The Arts · Grade 12

Active learning ideas

Symbolism in Visual Art

Active learning builds students’ interpretive confidence with symbolism because symbols only come alive through discussion, comparison, and creation. Students move beyond memorization by testing their ideas in pairs, groups, and hands-on challenges, which strengthens analytical skills and cultural awareness simultaneously.

• Ontario Curriculum Expectations
• VA:Re8.1.HSIII
• VA:Cn11.1.HSIII

• 30–60 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Gallery Walk
• 45 min · Small Groups

Gallery Walk: Symbol Spotting

Display 10-15 reproductions of artworks with symbols from various cultures. Students walk the room in small groups, noting symbols, their apparent meanings, and cultural contexts on sticky notes. Groups then present one finding to the class for discussion.

Analyze how recurring symbols in art communicate universal themes across cultures.

Facilitation Tip

During Debate Circles, set a timer for each speaker to keep discussions moving and prevent one voice from dominating, while ensuring quieter students have structured turns to contribute.

What to look for

Provide students with an image of a well-known artwork. Ask them to identify one prominent symbol, explain its potential meaning, and state the cultural context that might inform its interpretation.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

Activity 02

• Concept Mapping
• 30 min · Pairs

Pairs Comparison: Cultural Symbols

Assign pairs two artworks featuring the same symbol in different cultures, such as the tree of life in Celtic and African art. Pairs chart similarities, differences, and influences, then share via a class jigsaw.

Compare the symbolic meaning of an object in two different cultural contexts.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'How can an artist use a symbol that is generally understood to mean one thing to convey a completely different, perhaps subversive, message?' Facilitate a class discussion using examples from art history or current events.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Create
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management

Activity 03

• Concept Mapping
• 60 min · Individual

Studio Challenge: Subversive Symbols

Students select a familiar symbol and redesign it to convey a subversive message, using mixed media. They document their intent in an artist statement and critique peers' works for effectiveness.

Explain how an artist can use a familiar symbol to convey a new or subversive message.

What to look for

Present students with a list of common symbols (e.g., dove, anchor, scales of justice). Ask them to write down two different potential meanings for each symbol and one cultural context where each meaning might apply.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Create
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management

Activity 04

• Concept Mapping
• 35 min · Whole Class

Debate Circles: Symbol Meanings

Form inner and outer circles; inner group debates fixed versus fluid symbol meanings using examples, outer observes and switches to add points. Rotate twice for full participation.

Analyze how recurring symbols in art communicate universal themes across cultures.

What to look for

Provide students with an image of a well-known artwork. Ask them to identify one prominent symbol, explain its potential meaning, and state the cultural context that might inform its interpretation.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Create
• Self-Awareness
• Self-Management

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teach symbolism by pairing interpretation with creation, so students experience both sides of the artist-viewer relationship. Avoid presenting symbols as fixed codes; instead, frame them as tools that artists and cultures adapt, borrow, or challenge over time. Research shows that when students create symbols themselves, their later analyses become more nuanced and evidence-based.

Successful learning looks like students confidently explaining how symbols gain meaning through culture and context, not just naming them. They support interpretations with evidence from artworks and other examples, and they consider multiple valid readings rather than seeking a single correct answer.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Gallery Walk: Symbol Spotting, some students assume symbols have fixed, universal meanings regardless of culture.

  During Gallery Walk, have students note the cultural origin of each artwork next to their symbol identification, then compare notes in pairs to highlight variations before the class discussion.

• During Pairs Comparison: Cultural Symbols, students believe symbolism appears only in abstract or modern art.

  During Pairs Comparison, include one Renaissance religious painting and one contemporary street art piece in the pairings so students see symbols in both realistic and abstract styles.

• During Studio Challenge: Subversive Symbols, students think artists intend only one correct interpretation of a symbol.

  During Studio Challenge, require each student to write three possible meanings for their created symbol and cite a cultural context for each, then share these in small groups to normalize multiple readings.

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Methods used in this brief

• Gallery Walk
• Concept Mapping