Tour Options for Student Visits at PEM
Choose from one of the following tour options or contact us to arrange a customized program. We can tailor your visit to meet your learning goals and your students’ needs. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch! All tours are designed to support students’ acquisition of 21st Century Skills and align with Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks.
To schedule a student visit, use our reservation form.
To discuss a customized tour, contact Emily Scheinberg at emily_scheinberg@pem.org or (978) 542-1546.
To learn about teacher workshops and resources, click here.
We recommend visiting the museum before your class trip. New England educators are always granted free admission to PEM! Just show your ID.
Asian Art and Culture
American Art and Culture
English Language Arts
Visual Arts
Asian Art and Culture
Yin Yu Tang, A Chinese House
Recommended for Grades K-12
Students have the unique opportunity to explore a traditional Chinese home in the United States. Built late in the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) in a rural village in China’s Anhui Province, this residence was home to the Huang family for more than 200 years. It was moved piece by piece and re-erected at the Peabody Essex Museum over a seven-year period. Whether your students are studying art motifs, Chinese culture or world history, this program is certain to be a unique and exciting educational experience.
Grades K-5 explore the everyday life of a Chinese family living in rural China for the last 200 years by examining household objects, architecture and decorative art.
Grades 6-12 explore the architecture and symbolic decorative elements of a traditional Chinese home and how the impact of economic and political upheavals in China over the last century affected Yin Yu Tang and led to its relocation to the Peabody Essex Museum.
Students can preview the house online. When you book a school visit to Yin Yu Tang, you will receive a DVD to preview in your classroom.
Tours of Yin Yu Tang can be paired with a number of other program options. For groups visiting for just one hour, one half of the group examines the everyday life of the Chinese merchant's family in Yin Yu Tang, while the other half learns about Chinese export art (art made in China for foreign markets) through close looking, discussion and sketching.
A Two Merchants' Homes tour is also available. Compare and contrast Yin Yu Tang and the Gardner-Pingree House – two homes built for merchants 200 years ago and thousands of miles apart. Students consider why the houses look the way they do and what that tells us about their inhabitants and the times and places in which they lived.
Time: one hour | 50 students maximum
Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards
Grades 2–4 Standards 6.1
Grades 5–8 Standards 6.3, 6.4
Grades 9–12 Standards 6.5, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 7.7, 7.10
Massachusetts English Language Arts Standards
Grade K–2 Standards 1.1, 2.1, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2
Grades 3–4 Standards 1.1, 1.2
Massachusetts History and Social Science Standards
Grade 2 Standards 2,1, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9
Grade 4 Standards 4.1, 4.2, 4.7
Grades 8–12 Standards WHI.23, WHI.24, WHII.13,
WHII.32, WHII.33, WHII.34
Exploring Asian Art and Cultural Exchange
Recommended for Grades K-8
What are some of the important ideas and symbolic decorative details in art made in China, Japan and India? What signs of cultural exchange between these countries and the West can be found in works of art made for export? Students closely examine paintings, sculptures and objects from everyday life and work collaboratively in gallery activities to gain a deeper understanding of artwork created in these countries. The tour includes stops in the Japanese Art Gallery as well as the Chinese, Japanese and Indian Export Art galleries. This hour-long program can be extended to include a 30-minute art activity.
For pre-visit materials related to Japanese art, please click here.
Interested in modern and contemporary art? Request a tour that highlights work made in the 20th and 21st centuries by Indian and Japanese artists.
Time: one hour or 90 minutes with art activity | 60 students maximum
Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards
Grades K–4 Standards 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1
Grades 5–8 Standards 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 2.10, 5.5, 5.6, 6.3, 6.4
Massachusetts English Language Arts Standards
Grades K–2 Standards 1.1, 2.1, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2
Grades 3–4 Standards 1.1, 1.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5
Grades 5–8 Standard 1.3
Massachusetts History and Social Science Standards
Grade 4 Standards 4.3, 4.7
Massachusetts Mathematics Standards
Grades 1–2 Standard 2.G.2
Grades 3–4 Standards 4.G.8, 4.G.9
American Art and Culture
Life in the 17th Century
Recommended for Grades 3-8
Students focus on the daily life of a family living in 17th-century Salem through the examination of everyday objects and architecture, and make connections between decorative features in the John Ward House, built in 1684, and objects in the museum’s American art galleries. Students also learn to relate past and present through comparisons with their own domestic environment and furnishings.
