for their individual settings. Find “Arts & Action” resources for educators within the Educational Resources space. https://www.aklearns.org/educational-resources/arts-action
  • Alutiiq Museum – We believe that accurate knowledge of the past is essential for healthy communities. History is a resource that can help people confront difficult issues, engage in discussion, and consider many perspectives. Our educational programs provide an honest exploration of the forces that have shaped today’s Alutiiq culture, and they are open to everyone. We are committed to creating respect and enthusiasm for Alutiiq culture among people of all heritage. Students, families and educators will find access to arts activities and resources, and resources continue to develop; explore exhibits, crafts, stories, language, and lesson plans. https://alutiiqmuseum.org/teachers
  • The Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center – Resources for Educators – The Anchorage Museum offers a range of online resources and publications to support your teaching. Explore resources for teaching and learning; follow on Facebook and Instagram for updates on live content, highlights and other resources for educators and families. https://www.anchoragemuseum.org/programs/for-educators/resources/
  • Artful Teaching: Preparing, supporting and retaining responsive teachers. – The Artful Teaching Project promotes an arts integrated, culturally sustaining approach to teaching as a catalyst for inspiration, creativity and joy in the classroom. Developed through a partnership of the Juneau School District, University of Alaska Southeast, and the Juneau Arts and Humanities Council. The Artful Teaching website includes resources for teachers, and we especially encourage you to try out the Artful Teaching Thinking Routines and ArtStories, and to generate ideas. http://www.artfulteaching.org/
  • Kodiak Arts Council | Arts Integrated Lesson Plans – We believe in the power of arts integration and it’s ability to instill a love of learning in students through core subjects. Our plans have been developed by our teaching artists over the years as well as classroom teachers in our Munartet cohort. Some of them are written for a range of ages while others are for specific grades. All of the plans align with the Alaska state standards and are easily modifiable. Please enjoy our FREE curated list of plans and presentations. https://www.kodiakarts.org/arts-integrated-lesson-plans
  • Munartet Project – The Munartet partnership supports teaching in and through the arts and culture in Kodiak. Partners include the Kodiak Island Borough School District, Alutiiq Museum, Kodiak Arts Council, and Kodiak College, with support from the Alaska State Council on the Arts. Munartet Project pre-service teacher cohort members paired with teaching artists in the summer of 2016 to offer classes to the Kodiak community as part of the Kodiak Arts Council’s Sum Arts program. Each pair of teachers developed a lesson plan and we are happy to share them with you to use in your classroom! https://www.munartet.org/resources
  • My Fishing Dance – This digital dance unit was designed with remote Alaskan students in mind. “My Fishing Dance” is ​a 21st century resource for exploring, learning, creating, and sharing ​culturally-responsive arts-based content. Digital resources and video tutorials provide rich content, tailored to the unique needs, interests, and culture of the region. This unit of study is created by Leslie Kimiko Ward, a movement-based teaching artist with a passion for leveraging her creative skills to bridge resource gaps in education. https://myfishingdance.weebly.com/

Nationally Developed Resources

  • ArtWorks Blog | Taking Note: Musical Activities to Support Parent-Child Relationships – With schools and daycares closed, many parents are looking for activities to engage in with their young children. As part of the National Endowment for the Arts Research Lab project awarded to the Vanderbilt Music Cognition Lab in 2018, our Research Lab studies how parent-child musical activities may support families of children with and without developmental disabilities. To learn more about parent-child musical activities, songs, and tips, see the suggested activities and strategies with links to video examples and visual support materials, included I this post from the NEA Art Works Blog. https://www.arts.gov/art-works/2020/taking-note-musical-activities-support-parent-child-relationships
  • Poetry Out Loud | Lesson Plans for Teachers and other Resources – The Lesson Plans for Poetry Out Loud were developed for classroom instruction. With access to the online anthology, and adaptation, these plans may be adjusted for online learning. In addition, the Alaska State Poetry Out Loud Competition is available for viewing, featuring poetry recitations from across the State of Alaska since 2014, on KTOO Alaska Public Broadcasting’s website. Finally, Poetry Out Loud national partner, the Poetry Foundation has several online poetry resources for teachers, students and families in their Learning Section.
  • Save the Music Foundation | Music Education Resources – Save The Music is committed to sharing high quality educational resources with music teachers and schools. This site includes websites and free online platforms that are especially tailored for long distance education and engagement. https://www.savethemusic.org/grants/teacher-resources/
  • State Education Agencies Directors of Arts Education (SEADAE) | Arts Instructional Resources – The arts education community is working to build a repository of instructional resources for the field. The links within this page continue to be updated. If you have a resource which may be helpful to enriching arts instruction virtually, please contribute to the online site with your ideas. https://www.seadae.org/arts-instructional-resources
  • VSA International | Resources – VSA, the international organization on arts and disability, was founded more than 35 years ago by Ambassador Jean Kennedy Smith to provide arts and education opportunities for people with disabilities and increase access to the arts for all. The VSA website includes many helpful resources in support of access to arts education for all, including lesson plans and planning, articles, tips and programs https://vsainternational.wordpress.com/

Arts Education Sector Resources in Response to COVID-19

  • Teaching Artist Guild | Covid-19 Resources for Teaching Artists – A compilation of resources and information developed in support of teaching artist practice ranging for online learning, to labor issues, to emergency funding opportunities. https://teachingartistsguild.org/covid-19-resources/