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I have always admired the way math is concrete; the numbers and equations make sense and lead to a tangible outcome. But when I was a young undergraduate student, an education professor of mine changed the way I think about math. She challenged my classmates and me to see the subject matter differently, using our “mathematical eye.” What does that mean, exactly? The professor encouraged us to see beyond numbers and look for math in the real world. Now, I am challenging teachers to develop their artistic mathematical eye.

Modern math curriculum is dedicated to building students’ conceptual understanding. Over the years, there has been a major shift from computing to understanding the actual processes behind it. Art forms can be used to help students visualize and conceptualize math concepts. Arts integration in math has the power to teach the “how” and the “why” in tandem, so learners can make sense of content deeply and creatively. Combining the how-and-why can support students’ understanding of math and develop the artistic eye they need to see math in their everyday world. Arts integration can be done in objective planning, lesson openings, essential questions, and the choices we offer our students.

Every math teacher begins the planning process by determining an objective: what do students need to learn by the end of a lesson? When integrating the arts into a math lesson, consider identifying an arts objective as well. The (NCAS) framework is broken down into four main areas: creating, presenting, responding, and connecting. These same anchor standards are essential to learning and applicable in math instruction.

Start with a gradual introduction by responding to art with your mathematicians. This is an opportunity to truly develop the artistic mathematical eye. For example, with Anchor Standard 7: Perceive and analyze artistic work, consider displaying different pieces of artwork from the lesson, Making the Ordinary Pop. Allow students time to interpret the art openly and independently. Ask them: What math do you see displayed in this piece of art? Help them notice shapes, patterns, symmetry, scale, proportions, balance, angles, etc.

After students make their observations, have them discuss and compare their thoughts. This type of gradual introduction is foundational to strengthening their artistic mathematical eye. 

Art forms create various access points for teachers. Over the years, I’ve had classes filled with students interested in drawing, music, painting, dance, theater, and many more areas. By tapping into these interests, educators can make learning more engaging and relevant for students, all whilst guiding them toward target learning goals.

Dance, for instance, is a great way to open a lesson. Teachers can demonstrate geometry concepts through movement. A series of rotations, reflections, and translations are observable in widely known dances such as the Cha-Cha Slide, the Wobble, or the Electric Slide. In turn, students can show evidence of learning by choreographing original transformation dances.

With visual arts, teachers can open with math concepts using photography (i.e., school buildings can look like composite rectangular prisms, the circumference of bicycle tires, geometric shapes of street signs, angles of tree branches, etc.) Then, students can later apply the concept by photographing their own visions of math in the real world. These lesson starters give students a chance to develop their artistic mathematical eye before diving into independent or guided practice.

The purpose of an essential question is to guide student thinking. As teachers, we want to ask students questions that elicit a deep level of thinking and exploration. The incredible thing about these open-ended questions is that they are asked by everyone, including mathematicians and artists. Human beings are constantly inquiring. Inquisition is natural, but needs to be fostered because it promotes higher-order thinking. Art can be the vehicle for exploration, enabling students to gain conceptual understanding of complex mathematical concepts.

One way to do this is to ask the essential question: How can mathematicians use (an art form or style) to explore the concept of (mathematical concept students are learning)? Give students the task of creating essential questions for one another to foster exploration and make connections. Students appreciate moments like this when they can be the mathematical expert and teach their peers.

The beauty of integrating arts is that it can take on many forms, and those forms give students the freedom to choose what best suits them—expressively, creatively, or as a way to unlock meaning. Because students learn in different ways, artistic forms can meet them where they are.

Offering artistic student choice in the math classroom is one way to achieve this, but it’s important to keep task instructions open and not overly regimented. For example, if we look at the concept of scaling and resizing with an artistic mathematical eye, we can present students with various options for showing their understanding through the process of creation. Drawing, filming, sculpting, building, or dancing are excellent ways to illustrate mastery of these concepts. Each form encourages students to think outside of the box, nurturing artistic expression and complex math skills.

Through the practices of arts integration and the development of the artistic mathematical eye, informal and anecdotal ways of assessing student thinking will occur. Assessments typically involving paper and pencil are highly useful and convenient, but creation can be useful and engaging! As an educator who has successfully implemented these practices, I can attest that while it may seem daunting at first, carrying the arts into the math classroom is merely a continuation of what we already do to meet the needs of our students. There is no one more capable and equipped than us—so, fellow educators, let’s shift common thinking and use our artistic mathematical eye.

To explore more K-12 arts integrated lessons, visit the Related Resources section at the bottom of this page or Lesson & Activities from the Digital Learning Resources Library.