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School Programs
Explore our full menu of free in-person, virtual and distance learning experiences and make your reservation using our School and Youth Group Reservation form. Expand the text below to learn more about how the museum has virtualized each of our standard school program offerings. We hope teachers and students will love them all. Please check back often for updates.
All reservations should be made through the online School and Youth Group Reservation form. If you need support, please reach out using the contact info below. Reservations for tours must be made 3 weeks in advance. We are booking in-museum tours at 9:30 or later on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.
School Tour Fees: $5/student; $5/chaperone
FREE for Hartford, CREC, & schools with federal Title I designation
Studio Program Fees: $7.50/student; $5/chaperone
FREE for Hartford, CREC, & schools with federal Title I designation
Art & Writing Program Fees: FREE for all participants
tours@thewadsworth.org
teachers@thewadsworth.org
Visitor Services Information desk – (860) 838-4100
Once you submit a school program request, you will receive a confirmation email with more details.
You may request a 1 hour in-person tour from the theme list described below. This tour is a docent-led experience emphasizing inquiry-based learning through art. Please see our Virtual Options tab for virtual tour information.
The Wadsworth can accommodate requests in multiple world languages including Spanish and French. Please inquire if interested.
Tour themes are available for PreK–12 school groups. View the state and national curriculum standards addressed through our school tour program.
Story Time | Grades PreK & K
Connect reading and art through this tour designed for our youngest student visitors.
Tours for PreK and Kindergarten groups are 45 minutes.
Learning to Look | Grades K–8
This tour introduces students to the museum experience as they explore the elements of art through close looking and discussion.
Tours for Kindergarten groups are 45 minutes.
Step into the Story | Grades K–12
Students learn to “read” and interpret works of art through character, setting, and plot.
Tours for Kindergarten groups are 45 minutes.
Connecticut People & Places | Grades 3–8
Examining works of art as historical evidence, students learn about Connecticut’s rich history and culture.
American Art | Grades 3–12
Students use critical thinking skills to interpret American paintings, sculpture, and decorative arts from the Colonial period through today. Curricular connections include Colonial America and the American Revolution.
European Art | Grades 3–12
Students use critical thinking skills to interpret European paintings, sculpture, and decorative arts from the Medieval era through the early 20th century.
Myths, Stories, and Legends | Grades 3–12
Students explore myths and legends from Greece, Rome, Egypt, Asia, and America in both ancient and modern artworks.
Artwise | Grades 9–12
Students decode visual imagery, explore innovations in art, discuss the context of artworks, and experience the museum in this “Learning to Look” tour for high school students.
Our studio programs combine a 45-minute guided tour with a 45-minute studio activity led by a museum teaching artist. All materials are provided, and students leave with their creations.
Capacity: 50 students unless otherwise noted. Also available after school.
Animals in Art | Grades PreK-2
Students discover animal imagery in works of art from around the world and create their own animal art using modeling clay.
Color My World | Grades PreK-2
Young learners explore the elements of art in our galleries. The exploration continues in our studio with a garden collage activity using colors, shapes, and textures.
Be the Curator | Grades 3-5
Students explore landscapes, portraits, and still life paintings in the galleries and try their hand at curating their own museum “wall.”
Making Myths | Grades 3-5
Students view works depicting myths from ancient Greece, Rome, and Asia and illustrate their own myth on a two-dimensional vase.
Art and Poetry | Grades 6–12
Students explore connections between art and writing as they compose poems inspired by a work of art. Using watercolors, students create abstract paintings that capture the mood of their poems.
STEAM: Sketch Like a Scientist! | Grades 6–12
Students will explore the intersection of science and art in still life paintings. The studio portion will take place in the museum’s Cabinet of Art and Curiosity where students will sketch from insect and sea life specimens. Capacity: 30 students
Drawing out the Details | Grades 6–12
Students are introduced to the elements of art through close looking in the museum. Students will visit the galleries with drawing materials, learning fundamental techniques as they sketch from ancient objects.
