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Free Educational Experiences for Schools & Teachers
The Taft Museum of Art offers unique educational experiences that promote critical thinking, creativity, and visual literacy skills. We aim to foster the development of the four Cs of 21st-century learning: critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity.
Please note that the Taft historic house is temporarily inaccessible for school experiences.
School Field Trips and Special Exhibition Experiences
Join the Taft Museum of Art for free on-site field trips. Each field trip is 90 minutes and includes a guided tour of the Taft Museum of Art. Explore the museum’s exhibition In a New Light: Treasures from the Taft and enjoy a hands-on art-making experience (some exclusions apply). Busing assistance is available for qualified schools.
Questions, interested in a self-guided experience, or want to inquire on other topics? Contact education@taftmuseum.org or call (513) 684-4515.
Stories in Art
Grades K–6: English Language Arts
This program focuses on how a work of art can tell a story. Students will learn how to "read" a painting using English Language arts concepts and apply what they have learned to create their own illustration.
Art Matters: Exploring Social Causes in Art
Grades 7-12: Social Studies & Fine Arts
This program explores centuries-old social concerns such as power and wealth, environmental destruction, and gender and racial equality, all themes well represented in the special exhibition In a New Light: Treasures from the Taft. Students learn how issues are represented over time and create their own social cause poster.
Collecting for Cincinnati
Grades K-12: Social Studies & Fine Arts
Charles and Anna Taft created an extraordinary art collection to inspire and educate artisans in the Cincinnati region. Discover highlights from the Tafts’ collection and consider how these works of art might contribute to making Cincinnati a better place to live.
*This tour is a special self-guided experience and is only offered at the Cincinnati Museum Center as part of the Taft’s special bicentennial collaboration and exhibition, Borrowed Gems from the Taft Museum of Art.*
Art for All Outreach
Art for All Outreach is a free program that provides a multi-touchpoint experience that ensures students at eligible schools* benefit from enriching art experiences. Each experience includes an opportunity to see works of art in the Taft Museum of Art’s permanent collection as well as participate in an art-making project led by a professional teaching artist. This program is offered in virtual, hybrid, and in-person formats with the flexibility to fit into any schedule. Busing is free.
Questions? Contact outreach@taftmuseum.org or call (513) 684-4515.
See and Tell
Grades K-6: English Language Arts
This program takes a closer look at the connection between visual and language arts. Students will discover how artists, like writers, use concepts like character, setting, plot, and sequence to create a narrative in works of art. Students will apply what they learn to create a zine to tell their own visual story.
Robert S. Duncanson’s Cincinnati
Grades K-12: Social Studies, Fine Arts
This program focuses on the story of the first African American artist to achieve international prominence: Robert S. Duncanson. Students will learn Duncanson’s personal story, what his life was like in Cincinnati during the Civil War era, and how the 150-year-old murals painted on the walls of the foyer at the Taft played a part in his success. Students will create their own imaginative landscape cyanotype (sun print) inspired by Duncanson.
*Eligibility is defined as 50% or more students receiving free lunch.
Artists Reaching Classrooms
The Taft Museum of Art’s Artists Reaching Classrooms program (ARC) immerses high school art students in Cincinnati’s visual arts community and exposes them to careers in the arts. All aspects of the program, including buses for field trips, are offered to participating schools free of charge. Each year, the Taft Museum of Art enrolls 12 schools in this program.
ARC Offers High School Students:
- Learn about careers in the arts
- Build relationships with professional artists
- Visits to artist studios
- Explore the Taft Museum of Art as a resource for artists
- Create an original work of art
- Participate in a professionally organized art exhibition
View the 2021 exhibition online here.
Please Note: ARC does not currently have openings for the 2021–2022 school year. Please reach out to learn more about the program or be added to the roster for next year.
Questions? Contact education@taftmuseum.org or call (513) 684-4516.
Education Sponsor
Charles H. Dater Foundation
The P&G Fund of The Greater Cincinnati Foundation
Children's Education Programs Generously Supported by
Joy and W.G. (Pete) Alpaugh Trust
Art For All Sponsors
Andrew Jergens Foundation
Daniel and Susan Pfau Foundation
The Robert Gould Foundation
The August A. Rendigs, Jr. Foundation
Chemed Foundation
Artists Reaching Classrooms Sponsor
Chemed Foundation