A Head Start on Picturing America

Watch a video about the Picturing America collection

A Head Start on Picturing America was developed to help Head Start staff and families share the world of art with children. It includes 40 images of American artwork, crafts, and architecture. The images are available on large, laminated posters. A resource guide offers tips for how to introduce the art and enhance discussions about the images. Find suggestions for books, art station activities, and ideas for families. Picturing America offers a chance to address children's school readiness, family literacy, and parent involvement goals.

Pottery and Baskets (c. 1100 to c. 1960)
Years ago, American Indians used plants, bone, skin, earth, and stone to make pots, baskets, arrowheads, and other objects they needed for everyday life.

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[PDF, 405KB]
Mission Nuestra Señora de la Concepción, 1755
This watercolor of a 250-year-old mission is located in what is now San Antonio, Texas.

Download
[PDF, 287KB]
Paul Revere, 1768
This portrait of Paul Revere captures an important moment in his work as a silversmith.

Download
[PDF, 337KB]
Silver of the 18th, 19th and 20th Centuries
These silver teapots by three different artists all have a different style.

Download
[PDF, 453KB]
The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, 1931
This oil painting tells the story of Paul Revere's ride from Boston, Massachusetts, to Lexington, Massachusetts, to warn people that the British invaders were headed their way.

Download
[PDF, 294KB]
George Washington (the Lansdowne Portrait), 1796
This life-sized portrait shows George Washington as a great leader and the father of his country, the United States of America.

Download
[PDF, 292KB]
Washington Crossing the Delaware, 1851
People who view the painting are about the same size as the people in the painting, making the action in the picture seem very close.

Download
[PDF, 189KB]
Benjamin Franklin, 1862
This is a larger-than-life sized sculpture of Benjamin Franklin, probably the most important person of his day, during the creation of the United States of America.

Download
[PDF, 195KB]
View from Mount Holyoke, Northhampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm - The Oxbow, 1836
The painting has a gloomy, wild, natural side, complete with very large tree trunks, rocky cliffs, and dark storm clouds.

Download
[PDF, 165KB]
Cover illustration for the Last of the Mohicans, 1919
This is a painting of an American Indian the way Americans thought of American Indians in the 1800s.

Download
[PDF, 171KB]
American Flamingo, 1838
American Flamingo is one of 435 hand-colored engravings made from John James Audubon's original watercolor paintings.

Download
[PDF, 173KB]
Catlin Painting the Portrait of Mah-to-toh-pa — Mandan, 1861/1869
The portrait is of a very important Indian chief. We know this because he is wearing horns on his headdress, decorated buffalo skin robes, and is holding a spear.

Download
[PDF, 175KB]
State Capitol, Columbus, Ohio, 1838-1861
The photograph of Ohio's state capitol imitates Greek architecture. It was designed mostly by an artist named Thomas Cole.

Download
[PDF, 170KB]
The County Election, 1852
The artist himself appears in this painting in a stovepipe hat, sitting on the courthouse steps.

Download
[PDF, 172KB]
Looking Down Yosemite Valley, California, 1865
At a time when few Americans other than American Indians had gone west of the Mississippi River, this painting gave people a picture of one of the natural wonders on the other side of the country.

Download
[PDF, 173KB]
“Sans Arc Lakota” Ledger Book, 1880-1881
In this drawing, the artist tried to record the customs and ceremonies of the Lakota Indian tribe.

Download
[PDF, 175KB]
The Veteran in a New Field, 1865
The soldier in the painting has returned home and is harvesting grain in the midday sun.

Download
[PDF, 168KB]
Abraham Lincoln, February 5, 1865
This work of art is a portrait of President Abraham Lincoln taken on Feb. 5, 1865.

Download
[PDF, 172KB]
Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Regiment Memorial, 1884-1897
This memorial honors the bravery of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw and soldiers of the Massachusetts 54th Regiment, the first unit of African Americans who fought in the Civil War.

Download
[PDF, 198KB]
Quilts of the 19th and 20th centuries
The quilts were designed and sewn by different women at different times. Quilting involves sewing together different pieces of material to make blankets or clothing.

