Illinois Visual Arts Standards

Illinois Arts Learning
Standards Initiative
Visual Arts Standards

Recommendations for Updated
Arts Learning Standards and
Their Implementation
Report to the Illinois State

Board of Education
February 2016
Visual Arts
CREATING
Anchor Standard 1: Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work.
Enduring Understanding: Creativity and innovative thinking are essential life skills that can be developed.
Essential Questions: (a) What conditions, attitudes, and behaviors support creativity and innovative thinking? (b) What factors
prevent or encourage people to take creative risks? (c) How does collaboration expand the creative process?
Investigate,
Plan,
Make
Pre K
VA:Cr1.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Cr1.1.K
1st
VA:Cr1.1.1
2nd
VA:Cr1.1.2
3rd
VA:Cr1.1.3
4th
VA:Cr1.1.4
a. Engage in selfdirected play with

materials.
a. Engage in exploration
and imaginative play
with materials.
a. Engage
collaboratively in
exploration and
imaginative play with
materials.
a. Brainstorm
collaboratively multiple
approaches to an art or
design problem.
a. Elaborate on an
imaginative idea.
a. Brainstorm multiple
approaches to a creative
art or design problem.
Anchor Standard 1: Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work.

Enduring Understanding: Artists and designers shape artistic investigations, following or breaking with traditions in pursuit of creative art-making goals.
Essential Questions: (a) How does knowing the contexts, histories, and traditions of art forms help us create works of art and design? (b) Why do artists follow or
break from established traditions? (c) How do artists determine what resources are needed to formulate artistic investigations?
Investigate,
Plan,
Make
Pre K
VA:Cr1.2.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Cr1.2.K
1st
VA:Cr1.2.1
2nd
VA:Cr1.2.2
3rd
VA:Cr1.2.3
4th
VA:Cr1.2.4
a. Engage in selfdirected creative art

making.
a. Engage
collaboratively in
creative art making in
response to an artistic
problem.
a. Use observation
and investigation in
preparation for making
a work of art.
a. Make art or design

with various materials
and tools to explore
personal interests,
questions, and curiosity.
a. Apply knowledge of
available resources,
tools, and technologies
to investigate personal
ideas through the artmaking process.
a. Collaboratively set
goals and create artwork
that is meaningful and
has purpose to the
makers.
2 | Illinois Arts Learning Standards Visual Arts
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5th
VA:Cr1.1.5
6th
VA:Cr1.1.6
7th
VA:Cr1.1.7
8th
VA:Cr1.1.8
Introductory HS Levels
VA:Cr1.1.I
Intermediate HS Levels Advanced HS Levels

VA:Cr1.1.II
VA:Cr1.1.III
a. Combine ideas to
generate an innovative
idea for art making.
a. Combine concepts
collaboratively to
generate innovative
ideas for creating art.
a. Apply methods to
overcome creative
blocks.
a. Document early
stages of the creative
process visually or
verbally in traditional or
new media.
a. Use multiple
approaches to begin
creative endeavors.
a. Individually or
collaboratively formulate
new creative problems
based on students
existing artwork.
5th
VA:Cr1.2.5
6th
VA:Cr1.2.6
7th
VA:Cr1.2.7
8th
VA:Cr1.2.8
VA:Cr1.2.I

VA:Cr1.2.II
VA:Cr1.2.III
a. Identify and
demonstrate diverse
methods of artistic
investigation to choose
an approach for
beginning a work of art.
a. Formulate an
artistic investigation
of personally relevant
content for creating art.
a. Develop criteria to
guide making a work of
art or design to meet an
identified goal.
a. Collaboratively shape
an artistic investigation
of an aspect of
present-day life using a
contemporary practice of
art and design.
a. Shape an artistic
investigation of an
aspect of presentday life using a
contemporary practice of
art or design.
a. Choose from a
range of materials and
methods of traditional
and contemporary
artistic practices to plan
works of art and design.
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a. Visualize and
hypothesize to generate
plans for ideas and
directions for creating
art and design that can
affect social change.
a. Choose from a
range of materials
and methods of
traditional and
contemporary artistic
practices, following or
breaking established
conventions, to plan
the making of multiple
works of art and design
based on a theme, idea,
or concept.
Illinois Arts Learning Standards Visual Arts | 3
Visual Arts
CREATING
Anchor Standard 2: Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.
Enduring Understanding: Artists and designers experiment with forms, structures, materials, concepts, media, and art-making approaches.
Essential Questions: (a) How do artists work? (b) How do artists and designers determine whether a particular direction in their work is effective? (c) How do
artists and designers learn from trial and error?
Investigate
Pre K
VA:Cr2.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Cr2.1.K
1st
VA:Cr2.1.1
2nd
VA:Cr2.1.2
3rd
VA:Cr2.1.3
4th
VA:Cr2.1.4
a. Use a variety of artmaking tools.
a. Through
experimentation, build
skills in various media
and approaches to artmaking.
a. Explore uses of
materials and tools to
create works of art or
design.
a. Experiment with
various materials and
tools to explore personal
interests in a work of art
or design.
a. Create personally
satisfying artwork
using a variety of
artistic processes and
materials.
a. Explore and invent

art-making techniques
and approaches.

