SCHOOL PROGRAMS
SAM offers programs designed to engage students of all ages in deep looking, critical thinking, and creative art making. Through free tours for all public schools and bus subsidies for Title I Schools we aim to ensure that cost is never a barrier to an authentic art experience.
These inspiring, adaptable programs build direct connections between works of art, classroom curriculum, and students’ own experiences and backgrounds.
“
Thank you so much for a wonderful day! This was truly one of the most organized and age-appropriate fields trips I have ever taken my class on. I hope I can do it again next year.
”
–Elementary School Teacher
GUIDED SCHOOL TOURS
SAM’s school tours are image-focused and inquiry-based experiences for K–12 students. One portion of the museum visit will be led by trained guides, encouraging students to look closely, share personal perspectives, and build connections to their own lives and learning. Afterward, teachers and chaperones will lead art activities to give students an opportunity to get creative and learn together with classmates.
Check out our How to Visit SAM video before your guided tour!
2022–23 School Year
Thank you to all of the schools who have booked a guided tour with us during the 2022-23 school year. Guided tours of the Seattle Art Museum's Collection galleries, the Ikat: A World of Compelling Cloth exhibition tour, and the Seattle Asian Art Museum are fully booked through the end of this school year. Self-led visits are still available, as well as guided tours of the Olympic Sculpture Park. To be notified when school tour bookings open for the 2023-24 school year, email us.
Book Now
To learn more about in-gallery art activities led by teachers and chaperones, visit
School Tour Resources.
Please note: we are unable to offer art studio workshops for students during the 2022-23 school year. Teachers and chaperones will be asked to lead a guided art activity in the galleries while the other half of their group completes the docent-led tour.
Self-led VISITS
Self-led visits are for educators who wish to customize their museum experience by leading their own tours through the galleries. Available at all three SAM sites, all self-led visit groups must register with the museum in advance.
To prepare for a self-led visit, check out any of our in-gallery activities at the
Education Resource Center or email us to brainstorm together! Self-led visits are free for public schools and $40 for private schools.
To learn more about self-led activities students can use in the galleries, visit
School Tour Resources.
Book Now
BUS Subsidies
SAM wants all students and educators to experience creative learning opportunities, regardless of barriers of transportation. We provide bus subsidies for schools with 40% or more students on free or reduced-price lunch programs. For inquiries regarding bus subsidies, please
email us.
Virtual Tours
We are not able to accept new virtual tour reservations for the remainder of the 2022-23 school year. All current reservations will be honored. Please check back in September 2024 for more updated booking information.
Virtual Tours bring the museum to you! A SAM Educator will guide students through close looking, discussion, movement, and sketching connected with high resolution images of objects from SAM’s global collection. Each tour is 30-60 minutes and can be implemented in a fully remote setting, or in a classroom with a projector. Scheduling is flexible. Grades K-12, 10-30 youth per tour. Free for public schools, $100 for private schools.
Art of Empathy Virtual Tour
The Art of Empathy series is based on the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL)’s Core Social Emotional Competencies. This dynamic presentation will include drawing, breathwork, open discussions, and close-looking of artworks from SAM's global collection.
Enhance your curriculum or virtual tour with the
Art of Empathy Educator Resource Guide
Accessibility
The Seattle Art Museum strives to be accessible for all visitors and provides a variety of support services to assist with your visit. Find more information on Accessibility
here and
email us to request accommodations during your visit.
Support for K-12 programs during the 2021–2022 school year is provided by the BNSF Railway Foundation, the Foster Foundation, the Freeman Foundation, and Nordstrom. Partial, sustained support for SAM’s K-12 programs is provided by an endowment established in 1999 by a National Endowment for the Humanities challenge grant and the generous contributions of matching donors, including the Ann P. Wyckoff Education Endowment. The William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fund for Education Programs at the Seattle Art Museum has supported SAM K–12 programs since 1994.