Welcome First Grade Parents!

Join us in inspiring Central’s students through art—right in your child’s classroom! For years, this program has been made possible by parent volunteers like you. By bringing art history to life, you’ll spark creativity, curiosity, and a love of art in young minds, leaving a lasting impact on their understanding of artistic traditions from around the world.

Why Participate?

• Impactful: Fun opportunity to engage with your student’s classroom in a meaningful way.
• Minimal Time Commitment: Approximately 2 hours (1 hr for prep, 1 hr for classroom visit).
• Supported: We provide everything you need: Presentation guides with artist background info and instructions. PowerPoint slides and speaker talking points. Project suggestions to inspire creativity. Access to our fully stocked supply closet or $20 reimbursement if you need to purchase your own materials!
• No Experience Needed: You don’t need to be familiar with art history to participate! Sessions are designed to be easy for volunteers to lead. Presentations are short (usually five slides) and include a variety of fun, age-appropriate discussion prompts. The focus is on sparking curiosity and encouraging students to imagine the story behind the art.

How to sign up:

Your classroom’s room parent has created a sign-up sheet for you to volunteer for your preferred month. Once you’ve signed up, please reach out to your student’s teacher to schedule a day and time for your visit.

• Chumley: Contact Room Parent
• Cohen: Contact Room Parent
• Marotta: Sign-up list

Note: For the 2024-2025 school year, if you have already signed up to teach about an artist that is not included in the updated curriculum, you have the option to either stick with the original artist or switch to one from the new curriculum.

January: Portraits

Andy Warhol (1928 – 1987), American Artist, Pop Art

Elaine Sturtevant (1924 – 2014), American Artist, Pop Art

These two diptychs show how portraits can evolve beyond likeness, becoming a dialogue between artists and a commentary on culture itself. Warhol redefined the genre with his iconic, mass-produced images of Marilyn Monroe, blending celebrity worship with questions about identity and fame. A decade later, Sturtevant’s bold recreation of Warhol’s work challenged ideas of originality and artistic ownership. When someone once asked Andy Warhol how he made his colorful silkscreen art, he famously said, “I don’t know. Ask Elaine!”

“Don’t think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it’s good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art.” – Andy Warhol

“To be a great artist is the least interesting thing I can think of.” – Elaine Sturtevant

• Resources: Presentation Slides and Suggested Project
• Learn more about Andy Warhol and Marilyn Diptych
• Learn more about Elaine Sturtevant and Warhol Diptych

February: Enchanted Landscapes

Katsushika Hokusai (1760 -1849), Japanese Artist and Printmaker, Woodblock/Edo Period

Hokusai’s iconic The Great Wave off Kanagawa reimagines traditional landscape as a force of nature, blending beauty and power. Instead of a serene view, this woodblock print captures the drama of a towering wave about to crash over fishermen, dwarfing even Mount Fuji in the background. His dynamic composition and bold use of color transformed the idea of a landscape into something thrilling and unforgettable.

“Ever since I was six, I have been obsessed with drawing the shapes of things. By the time I was fifty, I had published countless drawings, but nothing I produced before the age of seventy is worthy of note. Not until I was seventy-three did I begin to understand the structure of nature as it truly is, the structure of animals, plants, trees, birds, fish and insects. Thus, by the time I am eighty, I will have made some real progress. At ninety I will have fathomed the mystery of things; at a hundred I will surely have reached a phenomenal level, and when I’m a hundred and ten, everything I do, be it a dot or a line, will be alive.” – Katsushika Hokusai (age 75)

• Resources: Presentation Slides and Suggested Projects
• Learn more about Katsushika Hokusai and The Great Wave off Kanagawa

March: People in Action

Edvard Munch (1863 – 1944) Norwegian Painter, Expressionism, Symbolism

Munch’s The Scream is a haunting portrayal of human emotion, inspired by the Norwegian artist’s own struggles with anxiety and fascination with the inner psyche. Set in a swirling, chaotic landscape, the solitary figure’s open-mouthed anguish captures a sense of universal dread. A cornerstone of the Symbolist movement, this groundbreaking work is an enduring icon of modern existentialism—and an emoji!

