Instructional Guides - Instructional Guides, companion documents to the 2020 Visual Arts Standards of Learning, amplify the Standards by defining the core knowledge and skills in practice, supporting teachers and their instruction. The guide supports the decisions school divisions must make concerning local curriculum development and how best to help students meet the goals of the standards. The local curriculum should include a variety of information sources, readings, learning experiences, and forms of assessment to create a rigorous instructional program.
Overviews of the Visual Arts Instructional Guides - The webinar sessions, delivered in July 2025, provide relevant and accessible professional learning related to implementation of the Visual Arts Standards of Learning and content of the Instructional Guides.
Key Features of Effective Lesson and Unit Plans - This resource is intended to be used by educators, school, and division leadership to evaluate instructional materials for quality. When lesson plans, unit plans, and other instructional activities are from outside sources, division staff and educators may use and adapt these key features to evaluate the materials. In addition, these key features can be used as a guide for locally developed instructional materials that support the curriculum.
Visual Arts Teacher Observations- This resource supports school and division administrators in observations and coaching conversations for visual arts teachers in Virginia public schools. The strategies listed support effective instruction connected to skills and concepts of the 2020 Fine Arts Standards of Learning. The instructional strategies listed in this resource do not encompass what could be seen in a single observation session. Instead, the observer would see these characteristics over time. The strategies in this list can guide conversations between the educator and an administrator, instructional coach, department team, and professional learning community. It could also be a tool for teacher self-reflection. The Visual Arts Teacher Observations resource is not meant to be evaluative; therefore, school divisions should employ their evaluation systems for formal evaluation purposes.
Virginia Roots: A Journey through Traditional Craft - This guide accompanies the series Virginia Roots: A Journey through Traditional Crafts, produced by Blue Ridge PBS, in collaboration with the Virginia Department of Education. Each episode includes a description of the video, discussion prompts for before and after viewing, and links to standards-aligned sample lessons. The sample lessons were developed by a team of Virginia visual arts educators to enhance and further the learning of traditional crafts in each episode. Each video ranges from 5-12 minutes. The accompanying sample lessons may be used as stand-alone learning experiences or expanded into units of instruction. Although specific grade levels and standards are provided, the lessons may be adapted for local instruction of a variety of grade levels and courses.
Visual Arts Education and Workplace Readiness Skills - Virginia’s visual arts instructional programs reinforce Virginia’s 22 Workplace Readiness Skills. These skills are organized around three core areas that promote opportunities and reinforce student understanding of Virginia’s workplace readiness skills: Personal qualities and abilities, interpersonal skills, and professional competencies.
Virginia 5Cs and Visual Arts Education - The Visual Arts Standards of Learning are intentionally and directly aligned with the skills outlined in the Profile of a Virginia Graduate. The goal statements are taken directly from the 2020 Visual Arts SOL document and re-organized to demonstrate alignment to the 5 Cs.
Engaging English Learners in Visual Arts - This one-page resource provides educators with practical strategies and supports to engage English Learners at all proficiency levels in visual arts instruction. Each resource includes visual arts-specific examples and links to videos or templates.
