The National Gallery of Art has created seven interactive art activities for students in elementary school through high school. Using these activities students can explore elements of digital photograph editing, elements of color, and experiment with different styles of painting. Three of the featured activities are Brushster, Dutch Doll House, and Collage Machines. In Brushster, students mix and match colors to create abstract art. The Dutch Doll House is an interactive exhibit in which students explore the 17th century home and studio of a Dutch artist. The Collage Machines, of which there are two, give students a platform for creating collages of art samples.

The National Gallery of Art’s website has other resources that art teachers and students may want to explore. The National Gallery of Art’s videos and podcasts take viewers and listeners behind the scenes of the gallery’s exhibits. The videos and podcasts also give access to lectures and talks with scholars and artists. The National Gallery of Art has dozens of online tours of the gallery’s collections. Each tour includes the images accompanied by descriptions of the works and brief biographical information about the artists.

Applications for Education
The National Gallery of Art’s online galleries could be useful for anyone teaching or studying art history. The interactive activities could be a fun way to introduce reluctant students to an art class or a topic in an art class.

Here are some related resources that may be of interest to you:
Blogs for Art Teachers
The Forward Thinking Museum – Virtual Museum
7 Resources for Creating Cartoons and Comics