Time: one hour
Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards
Grades K–4 Standard 6.1
Grades 5–8 Standards 6.3, 6.4
Massachusetts English Language Arts Standards
Grades K–2 Standards 1.1, 2.1, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1,
Grades 3–4 Standards 1.1, 1.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5
Massachusetts History and Social Science Standards
Grade 3 Standards 3.5, 3.9, 3.12
At Home in Salem: 1785-1820
Recommended for Grades 3-8
Students envision what it might be like to live in a historic Salem family through guided tours of the Crowninshield–Bentley House, built in 1727 but restored to reflect 1794, and the Gardner-Pingree House, built in 1805. Through careful analysis of American portraits, landscapes and sculptures in the museum’s American Art galleries, students develop an understanding of the conditions of daily life during the height of Salem’s prosperity, identify with people of the past and learn how art and culture reveal clues about the early American Republic.
Time: one hour
Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards
Grades K–4 Standard 6.1
Grades 5–8 Standards 6.3, 6.4, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4
Massachusetts English Language Arts Standards
Grades K–2 Standards 1.1, 2.1, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2
Grades 3–4 Standards 1.1, 1.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5
Massachusetts History and Social Science Standards
Grade 3 Standards 3.9, 3.12
Grade 5 Standards 5.10, 5.11, 5.33
The Global Trade: Venturing to Asia
Recommended for Grades 5-8
Attention: Massachusetts 5th-grade teachers! This program is especially recommended for your students.
After the Revolution, America’s international trade flourished. Salem’s seafarers competed to reach Asia in pursuit of tea, silk, spices and porcelain and other fine goods craved by the citizens of a fast-growing nation. Students trace the trade routes plied by Yankee ships from Salem to China, and learn about trade, world geography, art and culture. They also learn how the exchange of goods and ideas began a dialogue between nations that to this day mutually influences their economies, cultures and people.
This tour additionally features a multi-part installation, FreePort [No. 005]: Michael Lin. Lin's work animates the history of trade between China and the West and explores artistic production in the past and present. The exhibition includes wall and floor murals of armorial designs, hundreds of replicas of Mr. Nobody (one of the first representations of a European gentleman in Chinese porcelain) and photographs of these replicas being produced in a factory in China.
See below for more information on this FreePort project and for links to videos featuring artist interviews and related interactives.
Time: one hour to 90 minutes
Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards
Grades 5–8 Standards 6.3, 6.4, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4
Massachusetts English Language Arts Standards
Grades 5–8 Standard 1.3
Massachusetts History and Social Science Standards
Grade 5 Standards 5.10, 5.11, 5.15, 5.33
Grade 8 Standards WHI.24, WHII.13
English Language Arts
Artful Tales
Recommended for Grades K-5
Students take on the role of detective, artist and author in this interactive exploration of the elements of story writing. Using open-ended questions, sketching and vocabulary activities, students discover how art reveals stories about people, places and time periods. Group storytelling and self-directed learning are included in this tour. This tour can be adapted to feature a variety of exhibitions and galleries.
Time: one hour
Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards
Grades K–4 Standards 5.2, 6.1
Grade 5 Standard 6.3
Massachusetts English Language Arts Standards
Grades PreK–2 Standards 1.1, 2.1, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2, 8.1, 8.6, 8.7, 15.1, 19.1, 19.5
Grades 3–4 Standards 1.1, 1.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 8.11, 8.12, 15.2
Grade 5 Standards 1.3, 3.8, 8.11, 8.12, 8.19
Images and Words
Recommended for Grades 6-12
Link visual and verbal literacy as well as creative expression in this activity-based investigation of artworks from around the world. In this gallery tour, students sharpen critical-thinking skills by creating poems and narratives in response to critical analysis and observation of captivating works of art. This tour can be adapted to feature a variety of exhibitions and galleries, such as Golden Light and Midnight to the Boom.
