Craft in America Shares Its Abundant Library of Free Videos & Online Resources for Educators and At-Home Learning

As educators across the country creatively and swiftly activate new systems for learning at home, Craft in America is enhancing free online access to its treasure trove of inspiring, educational materials that explore craft as a part of American history, culture, art, and technology. Over the past 14 years, Craft in America has built its website with a multimedia library of lesson plans and accessible learning resources that are at the fingertips of teachers, students, and families. Craftinamerica.org is making innovative education materials available, easily accessible, and best suited to the needs of our nation’s students and communities.

We provide:

Hundreds of Short Videos & 23 Full Episodes
Education Guides
Virtual galleries and video tours
Artist Bio Pages
Filmed Artist Talks

(more information below)

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Craft in America Education Guides Educators

Hundreds of Short Videos & 23 Full Episodes

Educational videos, including 400+ shorts that vary in length from 2-15 minutes plus 23 complete, hour-long episodes of our Peabody Award-winning PBS series that tell the story of how craft shapes American life and art through stories of innovative artists living and working in cities and towns across the U.S. These engaging, visually-stunning free videos are applicable to a range of subjects: history, social studies, art appreciation, English language arts, and STEAM-learning.

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Education Guides

Craftinamerica.org offers 33 national standards-based Education Guides with lesson plans for K-12 teachers that bring the story of American craft to students anywhere. Lessons written by respected art teachers for all teachers are designed to encourage critical thinking skills and creative engagement. These guides engage students in making meaningful interdisciplinary connections between craft and diverse content areas, from environmental sciences to history and social studies. They can be woven into existing lessons or stand alone units. Educators can use and adapt guides to lead thoughtful discussions on art and culture, assign creative and responsive writing prompts, or engage students in meaningful art-appreciation projects.

Lesson plans are enhanced by video segments that can be watched at home for free on craftinamerica.org for example:
The most recently published 2019 Education Guide covers social studies, story and scene creation, and offers numerous interdisciplinary connections.

The Education Guides are developed by a team of respected art teachers under the direction of Dr. Marilyn Stewart, Professor Emerita of Art Education, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, with Dr. Amy Bloom, Art Teacher, Exeter Township Junior High School, Exeter PA and Dolores Eaton, Art Teacher, The Pennington School, Pennington, NJ.

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Virtual Galleries and Video Tours

Virtual galleries and video tours of Craft in America Center, with exhibits spanning ten years, provide gallery installation views and detailed images of artworks, giving students the opportunity to experience a museum from home, and allowing them to independently explore art.

For example:

The current exhibition Identity: 4 Voices explores works by nationally acclaimed artists who convey heritage, cross-cultural histories, and personal belief systems through ceramics, woodworking, furniture-making, and photography.

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Subject-based YouTube Playlists

Our playlists feature videos in one central location, organized by subject and theme so teachers may easily find content to compliment lessons across all content areas. These videos are available for teachers of all subjects to incorporate into their lessons as needed. Newly launched playlists include: History & Culture, STEM Handmade, Language & Storytelling, Performing Craft, Craft & Kids, Craft in History, Schools of Craft and much more.

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Artist Biographies

Craftinamerica.org is regarded as an encyclopedia of national craft. The website contains over 350 profiles of leading and emerging artists across the country, serving as a who’s who in contemporary craft. Informative short-format bios are enhanced by portraits of the artists and images of their artworks.

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Filmed Artist Talks

Craftinamerica.org includes over 60 hour-long lectures given by leading, noteworthy contemporary artists working in ceramics, fiber, glass, wood, and metal. These filmed talks give students the chance to learn in-depth about artistic inspiration, technique, and about the professional and creative choices and pathways that artists take to pursue their dreams.

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PLUS: PBS LearningMedia maintains an additional portal of Craft in America online resources for students to learn about the artists, origins, and techniques of American craft.

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