Download
[PDF, 420KB]
John Biglin in a Single Scull, c. 1873
This watercolor painting shows a man, John Biglin, rowing by himself in a scull, a light, narrow racing boat, in calm water.

Download
[PDF, 231KB]
Harmony in Blue and Gold: The Peacock Room, 1876-1877
The Peacock Room is the dining room of a rich British ship owner named Fredrick Richards Leyland.

Download
[PDF, 248KB]
Portrait of a Boy, 1890
This portrait was done for the boy's father, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, a sculptor and friend of the artist, John Singer Sargent, in exchange for a bronze sculpture of Sargent's sister. The boy is the main focus of the picture.

Download
[PDF, 232KB]
Allies Day, May 1917, 1917
The flags are from countries that became partners during World War I. The flags show that these nations were friends and fought together as allies for democracy.

Download
[PDF, 246KB]
Brooklyn Bridge, New York, 1929
In this black-and-white photograph, the very large piers and arches of the Brooklyn Bridge appear through a spider web of steel cables.

Download
[PDF, 240KB]
Autumn Landscape, 1923-1924
A rich businessman hired the artist Louis Comfort Tiffany to make this stained glass window for his home in Boson, Massachusetts. Stained glass windows are a form of art in which an artist arranges pieces of glass in different sizes and colors to create a picture.

Download
[PDF, 356KB]
The Boating Party, 1893/1894
The Boating Party, which pictures a woman, baby, and man in a sailboat, was done in the late 1880s.

Download
[PDF, 183KB]
Brooklyn Bridge, c. 1919-1920
Joseph Stella painted this picture of the Brooklyn Bridge on canvas with oil paints. He created the painting in a special style called Futurism, which was a new, more modern way of thinking about art that began in Italy.

Download
[PDF, 256KB]
American Landscape, 1930
A man crossing the railroad tracks is the only person visible in the painting. The man looks like he is frozen in time, which makes this painting resemble a photograph.

Download
[PDF, 174KB]
The Chrysler Building, 1926-1930
At 77 stories high, this skyscraper was the tallest building in the world. The building gets smaller at the top to allow sunlight to reach the streets.

Download
[PDF, 191KB]
House by the Railroad, 1925
Edward Hopper used oil-based paint on canvas to create this picture of an old, gray, French-style house in 1925. The big house is Victorian-style.

Download
[PDF, 182KB]
Fallingwater, 1935-1939
Frank Lloyd Wright designed the house to be suspended above the waterfall and nestled into the side of a mountain so that it would look like part of nature itself.

Download
[PDF, 187KB]
The Migration of the Negro Panel no. 57, 1940-1941
The artist, Jacob Lawrence, used his own mother as a model for the woman in the painting doing laundry.

Download
[PDF, 189KB]
The Dove, 1964
The Dove is a collage made of cut-up pictures, newspaper and magazine clippings, and colored paper glued to cardboard. Collage is another medium artists can use to create their art.

Download
[PDF, 267KB]
The Sources of Country Music, 1975
This mural was painted by Thomas Hart Benton to capture an image of American folk music that was disappearing.

Download
[PDF, 845KB]
Migrant Mother and Children, 1936
The picture captures how the mother feels by the look on her face, which shows that she is tired and maybe hungry and worried too. Her face also shows that she is strong and determined as she supports herself and her children on the bench.

Download
[PDF, 178KB]
Freedom of Speech, The Saturday Evening Post 1943
This illustration by Norman Rockwell, a famous American illustrator, was created for a popular magazine of the mid 1900's.

Download
[PDF, 188KB]
Selma-to-Montgomery March for Voting Rights in 1965
This photograph taken by the photographer James Karales documents an important civil rights march.

Download
[PDF, 180KB]
Cityscape l, 1963
This painting is a landscape influenced by the northern part of California. It is divided into colorful rectangles and stripes.

Download
[PDF, 174KB]
Ladder for Booker T. Washington, 1996
This work of art is a wood sculpture of a ladder. The ladder looks very different from a regular ladder.