Time: one hour
Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards
Grades 6–8 Standards 6.3, 19.15, 19.20
Grades 9–12 Standard 19.25
Massachusetts English Language Arts Standards
Grades 5–8 Standards 1.3, 3.8, 5.9, 5.10, 5.11, 5.12, 5.15, 6.4, 6.5, 14.3, 19.15
Grades 9–10 Standards 3.14, 4.23, 14.5
Visual Arts
Creative Expression: Artists, Inspiration, Materials
Ongoing | Recommended for Grade 2 and up
What inspires art making? What choices do artists make? How do artists create connections to the larger global community? Can looking at art change the way you perceive the world?
These questions and others are addressed as students explore a variety of art forms, materials and techniques used by artists as a means for creative expression. Guided through a multidisciplinary approach, students sharpen their visual perception and critical thinking skills while experiencing art through a variety of perspectives. Focused on building 21st-century skills and exploring contemporary art on view in the museum, this tour features changing exhibitions and favorites from the PEM collection. This customizable tour currently highlights selections from the exhibitions FreePort [No. 006]: Nick Cave and Midnight to the Boom: Painting in India after Independence, as well as sculptures in the galleries such as Josh Simpson's Mega Mega Planet and Deborah Butterfield’s Willy.
Time: 90 minutes with art activity
FreePort [No. 006]: Nick Cave
Recommended for Grades 3-12 and University | Through May 27, 2013
Nick Cave's work is like nothing else your students have seen. A visual artist, designer, choreographer, dancer and professor, Cave is world renowned for his category-bending Soundsuits constructed from colorful materials including twigs, sisal, beads, sequins and feathers. Equal parts sculpture, costume and performance, Cave's life-size creations take on a larger-than-life dimension. At PEM, students experience an immersive film projection showing the Soundsuits in motion—and are invited to respond with their own movement. Students also have the opportunity to see three new Soundsuits that Cave is creating specifically for the PEM installation.
Toshio Shibata, Constructed Landscapes
Recommended for Grades 3-12 and University | April 20 – December 2013
Experience 28 large-scale photographs by Japanese photographer Toshio Shibata. Shibata's work represents a significant departure from traditional Japanese renderings of the natural world. In these dramatic images, he explores the effect artificial structures such as highways, bridges and other concrete and steel elements have on the natural landscape. Through the artist's eyes, riverbeds look like origami, and hillsides resemble patterned kimonos.
Schedule a tour of the exhibition that features close looking, sketching, and writing activities, or include Toshio Shibata, Constructed Landscapes in your Creative Expressions tour, alongside other museum exhibitions.
Animals in Art
Recommended for Grades PreK-2
Come see mammals, reptiles, sealife, amphibians, insects and more through the eyes of artists. Discover representations of animals from different cultures and in various artistic media. Students build valuable observation skills while learning about animal characteristics through stories and art. After the tour, students create collaborative artwork based on their experience with specific objects. In the process of discovery, students employ cooperative learning in natural science and art-based concepts.
For Educators and Students: Download Animals in Art Student Guide »
Time: 90 minutes with art activity
Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards
Grades K–2 Standards 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 5.1, 5.2, 6.1
Massachusetts English Language Arts Standards
Grades K–2 Standards 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 5.1, 5.2, 6.1
Massachusetts Science and Technology/Engineering Standards
Grades K–2 Standards 2, 4
Art and Politics
Recommended for Grades 9-12
How does art reflect the time in which it was created? In what ways does art contribute to our understanding of social and political discourse? In this lesson, students investigate traditional and contemporary works in the museum’s collection and come to understand how art plays a critical role in sociocultural commentary and critique around the world.
Time: one hour
Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards
Grades 9–12 Standards 6.7, 6.8, 7.6, 7.7, 7.9, 7.10, 8.8, 8.9, 8.10, 8.11
Don’t miss these exciting special exhibitions!
Each year PEM hosts a series of dynamic and thought-provoking exhibitions featuring some of the most brilliant artists of today and yesterday. Click here to learn more about the special exhibitions on view this year. To work with a museum educator on a customized visit, call 978-542-1546. In addition, the museum hosts artists and performers who present dynamic and interactive programs that provide unique access to artists and the art-making process while exploring art and culture from around the world.
