Home

THE NEW YORK SUBWAY: Art Under Your Feet

Learning Activities of user
Submitted by - administrator • Submitted on  30 Nov 2009 04:11:54pm • Go to video page

Questions The New York Subway: Art Under Your Feet

  1. Vocabulary: Look up the following words in a dictionary and write a definition in your own words: diversity, revelers, mosaic, durable.
  2. Vocabulary Challenge: Design a word wall using one of the following words: diversity,revelers,mosaic, durable. The idea of a word wall is to generate a list of words related to the main word. These can be synonyms, antonyms, idioms, similes or sayings related to the main word. You could also add affixes (prefixes and suffixes) to the main word. An example of a word wall using the word wise might include the following words: wisely, unwisely, unwise, wisdom, intelligent, smart, silly, wise as an owl. The last step building a word wall classify the words by arranging them into related groups. words.
  3. When was art first put in the subways? Why?
  4. How many pieces of art are in the New York Subway System?
  5. How long should the art work last? What are some of the challenges of having art in the subways?
  6. Public art is paid for through taxes. What criteria would you use to select pieces of art for public display? Make a list.
  7. Do you have public art in your area? Evaluate the art. How do you feel about it? Does it add to the beauty of the community, or do you think it was a waste of tax money? Support your answer.
  8. Design a model of a piece of public art for your town. Include a description of the materials your would use and the actual dimensions. Where would you want to display your piece?
  9. This episode has some terrific activities in Other Fun Websites. Click on MTA Arts of Transit and then click on the Permanent Collection tab. You can view the art work at any location in the New York Subway System. The National Geographic site has a fun 3D drawing of the subway system and other things under the city streets called New York Underground. Myths of the Underground has a game about some myths about the New York Underground. Have alligators really been found beneath the streets of New York? Test your knowledge about urban myths.