Enduring Understanding: Artists and designers balance experimentation and safety, freedom, and responsibility while developing and creating artworks.
Essential Questions: (a) How do artists and designers care for and maintain materials, tools, and equipment? (b) Why is it important for safety and health to
understand and follow correct procedures in handling materials and tools? (c) What responsibilities come with the freedom to create?
Investigate
Pre K
VA:Cr2.2.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Cr2.2.K
1st
VA:Cr2.2.1
2nd
VA:Cr2.2.2
3rd
VA:Cr2.2.3
4th
VA:Cr2.2.4
a. Share materials with

others.
a. Identify safe and

nontoxic art materials,
tools, and equipment.
a. Demonstrate safe and

proper procedures for
using materials, tools,
and equipment while
making art.
a. Demonstrate safe
procedures for using
and cleaning art tools,
equipment, and studio
spaces.
a. Demonstrate an
understanding of the
safe and proficient
use of materials, tools,
and equipment for
a variety of artistic
processes.
a. When making works

of art, utilize and care
for materials, tools, and
equipment in a manner
that prevents danger to
oneself and others.

Enduring Understanding: People create and interact with objects, places, and design that define, shape, enhance, and empower their lives.
Essential Questions: (a) How do objects, places, and design shape lives and communities? (b) How do artists and designers determine goals for designing or
redesigning objects, places, or systems? (c) How do artists and designers create works of art or design that communicate effectively?
Investigate
Pre K
VA:Cr2.3.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Cr2.3.K
1st
VA:Cr2.3.1
2nd
VA:Cr2.3.2
3rd
VA:Cr2.3.3
4th
VA:Cr2.3.4
a. Create and tell about

art that communicates
a story about a familiar
place or object.
a. Create art that

represents natural
and constructed
environments.
a. Identify and classify

uses of everyday objects
through drawings,
diagrams, sculptures, or
other visual means.
a. Repurpose objects to
make something new.
a. Individually or
collaboratively construct
representations,
diagrams, or maps of
places that are part of
everyday life.
a. Document, describe,
and represent
regional constructed
environments.
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5th
VA:Cr2.1.5
6th
VA:Cr2.1.6
7th
VA:Cr2.1.7
8th
VA:Cr2.1.8
VA:Cr2.1.I

VA:Cr2.1.II
VA:Cr2.1.III
a. Experiment and
develop skills in multiple
art-making techniques
and approaches through
practice.
a. Demonstrate
openness in trying
new ideas, materials,
methods, and
approaches in making
a. Demonstrate
persistence in
developing skills with
various materials,
methods, and
approaches in creating
works of art or design.
a. Demonstrate
willingness to
experiment, innovate,
and take risks to pursue
ideas, forms, and
meanings that emerge
in the process of art
making or designing.
a. Engage in making
a work of art or design
without having a
preconceived plan.
a. Through
experimentation,
practice, and
persistence,
demonstrate acquisition
of skills and knowledge
in a chosen art form.
5th
VA:Cr2.2.5
6th
VA:Cr2.2.6
7th
VA:Cr2.2.7
8th
VA:Cr2.2.8
VA:Cr2.2.I

VA:Cr2.2.II
VA:Cr2.2.III
a. Demonstrate quality
craftsmanship through
care for and use of
materials, tools, and
equipment.
a. Explain environmental
implications of
conservation, care, and
cleanup of art materials,
a. Demonstrate
awareness of ethical
responsibility to oneself
and others when posting
and sharing images
and other materials
through the Internet,
social media, and other
communication formats.
a. Demonstrate
awareness of practices,
issues, and ethics of
appropriation, fair use,
copyright, open source,
and creative commons
as they apply to creating
a. Explain how
traditional and
nontraditional
materials may impact
human health and
the environment and
demonstrate safe
handling of materials,
a. Demonstrate
awareness of ethical
implications of making
and distributing creative
work.
5th
VA:Cr2.3.5
6th
VA:Cr2.3.6
7th
VA:Cr2.3.7
8th
VA:Cr2.3.8
VA:Cr2.3.I

VA:Cr2.3.II
VA:Cr2.3.III
a. Identify, describe,
and visually document
places or objects of
personal significance.
a. Design or redesign
objects, places, or
systems that meet
the identified needs of
diverse users.
a. Apply visual
organizational
strategies to design and
produce a work of art,
design, or media that
clearly communicates
information or ideas.
a. Select, organize, and

design images and
words to make visually
clear and compelling
presentations.
a. Collaboratively
develop a proposal
for an installation,
artwork, or space
design that transforms
the perception and
experience of a
particular place.
a. Redesign an object,
system, place, or
design in response to
contemporary issues.
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a. Experiment, plan, and

