The Frost Art Museum is committed to making art accessible to everyone in our community. We work with schools throughout Miami-Dade County to provide students with exceptional art experiences through field trips to the museum and guided tours. We also offer professional development workshops for teachers that promote STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) learning.
Creating transformative art experiences is part of our mission. As a university museum, promoting higher education to those who may become first generation graduates is vital. Equally important is lessening educational inequalities within our neighboring schools and community.
The STEAMworks program is an initiative began in 2015 with Sweetwater Elementary School. This school-wide arts integration model changed the foundation of the school’s teaching, creating a multiple museum visit program for each grade level. Funding for transportation and professional development were necessary, as well as the in-school visits with museum educators during the year.
Working close with the school principal and faculty, new curricula across subjects was developed utilizing art and museum exhibitions to complete STEM/STEAM projects. Through hands-on learning, role-play, inquiry, problem-solving and visual-thinking strategies, the students made connections between art and the topics in the classroom.
The impact of the program on Sweetwater Elementary School’s underserved, at-risk youth has demonstrated an increase in overall testing scores in 2016, positive attitude changes towards learning and increased attendance. In addition, students and their families developed a new appreciation and understanding for museums as places of value within their community.
The museum develops and provides resources and lesson plans for teachers that incorporate our exhibitions with Florida State Standards and STEAM learning. These resources include images and information for multiple approaches to learning for teachers K-12. In addition, select professional journal articles are available to support best practices in museum education, STEAM and current school-museum educational trends.
In addition, we organize quarterly professional workshops for teachers. Miami-Dade County Public Schools offers teacher certification points for these workshops. Contact our Education Department to learn more.
Lesson Plan Ideas
Arts education fosters creativity and supports the development of skills required to succeed in the 21st-century classroom. The Frost Art Museum collection, exhibitions, and Sculpture Park provide the foundation for classroom lessons and activities.
Students from kindergarten to 12th grade will to engage in interactive, fun activities that support curriculum and arts integration. We tailor school visits to focus on classroom learning and offer dynamic, interactive tours that invite students to look, think, question and create meaningful experiences. In addition, we create interactive and engaging workshops that provide another avenue for learning.
