The Core Lessons draw most directly on art making and art history. Supplementary ideas draw also from art criticism and aesthetics. Each thematic unit in Stories of Art focuses on two artworks or artifacts from two very different cultures. Core Lessons Students explore the theme of Our Place in the World and four key inquiry questions through seven Core Lessons that build upon one another. The teacher introduces the theme and key questions.
Students make a theme portfolio in which they can collect their work during the unit.
Students use their imaginations and a fictional story to explore the theme and key questions. Students apply the theme to their own lives. Students first make artworks that express the theme of the unit. Then they analyze their own artworks using the unit's four key questions. The teacher introduces the two key artworks to students.