make multiple works
of art and design that
explore a personally
meaningful theme, idea,
or concept.
a. Demonstrate
understanding of
the importance of
balancing freedom and
responsibility in the use
of images, materials,
tools, and equipment
in the creation and
circulation of creative
work.
a. Demonstrate in works
of art or design how
visual and material
culture defines, shapes,
enhances, inhibits, or
empowers peoples lives.
Visual Arts
CREATING
Anchor Standard 3: Revise, refine, and complete artistic work.
Enduring Understanding: Artists and designers develop excellence through practice and constructive critique, reflecting on, revising, and refining work over time.
Essential Questions: (a) What role does persistence play in revising, refining, and developing work? (b) How do artists grow and become accomplished in art
forms? (c) How does collaboratively reflecting on a work help us experience it more completely?
Reflect,
Refine,
Continue
Pre K
VA:Cr3.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Cr3.1.K
1st
VA:Cr3.1.1
2nd
VA:Cr3.1.2
3rd
VA:Cr3.1.3
4th
VA:Cr3.1.4
a. Share and talk about

personal artwork.
a. Explain the process

of making art while
creating.
a. Use art vocabulary to

describe choices while
creating art.
a. Discuss and reflect

with peers about choices
made in creating
artwork.
a. Elaborate visual
information by adding
details in an artwork
to enhance emerging
meaning.
a. Revise artwork in
progress on the basis of
insights gained through
peer discussion.
PRESENTING
Anchor Standard 4: Select, analyze, and interpret artistic work for presentation.
Enduring Understanding: Artists and other presenters consider various techniques, methods, venues, and criteria when analyzing, selecting, and curating
objects, artifacts, and artworks for preservation and presentation. Essential Questions: (a) How are artworks cared for and by whom? (b) What criteria, methods,
and processes are used to select work for preservation or presentation? (c) Why do people value objects, artifacts, and artworks and select them for presentation?
Relate
Pre K
VA:Pr4.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Pr4.1.K
1st
VA:Pr4.1.1
2nd
VA:Pr4.1.2
3rd
VA:Pr4.1.3
4th
VA:Pr4.1.4
a. Identify reasons for

saving and displaying
objects, artifacts, and
artwork.
a. Select art objects for

a personal portfolio and
display, explaining why
they were chosen.
a. Explain why some

objects, artifacts, and
artworks are valued over
others.
a. Categorize artwork
based on a theme or
concept for an exhibit.
a. Investigate and
discuss possibilities and
limitations of spaces,
including electronic, for
exhibiting artwork.
a. Compare and contrast

how technologies
have changed the way
artwork is preserved,
presented, and
experienced.
Anchor Standard 5: Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation.
Enduring Understanding: Artists, curators, and others consider a variety of factors and methods, including evolving technologies, when preparing and refining
artwork for display or when deciding if and how to preserve and protect artwork. Essential Questions: (a) What methods and processes are considered when
preparing artwork for presentation or preservation? (b) How does refining artwork affect its meaning to the viewer? (c) What criteria are considered when
selecting work for presentation, a portfolio, or a collection?
Select
Pre K
VA:Pr4.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Pr4.1.K
a. Identify places where

art may be displayed or
saved.
a. Explain the purpose of a. Ask and answer

a portfolio or collection. questions such as
where, when, why,
and how artwork
should be prepared
for presentation or
preservation.
1st
VA:Pr4.1.1
2nd
VA:Pr4.1.2
3rd
VA:Pr4.1.3
4th
VA:Pr4.1.4
a. Distinguish between
different materials or
artistic techniques for
preparing artwork for
presentation.
a. Identify exhibit
space and prepare
works of art, including
artists statements, for
presentation.
a. Analyze the various

considerations for
presenting and
protecting art in various
locations, indoor or
outdoor settings, in
temporary or permanent
forms, and in physical or
digital formats.
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5th
VA:Cr3.1.5
6th
VA:Cr3.1.6
7th
VA:Cr3.1.7
8th
VA:Cr3.1.8
VA:Cr3.1.I

VA:Cr3.1.II
VA:Cr3.1.III
a. Create artist
statements using art
vocabulary to describe
personal choices made
in art making.
a. Reflect on whether
personal artwork
conveys the intended
meaning and revise
accordingly.
a. Reflect on and explain

important information
about personal artwork
in an artist statement or
another format.
a. Apply relevant criteria

to examine, reflect on,
and plan revisions for a
work of art or design in
progress.
a. Apply relevant criteria

from traditional and
contemporary cultural
contexts to examine,
reflect on, and plan
revisions for works of art
and design in progress.
a. Engage in
constructive critique
with peers, then reflect
on, reengage, revise,
and refine works of art
and design in response
to personal artistic
vision.
5th
VA:Pr4.1.5
6th
VA:Pr4.1.6
7th
VA:Pr4.1.7
8th
VA:Pr4.1.8
VA:Pr4.1.I

VA:Pr4.1.II
VA:Pr4.1.III
a. Define the roles and

responsibilities of a
curator, explaining the
skills and knowledge
needed in preserving,
maintaining, and
presenting objects,
artifacts and artwork.
a. Analyze similarities
and differences
associated with
preserving and
presenting twodimensional, threedimensional, and digital
artwork.
a. Analyze how
past, present, and
emerging technologies
have impacted the
preservation and
presentation of artwork.
a. Develop and apply

criteria for evaluating a
collection of artwork for
presentation.
a. Analyze, select,
and curate artifacts
or artworks for
presentation and
preservation.
a. Analyze, select,
and critique personal
artwork for a collection
or portfolio presentation.
5th
VA:Pr4.1.5
6th
VA:Pr4.1.6
7th
VA:Pr4.1.7
8th
VA:Pr4.1.8
VA:Pr4.1.I

