At the Catskill Middle School each student is given the opportunity to create, explore, and learn about art. The Catskill Middle School art program is directed towards teaching the students about art appreciation. This is achieved by learning about artists, artwork, art mediums, and art techniques.
The Catskill Middle School Art Program follows the NYS Learning Standards for Art Education.
STANDARD 1: Creating, Performing, and Participating in The Arts
Students will make works of art that explore different kinds of subject matter, topics, themes, and metaphors. Students will understand and use sensory elements, organizational principles, and expressive images to communicate their own ideas in works of art. Students will use a variety of art materials, processes, mediums, and techniques, and use appropriate technologies for creating and exhibiting visual art works.
STANDARD 2: Knowing and Using Arts Materials and Resources
Students will know and use a variety of visual arts materials, techniques, and processes. Students will know about resources and opportunities for participation in visual arts in the community (exhibitions, libraries, museums, galleries) and use appropriate materials (art reproductions, slides, print materials, electronic media). Students will be aware of vocational options available in the visual arts.
STANDARD 3: Responding To and Analyzing Works of Art
Students will reflect on, interpret, and evaluate works of art, using the language of art criticism. Students will analyze the visual characteristics of the natural and built environment and explain the social, cultural, psychological, and environmental dimensions of the visual arts. Students will compare the ways in which a variety of ideas, themes, and concepts are expressed through the visual arts with the ways they are expressed in other disciplines.
STANDARD 4: Understanding The Cultural Dimensions and Contributions of The Arts
Students will explore art and artifacts from various historical periods and world cultures to discover the roles that art plays in the lives of people of a given time and place and to understand how the time and place influence the visual characteristics of the art work. Students will explore art to understand the social, cultural, and environmental dimensions of human society.