Gallery Drawing Sessions | Grades 11–12
Upper High School students draw directly from artworks in our collection. Teachers select from one of three gallery spaces: European paintings and sculpture in Morgan Great Hall, Surrealism and Modernism in Avery Court Suites, or the Hudson River School galleries. 1 hour drawing session only; does not include a guided tour. Capacity: 25 students per unique gallery; total group size can be up to 50 students in 2 galleries. This program is designed for students with prior drawing experience.
Art and Writing
Grades 3–5
New! Grades 6–8
Art and Writing is an art and literacy curriculum designed around artwork in our collection. Teachers/teams will receive a Curriculum Resource workbook by mail which includes lessons, worksheets, readings, artwork images on USB, and full-color printed and digital artwork reproductions for use in your classroom. All program materials will be mailed.
To participate in the Art and Writing Program, make a reservation using our School and Youth Group Reservation form.
Preview Art & Writing 6-8 curriculum here
View Art & Writing 3-5 curriculum here
Museum on the Move: Art and Literacy Outreach Program
Grade 4
Museum on the Move is an art and literacy outreach program available to Hartford Public School 4th graders. All materials are provided for active group discussions and writing exercises led by teachers in the classroom and art room, a docent-facilitated lesson, a docent-guided museum tour, and an art-making activity.
View curriculum here
If you are a Hartford 4th Grade teacher interested in participating in Museum on the Move, please reach out directly to teachers@thewadsworth.org.
Partnership with the Connecticut Science Center
Tour the Connecticut Science Center and the Wadsworth Atheneum on the same day. Select from two tours to best fit your curriculum and student needs:
Learning to Look/Artwise | Grades K–12
See Like a Scientist | Grades 6–12
Fees: $4/student & chaperone (Wadsworth Atheneum); $12/student & chaperone (Science Center)
1 complimentary chaperone admission per 24 students
FREE at the Wadsworth for Hartford, CREC, & schools with federal Title I designation; charges apply at Science Center
Partnership with Connecticut’s Old State House
The Place Where You Live Multisite Visit
Students explore Connecticut’s material history through the objects and architecture at Connecticut’s Old State House and the Wadsworth Atheneum. Select from two tours to best fit your curriculum and student needs:
American Art | Grades 3-12
Connecticut People and Places | Grades 3–8
Fees: $4/student & chaperone (Wadsworth Atheneum); $3/student (Old State House)
FREE at the Wadsworth for Hartford, CREC, & schools with federal Title I designation; charges may apply at Old State House
All reservations should be made through the online School and Youth Group Reservation form. If you need support, please reach out using the contact info below. Reservations for tours must be made 3 weeks in advance.
TOURS
You may request a 45-minute virtual tour presented on Zoom. This tour is a docent-led experience emphasizing inquiry-based learning through art.
The Wadsworth can accommodate virtual tours most times of day, Monday–Friday.
STUDIO PROGRAMS
We have converted our beloved Studio Programs into short (15-20 min) prerecorded videos that can be presented in the classroom or used for remote learning. All videos feature a museum educator in our galleries discussing 3-4 artworks. Then, the educator leads an art demonstration in the studio. Studio videos will be sent as a password-protected Vimeo link. Teachers may request a box of art materials for up to 25 students. To sign up, make a reservation using our School and Youth Group Reservation form.
Animals in Art | Grades PreK-2
Explore artwork inspired by our furry friends. Create an animal artwork using collage. Featured artworks/artists: Camel (China), Cat (Egypt), Stella Snead, Marc Chagall.
Color My World | Grades PreK-2
Explore artworks that pop with color, and create your own colorful garden using collage. Featured artworks/artists: Sol LeWitt, Early American Quilt, Nicolaes van Verendael
Art and Poetry | Grades 6–12
Explore artworks with “poetic” qualities, and learn basics of mark-making in watercolor. Featured artists: Helen Frankenthaler, Georgia O’Keeffe, Njideka Akunyili Crosby.
Drawing out the Details | Grades 6–12
Explore artworks with “poetic” qualities, and learn basics of mark-making in watercolor. Featured artists: Helen Frankenthaler, Georgia O’Keeffe, Njideka Akunyili Crosby.
STEAM: Sketch Like a Scientist! | Grades 6–12
Students will explore the intersection of art and science with the chance to draw nature specimens of their choice using pencil. Featured gallery: Cabinet of Curiosities.