VA:Pr4.1.II
VA:Pr4.1.III
a. Develop a logical
argument for safe
and effective use
of materials and
techniques for preparing
and presenting artwork.
a. Individually or
collaboratively, develop
a visual plan for
displaying works of art,
analyzing exhibit space,
the needs of the viewer,
and the layout of the
exhibit.
a. Based on criteria,
analyze and evaluate
methods for preparing
and presenting art.
a. Collaboratively
a. Analyze and evaluate
prepare and present
the reasons and ways an
selected theme-based
exhibition is presented.
artwork for display and
formulate exhibition
narratives for the viewer.
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a. Evaluate, select,
and apply methods or
processes appropriate
to display artwork in a
specific place.
a. Reflect on, reengage,

revise, and refine
works of art or design
considering relevant
traditional and
contemporary criteria as
well as personal artistic
vision.
a. Critique, justify, and

present choices in the
process of analyzing,
selecting, curating, and
presenting artwork for a
specific exhibit or event.
a. Investigate, compare,
and contrast methods
for preserving and
protecting art.
Visual Arts
PRESENTING
Anchor Standard 6: Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work.
Enduring Understanding: Objects, artifacts, and artworks collected, preserved, or presented by artists, museums, or other venues communicate meaning and a
record of social, cultural, and political experiences resulting in the cultivation of appreciation and understanding.
Essential Questions: (a) What is an art museum? (b) How does the presenting and sharing of objects, artifacts, and artworks influence and shape ideas, beliefs,
and experiences? (c) How do objects, artifacts, and artworks collected, preserved, or presented cultivate appreciation and understanding?
Analyze
Pre K
VA:Pr6.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Pr6.1.K
1st
VA:Pr6.1.1
2nd
VA:Pr6.1.2
3rd
VA:Pr6.1.3
4th
VA:Pr6.1.4
a. Identify where art is

displayed both inside
and outside of school.
a. Explain what an
art museum is and
distinguish how an art
museum is different
from other buildings.
a. Identify the roles

and responsibilities of
people who work in and
visit museums and other
art venues.
a. Analyze how art

exhibited inside and
outside of schools (for
example, in museums,
galleries, virtual
spaces, and other
venues) contributes to
communities.
a. Identify and explain

how and where different
cultures record and
illustrate stories and
history of life through
art.
a. Compare and
contrast purposes of art
museums, art galleries,
and other venues, as
well as the types of
personal experiences
they provide.
RESPONDING
Anchor Standard 7: Perceive and analyze artistic work.
Enduring Understanding: Individual aesthetic and empathic awareness developed through engagement with art can lead to understanding and appreciation of
self, others, the natural world, and constructed environments. Essential Questions: (a) How do life experiences influence the way you relate to art? (b) How does
learning about art impact how we perceive the world? (c) What can we learn from our responses to art?
Share
Pre K
VA:Re7.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Re7.1.K
1st
VA:Re7.1.1
2nd
VA:Re7.1.2
3rd
VA:Re7.1.3
4th
VA:Re7.1.4
a. Recognize art in ones

environment.
a. Identify uses of
art within ones
environment.
a. Select and describe

works of art that
illustrate daily life
experiences of self and
others.
a. Perceive and describe a. Speculate about

aesthetic characteristics processes an artist uses
of ones natural world
to create a work of art.
and constructed
environments.
a. Compare responses to
a work of art before and
after working in similar
media.
Anchor Standard 7: Perceive and analyze artistic work.

Enduring Understanding: Visual imagery influences understanding of, and responses to, the world.
Essential Questions: (a) What is an image? (b) Where and how do we encounter images in our world? (c) How do images influence our views of the world?
Perceive
Pre K
VA:Re7.2.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Re7.2.K
1st
VA:Re7.2.1
2nd
VA:Re7.2.2
3rd
VA:Re7.2.3
4th
VA:Re7.2.4
a. Distinguish between
images and real objects.
a. Describe what an
image represents.
a. Compare images
that represent the same
subject.
a. Categorize images
based on expressive
properties.
a. Determine messages
communicated by an
image.
a. Analyze components
in visual imagery that
convey messages.
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5th
VA:Pr6.1.5
6th
VA:Pr6.1.6
7th
VA:Pr6.1.7
8th
VA:Pr6.1.8
VA:Pr6.1.I

VA:Pr6.1.II
VA:Pr6.1.III
a. Cite evidence about

how an exhibition in a
museum or other venue
presents ideas and
provides information
about a specific concept
or topic.
a. Assess, explain,
and provide evidence
of how museums or
other venues reflect
history and values of a
community.
a. Compare and
contrast viewing and
experiencing collections
and exhibitions in
different venues.
a. Analyze why and

how an exhibition or
collection may influence
ideas, beliefs, and
experiences.
a. Analyze and
describe the impact
that an exhibition
or collection has on
personal awareness
of social, cultural, or
political beliefs and
understandings.
a. Make, explain, and

justify connections
between artists or
artwork and social,
cultural, and political
history.
5th
VA:Re7.1.5
6th
VA:Re7.1.6
7th
VA:Re7.1.7
8th
VA:Re7.1.8
VA:Re7.1.I