Download
[PDF, 172KB]

Pottery and Baskets (c. 1100 to c. 1960) [PDF, 405KB]
Years ago, American Indians used plants, bone, skin, earth, and stone to make pots, baskets, arrowheads, and other objects they needed for everyday life.

Mission Nuestra Señora de la Concepción, 1755 [PDF, 287KB]
This watercolor of a 250-year-old mission is located in what is now San Antonio, Texas.

Paul Revere, 1768 [PDF, 337KB]
This portrait of Paul Revere captures an important moment in his work as a silversmith.

Silver of the 18th, 19th and 20th Centuries [PDF, 453KB]
These silver teapots by three different artists all have a different style.

The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, 1931 [PDF, 294KB]
This oil painting tells the story of Paul Revere's ride from Boston, Massachusetts, to Lexington, Massachusetts, to warn people that the British invaders were headed their way.

George Washington (the Lansdowne Portrait), 1796 [PDF, 292KB]
This life-sized portrait shows George Washington as a great leader and the father of his country, the United States of America.

Washington Crossing the Delaware, 1851 [PDF, 189KB]
People who view the painting are about the same size as the people in the painting, making the action in the picture seem very close.

Benjamin Franklin, 1862 [PDF, 195KB]
This is a larger-than-life sized sculpture of Benjamin Franklin, probably the most important person of his day during the creation of the United States of America.

View from Mount Holyoke, Northhampton, Massachusetts, after a Thunderstorm - The Oxbow, 1836 [PDF, 165KB]
The painting has a gloomy, wild, natural side, complete with very large tree trunks, rocky cliffs, and dark storm clouds.

Cover illustration for the Last of the Mohicans, 1919 [PDF, 171KB]
This is a painting of an American Indian the way Americans thought of American Indians in the 1800's.

American Flamingo, 1838 [PDF, 173KB]
American Flamingo is one of 435 hand-colored engravings made from John James Audubon's original watercolor paintings.

Catlin Painting the Portrait of Mah-to-toh-pa — Mandan, 1861/1869 [PDF, 175KB]
The portrait is of a very important Indian chief. We know this because he is wearing horns on his headdress, decorated buffalo skin robes, and is holding a spear.

State Capitol, Columbus, Ohio, 1838-1861 [PDF, 170KB]
The photograph of Ohio's state capitol imitates Greek architecture designed mostly by an artist named Thomas Cole.

The County Election, 1852 [PDF, 172KB]
The artist himself appears in this painting in a stovepipe hat, sitting on the courthouse steps.

Looking Down Yosemite Valley, California, 1865 [PDF, 173KB]
At a time when few Americans other than American Indians had gone west of the Mississippi River, this painting gave people a picture of one of the natural wonders on the other side of the country.

“Sans Arc Lakota” Ledger Book, 1880-1881 [PDF, 175KB]
In this drawing, the artist tried to record the customs and ceremonies of the Lakota Indian tribe.

The Veteran in a New Field, 1865 [PDF, 168KB]
The soldier in the painting has returned home and is harvesting grain in the midday sun.

Abraham Lincoln, February 5, 1865 [PDF, 172KB]
This work of art is a portrait of President Abraham Lincoln taken on February 5, 1865.

Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Regiment Memorial, 1884-1897 [PDF, 198KB]
This memorial honors the bravery of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw and soldiers of the Massachusetts 54th Regiment, the first unit of African Americans who fought in the Civil War.

Quilts of the 19th and 20th centuries [PDF, 420KB]
The quilts were designed and sewn by different women at different times. Quilting involves sewing together different pieces of material to make blankets or clothing.

John Biglin in a Single Scull, c. 1873 [PDF, 231KB]
This watercolor painting shows a man, John Biglin, rowing by himself in a scull a light, narrow racing boat in calm water.

Harmony in Blue and Gold: The Peacock Room, 1876-1877 [PDF, 248KB]
The Peacock Room is the dining room of a rich British ship owner named Fredrick Richards Leyland.

