Attend VMFA teacher workshops and seminars to gain innovative ideas and activities for interdisciplinary learning. All teacher programs are aligned with Virginia SOLs and model strategies for integrating works of art across the K-12 curriculum.
Energize your teaching practice—and yourself—in these innovative, practical sessions.
Online Resources for Educators
Creative & Critical Thinking with Art Course Developed by VMFA and hosted on Virtual Virginia, this course uses VMFA collections to empower creative and critical thinking across different content areas. Participants will explore how inquiry-based engagement with art objects might serve as a laboratory for honing the creative and critical thinking skills crucial to the discipline they teach. Sign up today!
Please note: Beginning March 31, 2025 this course will retire as we work towards updates and new resources. A new release will be available Fall 2025.
VMFA Resource Center A free and comprehensive online learning database of classroom and gallery teaching resources. Find guided looking exercises, lesson ideas, thematic object sets, engagement strategies, videos, and more. This resource features content for our permanent, rotating, and even past collection objects. Learn more!
For any inquiries regarding teacher programming at VMFA, please email us at teacherprograms@vmfa.museum.
Upcoming Programs
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Teacher Program | Crafting a Personal Narrative
Thu, Apr 24, 2025
6–7:30 pm
Free; registration required
Conference Room 1
The stories communicated through art can teach us about other places, times, cultures, and perspectives, revealing ideas about personal experiences and identity. By questioning how artists approach this task, educators in this session will work together to conceptualize strategies for supporting their students in crafting their own personal narratives. This session is applicable to practicing K–12 educators of any subject area and grade level.
Light snacks will be provided.
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Teacher Program | Museum Conservation for the Curious and Creative Educator
Thu, May 22, 2025
6–7:30 pm
Free; registration required
Conference Room 1
In this session, educators will be introduced to the work of VMFA’s award-winning conservation lab and identify the creative, critical, and computational thinking skills integral to the conservator’s mindset. Object-based discussions will help recontextualize the conservation process as it applies to the classroom. This session is applicable to practicing K–12 educators of any subject area and grade level.
Light snacks will be provided.
Teacher Program | Teacher Summer SWAP
Wednesday, May 28, 2025
4–7 pm
Free; no tickets or registration required
Conference Room 1
Teachers, let's mark the end of the school year together. VMFA's Teacher Summer SWAP is a place to Share What Art Promises for you, your students, your summer, and beyond. Join us for an evening of artmaking, gallery exploration, take-home educational resources, and giveaways! Drop in between 4 and 7 pm to visit with VMFA staff and your teaching colleagues, share ideas, and have fun with art.
While at the museum, enjoy VMFA's free weekly Dominion Energy Jazz Café series. Reserve a free ticket to the special exhibition Frida: Beyond the Myth by visiting the Visitor Services desk with your teacher ID.
We look forward to connecting with you and showing our appreciation for Virginia's teachers. All practicing K–12 and college educators with ID are cordially invited.
Teacher Program | Teacher Tuesdays at Two
Tuesdays, June 10, 24, July 8, 22, August 5, 2025
2–3 pm
Free; registration required
Meet at Visitor Services
Let's look at art together through the teacher's lens! Practicing K–12 educators across disciplines are invited to join VMFA Teacher Programs personnel for an education-centered conversation in the galleries. Come spend an hour with us to share your perspective, elevate your practice, and enjoy some summer afternoon playtime.
This tour is exclusively for currently practicing classroom educators. We encourage other education professionals to check out our variety of public tour offerings.