VA:Re7.1.II
VA:Re7.1.III
a. Compare ones own

interpretation of a
work of art with the
interpretation of others.
a. Identify and interpret

works of art or design
that reveal how people
live around the world
and what they value.
a. Explain how the

method of display,
the location, and the
experience of an artwork
influence how it is
perceived and valued.
a. Explain how a
persons aesthetic
choices are influenced
by culture and
environment and impact
the visual image that
one conveys to others.
a. Hypothesize ways in
which art influences
perception and
understanding of human
experiences.
a. Recognize and
describe personal
aesthetic and
empathetic responses
to the natural world
and constructed
environments.
5th
VA:Re7.2.5
6th
VA:Re7.2.6
7th
VA:Re7.2.7
8th
VA:Re7.2.8
VA:Re7.2.I

VA:Re7.2.II
VA:Re7.2.III
a. Identify and analyze

cultural associations
suggested by visual
imagery.
a. Analyze ways that

visual components and
cultural associations
suggested by images
influence ideas,
emotions, and actions.
a. Analyze multiple ways

that images influence
specific audiences.

contexts and media in
which viewers encounter
images that influence
ideas, emotions, and
actions.
a. Analyze how ones

understanding of the
world is affected by
experiencing visual
imagery.
a. Evaluate the
effectiveness of an
image or images
to influence ideas,
feelings, and behaviors
of specific audiences.
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a. Curate a collection
of objects, artifacts, or
artwork to impact the
viewers understanding
of social, cultural or
political experiences.
a. Analyze how
responses to art develop
over time based on
knowledge of, and
experience with, art
and life.
a. Determine the
commonalities within a
group of artists or visual
images attributed to a
particular type of art,
timeframe, or culture.
Visual Arts
RESPONDING
Anchor Standard 8: Construct meaningful interpretations of artistic work.
Enduring Understanding: People gain insights into meanings of artworks by engaging in the process of art criticism.
Essential Questions: (a) What is the value of engaging in the process of art criticism? (b) How can the viewer read a work of art as text? (c) How does knowing
and using visual art vocabularies help us understand and interpret works of art?
Perceive
Pre K
VA:Re8.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Re8.1.K
1st
VA:Re8.1.1
2nd
VA:Re8.1.2
3rd
VA:Re8.1.3
4th
VA:Re8.1.4
a. List details in works

of art.
a. List details and

identify subject matter
of works of art.
a. Identify subject
matter and describe
characteristics of works
of art.
a. Communicate
feelings when engaging
works of art, and
describe subject matter
and characteristics.
a. Communicate
works of art, and
describe subject
matter and formal
characteristics to
discuss meanings of
artwork.
a. Communicate
works of art and
describe subject matter,
formal characteristics,
and art-making
approaches to discuss
meanings of artwork.
Anchor Standard 9: Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work.

Enduring Understanding: People evaluate art based on various criteria. Essential Questions: (a) How does one determine criteria to evaluate a work of art?
(b) How and why might criteria vary? (c) How is a personal preference different from an evaluation?
Analyze
Pre K
VA:Re9.2.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Re9.2.K
1st
VA:Re9.2.1
2nd
VA:Re9.2.2
3rd
VA:Re9.2.3
4th
VA:Re9.2.4
a. Select a preferred
artwork.
a. Explain reasons for

selecting a preferred
artwork.
a. Classify artwork
based on different
reasons for preferences.
a. Use learned art

vocabulary to express
preferences about
artwork.
a. Evaluate an artwork
based on given criteria.
a. Apply one set of

criteria to evaluate more
than one work of art.
CONNECTING
Anchor Standard 10: Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art.
Enduring Understanding: Through art making, people make meaning by investigating and developing awareness of perceptions, knowledge, and experiences.
Essential Questions: (a) How does engaging in creating art enrich peoples lives? (b) How does making art attune people to their surroundings? (c) How do people
contribute to awareness and understanding of their lives and the lives of their communities through art making?
Interpret
Pre K
VA:Cn10.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Cn10.1.K
a. Explore the world

a. Create art that tells
using descriptive and
a story about a life
expressive words and art experience.
making.
1st
VA:Cn10.1.1
2nd
VA:Cn10.1.2
3rd
VA:Cn10.1.3
4th
VA:Cn10 .1.4
a. Identify times, places,

and reasons by which
students make art
outside of school.
a. Create works of art

about events in home,
school, or community
life.
a. Develop a work of art

based on observations
of surroundings.
a. Create works of art

that reflect community
or cultural traditions.
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5th
VA:Re8.1.5
6th
VA:Re8.1.6
7th
VA:Re8.1.7
8th
VA:Re8.1.8
VA:Re8.1.I