Portrait of a Boy, 1890 [PDF, 232KB]
This portrait was done for the boy's father, Augustus Saint-Gaudens, a sculptor and friend of the artist, John Singer Sargent, in exchange for a bronze sculpture of Sargent's sister. The boy is the main focus of the picture.

Allies Day, May 1917, 1917 [PDF, 246KB]
The flags are from countries that became partners, or formed an alliance, during World War I. The flags show that these nations were friends and fought together, as allies, for democracy.

Brooklyn Bridge, New York, 1929 [PDF, 240KB]
In this black-and-white photograph, the very large piers and arches of the Brooklyn Bridge appear through a spider web of steel cables.

Autumn Landscape, 1923-1924 [PDF, 356KB]
A rich businessman hired the artist Louis Comfort Tiffany to make this stained glass window for his home in Boson, Massachusetts. Stained glass windows are a form of art in which an artist arranges pieces of glass in different sizes and colors to create a picture.

The Boating Party, 1893/1894 [PDF, 183KB]
The Boating Party, which pictures a woman, baby, and man in a sailboat, was done in the late 1880s.

Brooklyn Bridge, c. 1919-1920 [PDF, 256KB]
Joseph Stella painted this picture of the Brooklyn Bridge on canvas with oil paints. He created the painting in a special style called Futurism, which was a new, more modern way of thinking about art that began in Italy.

American Landscape, 1930 [PDF, 174KB]
A man crossing the railroad tracks is the only person visible in the painting. The man looks like he is frozen in time, which makes this painting resemble a photograph.

The Chrysler Building, 1926-1930 [PDF, 191KB]
At 77 stories high, this skyscraper was the tallest building in the world. The building gets smaller at the top to allow sunlight to reach the streets.

House by the Railroad, 1925 [PDF, 182KB]
Edward Hopper used oil-based paint on canvas to create this picture of an old, gray, French-style house in 1925. The big house is Victorian-style.

Fallingwater, 1935-1939 [PDF, 187KB]
Frank Lloyd Wright designed the house to be suspended above the waterfall and nestled into the side of a mountain so that it would look like part of nature itself.

The Migration of the Negro Panel no. 57, 1940-1941 [PDF, 189KB]
The artist, Jacob Lawrence, used his own mother as a model for the woman in the painting doing laundry.

The Dove, 1964 [PDF, 267KB]
The Dove is a collage made of cut-up pictures, newspaper and magazine clippings and colored paper glued to cardboard. Collage is another medium artists can use to create their art.

The Sources of Country Music, 1975 [PDF, 845KB]
This mural was painted by Thomas Hart Benton to capture an image of American folk music that was disappearing.

Migrant Mother and Children, 1936 [PDF, 178KB]
The picture captures how the mother feels by the look on her face, which shows that she is tired and maybe hungry and worried too. Her face also shows that she is strong and determined as she supports herself and her children on the bench.

Freedom of Speech, The Saturday Evening Post 1943 [PDF, 188KB]
This illustration by Norman Rockwell, a famous American illustrator, was created for a popular magazine of the mid 1900's.

Selma-to-Montgomery March for Voting Rights in 1965 [PDF, 180KB]
This photograph taken by the photographer James Karales documents an important civil rights march.

Cityscape l, 1963 [PDF, 174KB]
This painting is a landscape influenced by the northern part of California. It is divided into colorful rectangles and stripes.

Ladder for Booker T. Washington, 1996 [PDF, 172KB]
This work of art is a wood sculpture of a ladder. The ladder looks very different from a regular ladder.

A Head Start on Picturing America can be a practical tool to enrich your preschool curriculum. Learn to use the art in a way that engages children and adds excitement to their learning. Check out the tips for conversations and teaching activities for each picture in the resource guide. Hang one of the pictures in the classroom and encourage children to share their ideas and feelings about the art. Introduce new vocabulary. Ask questions to foster children's thinking and make connections to their own experiences. You also can select images related to a particular theme the class is exploring or to expand on a topic in which children have expressed an interest.