Art, Rocks, and Fossils! Tour (School Program)

Bill Nasogaluak. Global Warming: Death of the Polar Bear, 2010. Red Arkose sandstone, serpentinite. Collection of the Winnipeg Art Gallery, Acquired with funds from the Estate of Mr. and Mrs. Bernard Naylor, funds administered by The Winnipeg Foundation, 2019-426

 

Available September 2024 onward

60 minute tour

Art, Rocks, and Fossils! 

Dive into a fascinating educational experience with our special tour of the Winnipeg Art Gallery-Qaumajuq, where the building itself is a testament to natural history. The Tyndall Limestone, used in the gallery’s construction, is rich with thousands of ancient marine fossils. This unique geological feature, quarried from Manitoba, offers a glimpse into a distant past filled with fossilized creatures that once thrived in ancient seas.

During the tour, students will explore:

  • Environmental Art Connections: Engage with artworks that reflect ideas about our environment and its evolution.
  • Fossilized Marine Life: Discover the diverse ancient marine animals preserved in the limestone.

Additionally, students will have the opportunity to visit the Visible Vault, home to nearly 5,000 Inuit carvings. This section of the tour will highlight the variety of soapstone used across Inuit Nunangat and learn about the rich cultural heritage reflected in these artworks.

This tour offers a multidisciplinary approach, combining geology, art, and environmental science to provide a deeper understanding of both natural history and Indigenous art forms.

Specific Learning Outcomes in Social Studies:

4-KL-029 Identify natural resources in the northern territory studied.

Specific Learning Outcomes in Science:

3-4-01 Use appropriate vocabulary related to their investigations of soils in the environment.  Include: soil, soil component, loam, clay, sand, pebbles, organic matter, humus, rocks, sedimentation, sieving, water-holding capacity.

3-4-12 Investigate how humans from various cultures use earth materials to make objects.  Examples clay pots, sod houses, adobe bricks, glass…  GLO: A4, B1, B4

4-4-01 Use appropriate vocabulary related to their investigations of rocks, minerals, and erosion.  Include: rock, mineral, characteristic, property, scratch test, streak test, organism, extinct, soil formation, erosion, natural phenomena.  GLO: C6, D5

4-4-07 Describe how characteristics of rocks and properties of minerals determine their uses.  Examples: soft soapstone is used for carving…GLO: B1, D3, D5

4-4-09 Explain how fossils are formed.  GLO: D1, D5. E3

4-4-10 Describe how fossils help humans gain a better understanding of Earth’s history, including identifying organisms that are now extinct.  GLO: A1, A2, D1, D5

6-1-09 Recognize that the animal kingdom is divided into two groups, vertebrates and invertebrates, and differentiate between the two.  Include: vertebrates have backbones, invertebrates do not.  GLO: D1, E1

6-1-10 Provide examples of a variety of invertebrates to illustrate their diversity.  Include: sponges, worms, mollusks, arthropods.  GLO: D1, E1

General Learning Outcomes in Visual Art:

A-L3 Students develop skills in observation and depiction.

A-U1 Students experience and develop awareness of artworks from various times, places, social groups, and cultures.

A-U2 Students experience and develop awareness of a variety of art forms, styles, and traditions.

A-U3 Students demonstrate understanding of roles, purposes, and meaning of the visual arts in the lives of individuals and in communities.

A-V1 Students demonstrate interest, curiosity and engagement while experiencing art in a variety of contexts.

 

(Product Image: Bill Nasogaluak. Global Warming: Death of the Polar Bear, 2010. Red Arkose sandstone, serpentinite. Collection of the Winnipeg Art Gallery, Acquired with funds from the Estate of Mr. and Mrs. Bernard Naylor, funds administered by The Winnipeg Foundation, 2019-426.)

Photo: Ernest Mayer

 

If you are experiencing technical difficulties while booking a tour through our website, please email or call our Learning Administrator at nschuweiler@wag.ca / (204) 789-1290

If your group spans multiple grade ranges, select the range of the majority. You can add the specifics of your groups grades into the notes section at checkout.

Please let us know if individuals in your group need specific adaptive tools, sensory accommodations, or accessible facilities to make their visit enjoyable. We will do our best to work with you to make WAG-Qaumajuq an inclusive space.