VA:Re8.1.II
VA:Re8.1.III
a. Interpret art through

describing and
analyzing feelings,
subject matter, formal
characteristics, artmaking approaches, and
contextual information.
a. Collaboratively
interpret art and
generate meanings
through describing
and analyzing feelings,
contextual information.
a. Interpret art and

generate meanings
through describing
contextual information
and identify key
concepts.
a. Collaboratively
develop meaningful
interpretations,
supported by evidence,
of artworks through
describing and
analyzing feelings,
characteristics, artmaking approaches,
contextual information,
and key concepts.
a. Construct meaningful
interpretations,
of an artwork or
collection of works
through describing
and key concepts.
a. Construct and
support meaningful
interpretations,
of an artwork or
collection of works
through describing
and key concepts.
5th
VA:Re9.2.5
6th
VA:Re9.2.6
7th
VA:Re9.2.7
8th
VA:Re9.2.8
VA:Re9.2.I

VA:Re9.2.II
VA:Re9.2.III
a. Recognize differences
in criteria used to
evaluate works of art
depending on styles,
genres, and media as
well as historical and
cultural contexts.
a. Develop and apply

relevant criteria to
evaluate a work of art.
a. Compare and
explain the difference
between an evaluation
of an artwork based on
personal criteria and an
evaluation of an artwork
based on a set of
established criteria.
a. Create a convincing
and logical argument to
support an evaluation
of art.
a. Establish relevant
criteria in order to
evaluate a work of art or
collection of works.
a. Determine the
relevance of criteria
used by others to
evaluate a work of art or
collection of works.
5th
VA:Cn10.1.5
6th
VA:Cn10.1.6
7th
VA:Cn10.1.7
8th
VA:Cn10.1.8
VA:Cn10.1.I

VA:Cn10.1.II
VA:Cn10.1.III
a. Apply formal and

conceptual vocabularies
of art and design to
view surroundings in
new ways through art
making.
a. Generate a collection
of ideas reflecting
current interests and
concerns that could
be investigated in art
making.
a. Individually or
collaboratively create
visual documentation
of places and times in
which people gather to
make and experience
art or design in the
community.
a. Make art
collaboratively to reflect
on and reinforce positive
aspects of group
identity.
a. Document the process

of developing ideas from
early stages to fully
elaborated ideas.
a. Utilize inquiry
methods of observation,
research, and
experimentation to
explore unfamiliar
subjects through art
making.
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a. Compare and
contrast differing
interpretations of an
artwork or collection of
works and explain how
various interpretations
enrich experiences of art
and life.
a. Construct evaluations
of a work of art or
collection of works
based on differing sets
of criteria.
a. Synthesize knowledge
of social, cultural,
historical, and personal
life with art-making
approaches to create
meaningful works of art
or design.
Visual Arts
CONNECTING
Anchor Standard 11: Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen understanding.
Enduring Understanding: People develop ideas and understandings of society, culture, and history through their interactions with and analysis of art.
Essential Questions: (a) How does art help us understand the lives of people in different times, places, and cultures? (b) How is art used to impact the views
of a society? (c) How does art preserve aspects of life?
Synthesize
Pre K
VA:Cn11.1.PK
Kindergarten
VA:Cn11.1.K
1st
VA:Cn11.1.1
2nd
VA:Cn11.1.2
3rd
VA:Cn11.1.3
4th
VA:Cn11 .1.4
a. Recognize that people

make art.
a. Identify a purpose of
an artwork.
a. Understand that
people from different
places and times have
made art for a variety of
reasons.

cultural uses of artwork
from different times and
places.
a. Recognize that
responses to art change
depending on knowledge
of the time and place in
which it was made.
a. Through observation,
infer information about
time, place, and culture
in which a work of art
was created.
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5th
VA:Cn11.1.5
6th
VA:Cn11.1.6
7th
VA:Cn11.1.7
8th
VA:Cn11.1.8
VA:Cn11.1.I

VA:Cn11.1.II
VA:Cn11.1.III
a. Identify how art

is used to inform or
change beliefs, values,
or behaviors of an
individual or society.
a. Analyze how art

reflects changing times,
traditions, resources,
and cultural uses.
a. Analyze how response

to art is influenced by
understanding the time
and place in which
it was created, the
available resources, and
cultural uses.
a. Distinguish different
ways art is used to
represent, establish,
reinforce, and reflect
group identity.
a. Describe how
knowledge of culture,
traditions, and history
may influence personal
responses to art.
a. Compare uses of art

in a variety of societal,
cultural, and historical
contexts and make
connections to uses of
art in contemporary and
local contexts.
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a. Appraise the impact

of an artist or a group
of artists on the beliefs,
values, and behaviors of
a society.
Visual Arts Glossary

