In keeping with the Tang Teaching Museum’s mission to enrich education through the arts, we offer a variety of programs for schools, including field trips, classroom visits, and teacher training and resources. We also bring our programming to public libraries throughout the region, both in the summer and after school during the academic year. Multigenerational art projects are the focus of our Family Saturday programs, and adult classes and tours are available as well.
For more information on any of these programs or to schedule a visit, please call Ginger Ertz, Museum Educator, 518-580-5538; or email gertz@skidmore.edu.
School Visits
How to Book Your Visit
Skidmore College and the Tang Teaching Museum believe in enriching the education of K-12 students through exhibitions and programs that expose them to the arts. Our programs are designed to complement traditional school-based learning and to follow New York State Learning Standards.
Participation in these programs can take place in the Museum or in your classroom. We look forward to creating a meaningful learning experience to suit your students.
Field Trips to the Tang Teaching Museum
We encourage group visits to the Tang. We ask that you call at least 2 weeks in advance to schedule your visit. We recommend allowing 1 1/2 hours for your visit, usually including time in the galleries as well as a hands-on art activity related to the exhibitions. Groups are limited to no more than 25 in a gallery, so larger groups will be split between the tour and the activity. If you have a very large group, please call and we will discuss how we can best accommodate you.
Docent-Guided Tours
Guided tours are available Tuesday-Friday, from 10:00-11:30, 10:30-12:00, 12:30-2:00, or 1:00-2:30. Please call ahead for an appointment.
Self-Guided Tours
Self-guided group tours are welcome during normal gallery hours, Tuesday-Friday, 12pm - 5pm. Please call 2 weeks in advance to let us know when you are coming even if you do not require a docent-led tour so that we may staff the galleries appropriately.
Classroom Visits
We also offer a program of traveling materials – our “suitcase” program – designed to enhance the school curriculum by bringing multidisciplinary concepts from the exhibition into the classroom. Our hands-on projects provide opportunities for teaching, learning, and understanding issues raised by current and past exhibitions at the Tang. Referencing artworks and themes from these exhibitions, we have assembled interdisciplinary programs that bridge the arts and your school curricula in accordance with New York State Learning Standards for K-12 students.
These programs are free and all materials are provided.
Teacher Training and Resources
The Education Department of the Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery offers a variety of Teacher Training opportunities in addition to our annual Educator’s Guide, which is available as a PDF below.
We offer teacher training in Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) and how it can apply to the New York State Learning Standards and your curriculum. VTS is a learner-based method of talking about art, using open-ended questions to elicit student responses, and has been proven to enhance critical thinking skills. We are happy to customize the training to meet your needs.
We offer in-museum presentations to teachers including group tours and/or discussions about current and upcoming exhibitions and their relevance to classroom curricula, or we can schedule a time to come to your faculty meetings to talk about what the Tang can bring to your teachers and students.
We are often invited to give workshops at Arts in Education Teacher Development Days in and around the capital region. Check our calendar for upcoming opportunities, or call us to schedule a presentation at your school district’s in-service days.
Tang Museum K-12 Educator's Guide 2012-2013 PDF Download