A Legacy of Change: Native American Art
Through summer 2013
Following on the heels of the highly acclaimed 2012 headlining exhibition, Shapeshifting: Transformations in Native American Art, PEM unveils an installation conveying the dynamism and vitality of Native artists. Selected from PEM’s Native American art collection — one of the world's oldest and finest collections of its kind — the works on view include a cross-section of paintings, sculpture, ceramics, jewelry and textile arts created over the last 200 years. Each piece explores how Native artists have been continually innovative, reflecting their personal and cultural experiences in ongoing dialogue with new ideas, materials, technologies, and cultures.
Golden Light, Selections from the van Otterloo Collection
Through September 1, 2013
This exhibition explores Dutch art and life in the 1600s through a selection of paintings from the internationally significant collection of Rose-Marie and Eijk van Otterloo. In 2011, more than 105,000 visitors viewed the namesake exhibition at PEM, Golden: Dutch and Flemish Masterworks from the Rose-Marie and Eijk van Otterloo Collection.This new installation features 16 paintings by Hendrick Avercamp, Frans Hals, Pieter Claesz, Jan Brueghel the Elder and notable others.
FreePort [No. 005]: Michael Lin
Through summer 2013
Artist Michael Lin began developing a reputation in the late 1990s for painting vast designs on sober architectural sites, interventions that injected a vibrant sense of play. At PEM Lin spotlights the renowned collection of Asian export art. Lin created a sprawling mural of original armorial and heraldic motifs (elaborate coats of arms) that climb up the walls of the Mellon Staircase and along the floor of the Export Silver galleries.
To animate the history of trade between China and the West, Lin also created a large-scale installation comprised of hundreds of replicas of Mr. Nobody, one of the first representations of a European gentleman in Chinese porcelain. Photographs that document the creation of the replicas in a factory in China are interspersed among 19th-century gouaches from the PEM collection that depict the historic porcelain production process.
Visit the FreePort [No. 005] website, to watch interviews with the artist and see related footage of the porcelain factory in China, the team of artists painting the murals at PEM and the works of art that inspired the installation. An interactive component lets you design your own armorial!
About FreePort: Exploring the roles of trade, exchange and translation in the dynamics of cultural change, each FreePort installation is an invitation to a contemporary artist to establish a unique dialogue with the museum and its audiences. Evoking PEM’s 18th-century origins in global trade, FreePort facilitates the free exchange of ideas across disciplines critical to the evolution of a 21st-century museum.
To make a school visit reservation for your class, please click here.
Image credits: Students from the Bates School with Emergence of the Clowns, 1988, Roxanne Swentzell (Santa Clara Pueblo). Heard Museum, Phoenix, IAC2344A-D. Also pictured: Chilkat blanket, c. 1832, Tlingit artist. Peabody Essex Museum, E3648. Shaman's Tree of Life, 1985, John Hoover (Aleut). Anchorage Museum, 1985.50.1. Shapeshifting: Transformations in Native American Art. Photo by Martine Malengret-Bardosh/PEM. | Students from the Bates School with Waterfall, 1999, Truman Lowe (Ho-Chunk). Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, 1999.6.4. Also pictured: Structural Landscape, 1952, George Morrison (Grand Portage Band of Chippewas). Joslyn Art Museum, JAM1955.187. Shapeshifting: Transformations in Native American Art. Photo by Martine Malengret-Bardosh/PEM | Students from the Bowditch School (North Shore Camp Fire program) with Orpheus Charming the Animals, c. 1640, Aelbert Cuyp.The Rose-Marie and Eijk van Otterloo Collection. Golden: Dutch and Flemish Masterworks from the Rose-Marie and Eijk van Otterloo Collection. Photo by Martine Malengret-Bardosh/PEM. | Students from the Bowditch School create artwork inspired by Fiery Pool: the Maya and the Mythic Sea. Photo by Walter Silver/PEM. | Arts Adventure Club participants in Yin Yu Tang, A Chinese House. Peabody Essex Museum. Photo by Kathy Tarantola/PEM.