Visual arts, as defined by the National Art Education
Association, include the traditional fine arts, such as drawing,
painting, printmaking, photography, and sculpture; media
arts, including film, graphic communications, animation,
and emerging technologies; architectural, environmental,
and industrial arts, such as urban, interior, product, and
landscape design; folk arts; and works of art such as
ceramics, fibers, jewelry, works in wood, paper, and other
materials (Revised July 2012).
Characteristics of form (and structure): Terms drawn from

traditional, modern, and contemporary sources that identify
the range of attributes that can be used to describe works of
art and design to aid students in experiencing and perceiving
the qualities of artworks, enabling them to create their own
work and to appreciate and interpret the work of others.
Art: In everyday discussions and in the history of aesthetics,

multiple (and sometimes contradictory) definitions of art have
been proposed. In a classic article, The Role of Theory in
Aesthetics, Morris Weitz (1956) recommended differentiating
between classificatory (classifying) and honorific (honoring)
definitions of art.
Collaboratively: Joining with others in attentive participation

in an activity of imagining, exploring, or making.
In the Next Generation Core Visual Arts Standards, the word

art is used in the classificatory sense to mean an artifact
or action that has been put forward by an artist or other
person as something to be experienced, interpreted,
and appreciated.
An important component of a quality visual arts education
is for students to engage in discussions about honorific
definitions of art identifying the wide range of significant
features in art-making approaches, analyzing why artists
follow or break with traditions, and discussing their own
understandings of the characteristics of good art.
Appropriation: Intentional borrowing, copying, and alteration
of preexisting images and objects.
Artist statement: Information about context, explanations of
process, descriptions of learning, related stories, reflections,
or other details in a written or spoken format shared by the
artist to extend and deepen understanding of his or her
artwork; an artist statement can be didactic, descriptive, or
reflective in nature.
Collaboration: Joint effort of working together to formulate

and solve creative problems.
Concepts: Ideas, thoughts, schemata; art arising out of

conceptual experimentation that emphasizes making meaning
through ideas rather than through materiality or form.
Constructed environment: Human-made or modified spaces
and places; art and design-related disciplines such as
architecture, urban planning, interior design, game design,
virtual environment, and landscape design shape the places
in which people live, work, and play.
Contemporary artistic practice: Processes, techniques,
media, procedures, behaviors, actions, and conceptual
approaches by which an artist or designer makes work using
methods that, though possibly based on traditional practices,
reflect changing contextual, conceptual, aesthetic, material,
and technical possibilities; examples include artwork made
with appropriated images or materials, social practice
artworks that involve the audience, performance art, new
media works, installations, and artistic interventions in
public spaces.
Context: Interrelated conditions surrounding the creation
and experiencing of an artwork, including the artist, viewer
or audiences, time, culture, presentation, and location of the
artworks creation and reception.
Established criteria: Identified principles that direct attention

to significant aspects of various types of artwork in order to
provide guidelines for evaluating the work; may be commonly
accepted principles developed by artists, curators, historians,
critics, educators, and others or principles developed by
an individual or group to pertain to a specific work of art or
design.
Personal criteria: Principles for evaluating art and design
based on individual preferences.
Relevant criteria: Principles that apply to making, revising,
understanding, and evaluating a particular work of art or
design that are generated by identifying the significant
characteristics of a work.
Critique: Individual or collective reflective process by which
artists or designers experience, analyze, and evaluate a work
of art or design.
Cultural contexts: Ideas, beliefs, values, norms, customs,
traits, practices, and characteristics shared by individuals
within a group that form the circumstances surrounding the
creation, presentation, preservation, and response to art.
Cultural traditions: Pattern of practices and beliefs within a
societal group.
Curate: Collect, sort, and organize objects, artworks, and
artifacts; preserve and maintain historical records and
catalogue exhibits.
Curator: Person responsible for acquiring, caring for, and
exhibiting objects, artworks, and artifacts.
Design: Application of creativity to planning the optimal
solution to a given problem and communication of that plan
to others.
Artistic investigations: In making art, forms of inquiry and

exploration; through artistic investigation artists go beyond
illustrating pre-existing ideas or following directions, and
students generate fresh insights new ways of seeing
and knowing.
Copyright: Form of protection grounded in the U.S.

Constitution and granted by law for original works of
authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression, covering
both published and unpublished works
Digital format: Anything in electronic form, including photos,

images, video, audio files, or artwork, created or presented
through electronic means; a gallery of artwork viewed
electronically through any device.
Art-making approaches: Diverse strategies and procedures by

which artists initiate and pursue making a work.
Creative commons: Copyright license templates that provide

a simple, standardized way to give the public permission
to share and use creative work on conditions of the makers
choice (http://creativecommons.org/).
Engagement: Attentive participation in an activity of

imagining, exploring, and making.
Artwork: Artifact or action that has been put forward by

an artist or other person as something to be experienced,
interpreted, and appreciated
Brainstorm: Technique for the initial production of ideas or
ways of solving a problem by an individual or group in which
ideas are spontaneously contributed without critical comment
or judgment.
Characteristic(s): Attribute, feature, property, or
essential quality.
Creativity: Ability to conceive and develop rich, original ideas,

discover unexpected connections, and invent or make new
things.
Criteria: In art and design, principles that direct attention to
significant aspects of a work and provide guidelines
for evaluating its success.
Contemporary criteria: Principles by which a work of art or
design is understood and evaluated in contemporary contexts
which, for example, include judging not necessarily on
originality, but rather on how the work is recontextualized to
create new meanings.
Exhibition narrative: Written description of an exhibition

