In confined Italy, schoolchildren receive online art history lessons from Uff

The Uffizi Gallery in Florence offers free art history courses to primary and secondary schools in Italy.

Italy has declared its highest-level ‘red zone’ restrictions in half the country, leading to widespread closures of schools and museums, amid a new wave of covid-19 infections.

To counter this unfortunate situation, the Uffizi Gallery in Florence stepped in to offer what are perhaps the the largest virtual art history lessons in the world.

The distance education project, entitled Forza scuole – Arrivano gli Uffizi, offers schoolchildren 45-minute lessons in three different formats, reports online art magazine Finestre on the Arte.

The prince’s coffin (for primary classes) is built around the places and characters of the Medici family, illustrated by some of the museum’s masterpieces.

Children will learn “fundamental themes” including collections and the uniqueness of works of art, as well as respect and how to behave properly in museums.

The Palace of Wonders (primary level) offers a chance to discover the history of Palazzo Pitti, its collections and the three reigning families who lived there from the 16th to the 20th century.

The online lesson takes the form of a “walk” among the treasures of the palace and its museums to the Boboli Gardens.

The Renaissance in the masterpieces of the Uffizi caters to the lower secondary level, taking students on a journey to explore the museum’s unrivaled collection of Renaissance masterpieces.

“This is already the second year in a row that schoolchildren have not been able to come and see our museums,” said Office Director Eike Schmidt. “So, also to help students and teachers, the Uffizi Galleries have decided to bring their history and treasures to virtual distance learning classes.

“Our desire is to vary the distance learning routine with stimulating content, able to create, in synergy with the teachers, an itinerary of” integrated digital education “” which embraces “new methods of non-formal learning” added Silvia Mascalchi, coordinator of the Education Department of the Uffizi Galleries.

Each 45-minute session must be booked at [email protected], including in the request the information relating to the school and the class, as well as the contact details of the teacher, and two-three dates potential where students would be available.