A Word About Integration

Thank you for checking out our new booklet, Arts Plus+, with eight integrated arts lessons.

As we embark on a new era in arts education for students, we recognize that arts integration is one strategy to bring arts into every classroom.

The Kennedy Center defines arts integration as “an approach to teaching in which students construct and demonstrate understanding through an art form. Students engage in a creative process which connects an art form and another subject and meets evolving objectives.”

Authors' Note

Louisa Higgins, Arts Administrator for Riverside County Office of Education, and Karen Riley, Founder and Executive Director of the S.C.R.A.P. Gallery, are long-time artists, friends, and collaborators. During the pandemic, they began creating integrated arts lessons based on wonderful children’s literature. Their focus was on having engaging artists like Matisse, Kusama, and Kahlo, as well as diverse cultural representation. They also made a practice of weaving together multiple pedagogies and subject matter in the lessons. We hope you enjoy these lessons, and feel free to send us images of the student artwork you create in your classrooms!