intended to educate viewers about its purpose.
Expressive properties: Moods, feelings, or ideas evoked or
suggested through the attributes, features, or qualities of an
image or work of art.
Fair use: Limitation in copyright law that sets out factors to
be considered in determining whether or not a particular use
of ones work is fair, such as the purpose and character of
the use, the amount of the work used, and whether the use
will affect the market for the work.
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Formal and conceptual vocabularies: Terms, methods,

concepts, or strategies used to experience, describe,
analyze, plan, and make works of art and design drawn from
traditional, modern, contemporary, and continually emerging
sources in diverse cultures.
Genre: Category of art or design identified by similarities in
form, subject matter, content, or technique.
Image: Visual representation of a person, animal, thing, idea,
or concept.
Imaginative play: Experimentation by children in defining
identities and points of view by developing skills in
conceiving, planning, making art, and communicating.
Innovative thinking: Imagining or conceiving something new
and unexpected, including fresh ideas and ways of looking
at things and new approaches to old problems, as well as
formulating new problems.
Material culture: Human-constructed or human-mediated
objects, forms, or expressions that extend to other senses
and study beyond the traditional art historical focus on the
exemplary to the study of common objects, ordinary spaces,
and everyday rituals.
Text: That form about which information can be gathered,

expanding beyond the traditional notion of written language
to encompass visual representations, such as paintings,
sculpture, diagrams, graphics, films, and maps.
Venue: Place or setting for an art exhibition, either a physical
space or a virtual environment.
Visual components: Properties of an image that can
be perceived.
Visual imagery: Group of images; images in general.
Visual organization approaches and strategies: Graphic
design strategies, such as hierarchy, consistency, grids,
spacing, scale, weight, proximity, alignment, and typography
choice, used to create focus and clarity in a work.
Visual plan: Drawing, picture, diagram, or model of the layout
of an art exhibit where individual works of art and artifacts
are presented along with interpretive materials within a given
space or venue.
Materials: Substances out of which art is made or composed,

ranging from the traditional to nonart material and virtual,
cybernetic, and simulated materials.
Medium/Media: Mode(s) of artistic expression or
communication; material or other resources used for
creating art.
Open source: Computer software for which the copyright
holder freely provides the right to use, study, change, and
distribute the software to anyone for any purpose
(http://opensource.org/).
Play: Spontaneous, engaged activity through which children
learn to experience, experiment, discover, and create.
Portfolio: Actual or virtual collection of artworks and
documentation demonstrating art and design knowledge and
skills, organized to reflect an individuals creative growth and
artistic literacy.
Preservation: Activity of protecting, saving, and caring for
objects, artifacts, and artworks through a variety of means.
Preserve: Protect, save, and care for (curate) objects,
artifacts, and artworks.
Style: Recognizable characteristics of art or design that are
found consistently in historical periods, cultural traditions,
schools of art, or works of an individual artist.
Technologies: Tools, techniques, crafts, systems, and
methods to shape, adapt, and preserve artworks, artifacts,
objects, and natural and human-made environments.
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Illinois Visual Arts Standards

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Illinois Visual Arts Standards

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Illinois Arts Learning

Visual Arts Standards

Report to the Illinois State

a. Engage in selfdirected play with

Anchor Standard 1: Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work.

a. Engage in selfdirected creative art

a. Make art or design

2 | Illinois Arts Learning Standards Visual Arts

Intermediate HS Levels Advanced HS Levels

Intermediate HS Levels Advanced HS Levels

Illinois Arts Learning Standards Visual Arts | 3

a. Use a variety of artmaking tools.

a. Explore and invent

Anchor Standard 2: Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.

a. Share materials with

a. Identify safe and

a. Demonstrate safe and

a. When making works

Anchor Standard 2: Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.

a. Create and tell about

a. Create art that

a. Identify and classify

4 | Illinois Arts Learning Standards Visual Arts

Intermediate HS Levels Advanced HS Levels

Intermediate HS Levels Advanced HS Levels

Intermediate HS Levels Advanced HS Levels

a. Select, organize, and

a. Experiment, plan, and

Illinois Arts Learning Standards Visual Arts | 5

a. Share and talk about

a. Explain the process

a. Use art vocabulary to

a. Discuss and reflect

a. Identify reasons for

a. Select art objects for

a. Explain why some

a. Compare and contrast

a. Identify places where

a. Explain the purpose of a. Ask and answer

6 | Illinois Arts Learning Standards Visual Arts

a. Analyze the various

Intermediate HS Levels Advanced HS Levels

a. Reflect on and explain

a. Apply relevant criteria

a. Apply relevant criteria

Intermediate HS Levels Advanced HS Levels

a. Define the roles and

a. Develop and apply

Intermediate HS Levels Advanced HS Levels

a. Reflect on, reengage,

a. Critique, justify, and

Illinois Arts Learning Standards Visual Arts | 7

a. Identify where art is

a. Identify the roles

a. Analyze how art

a. Identify and explain

a. Recognize art in ones