In 2015 the Summer Institute on Contemporary Art (SICA) will conduct its fifth professional development institute at the Palmer Museum of Art on the Pennsylvania State University campus for 20 preK-12 teachers and art museum educators from Pennsylvania and the region. The theme will be “Little Learners, Big Ideas” and major project activities include a five day intensive face-to-face museum experience, and implementation, assessment, and support for participants.

Participants will: interact directly with works from the permanent collection of the Palmer Museum of Art; interpret contemporary works on paper in the Print Study Room; read and discuss published articles and chapters; participate in gallery talks, a day-long residency with a nationally noted art educator, three 90-minute seminars with visiting educators in early childhood, philosophy, and art education; and, create artworks during an art making studio session. Participants will gain knowledge of interpretation, art criticism, pedagogy, contemporary artmaking, and curriculum development by working directly with institute faculty and guest scholars to integrate their interpretations of contemporary works of art with new knowledge, artmaking skills, and pedagogical practices obtained during the institute.