“I was walking along the road with two friends. The sun was setting – the sky turned a bloody red… I stood there trembling with anxiety – and I felt a vast infinite scream through nature.” – Edvard Munch

• Resources: Presentation Slides and Suggested Projects
• Learn more about Edvard Munch and The Scream

April: Beyond the Canvas

Anish Kapoor (1954 – ), British-Indian Sculptor, Installation Art

Cloud Gate—better known as “The Bean”—is like a giant funhouse mirror in the middle of Chicago! Created by artist Anish Kapoor, it’s made of shiny, polished steel that reflects the city skyline, the clouds, and even you. It’s called Cloud Gate because its shape looks like a gate to the sky, but most people just love walking around it, under it, and spotting their wavy reflections.

“Artists don’t make objects. Artists make mythologies.” – Anish Kapoor

• Resources: Presentation Slides and Suggested Projects
• Learn more about Anish Kapoor and Cloud Gate

October 2025: Colors and Shapes

Georges Braque (1882 – 1963), French Painter, Cubism

Braque, the French pioneer of Cubism alongside Picasso, reimagines feathered friends in his painting Birds. Using his signature fragmented style, set against a backdrop of twinkling stars and a stunning blue sky, Braque transforms these simple birds into abstract forms. This modern spin on nature elevates the ordinary into extraordinary.

“There are certain mysteries, certain secrets in my own work which even I don’t understand, nor do I try to do so.” – Georges Braque

• Presentation slides and suggested projects (coming in 2025-2026 school year!)
• Learn more about Georges Braque and Birds

November 2025: Stories in Action

Georges Seurat (1859 – 1891), French Painter, Pointillism 

Seurat’s A Sunday Afternoon on the Grande Jatte is a masterpiece using tiny dots to make a big impression. Using his signature pointillist technique, the French artist transformed a tranquil afternoon lounging by the Seine into a vibrant tapestry of light and color. Painted at the same time as the construction of the Eiffel Tower, this enormous painting can be found at the Art Institute of Chicago.

“The inability of some critics to connect the dots doesn’t make pointillism pointless.” – Georges Seurat

• Presentation slides and suggested projects (coming in 2025-2026 school year!)
• Learn more about Georges Seurat and A Sunday Afternoon on the Grande Jatte

Instructions for Volunteers:

Thank you for sharing your time and enthusiasm with Central’s students! Your involvement in the Cultural Art Program plays a vital role in bringing art history to life and sparking creativity and curiosity. By guiding students through the world of art, you’re helping them build a lifelong appreciation and understanding of cultural heritage, while encouraging their critical thinking and observational skills.

• Prior to volunteering, you must fill out the District Volunteer Form (must be done annually.)
• To volunteer for a session, use the sign up link provided by the Room Parent for your student’s classroom.  At the beginning of the month you’ve volunteered for, please contact your student’s teacher to schedule a time to come to class.
• It’s helpful to do a “dry-run” at home with your student beforehand to anticipate how the students will respond. Reference the talking points in the notes in each slide to get comfortable with what you’ll plan to say and the questions you’ll ask.
• It’s highly recommended to do any material prep work and create a completed example prior to the session. This helps students envision the finished product and complete it within the allotted time.
• You will have access to the school’s wifi and the ability to plug in to a projector. However, to avoid any potential technical difficulties, plan to email your presentation to your student’s teacher prior to the session and print out your talking points/notes.
• Plan to arrive 15 minutes prior to your start time to allow time to sign in, collect supplies from the art supply closet (if necessary), and set up for your presentation.
• Plan to spend 20-25 minutes for your presentation and discussion, and 30 minutes for the project, depending on complexity.
• In the last few minutes of the session, take time to ask the students about what they learned (i.e. “Can you tell me the name of the artist we learned about today? What were they known for? How would you describe the (movement/style) of art?)

Central has a well stocked art supply closet, however, if you needed to purchase your own materials for a project you can be reimbursed up to $20 by submitting a reimbursement form. If you have questions about what supplies can be found in the closet, please contact the Cultural Arts Program Chair, Maryjane Bates.

Questions about the program? Please contact Maryjane Bates, Cultural Arts Program Chair.