School Tours

Group Tours

Overview

Support your students’ critical thinking, creativity, empathy development, and visual literacy skills with an on-site or virtual tour of the Milwaukee Art Museum. Tours are designed to enhance curriculum in accordance with state and national standards for learning.

On-site school tours are available Wednesday–Friday. Virtual tours are available Monday–Friday. Plan your experience with the tour and pricing information below. Request your tour in advance: 6–8 weeks for guided tours; 4 weeks for self-guided and virtual tours.

Have questions? Email grouptours@mam.org or call 414-224-3842.

Guided tours

Request an on-site tour

  • Request a guided tour 6–8 weeks in advance.

  • Schedule buses or transportation early, allowing travel time to and from the Museum.

  • The Museum does not have lunch facilities; please plan accordingly.

  • Guided tours are one hour long unless otherwise stated.

  • Prepare students and chaperones; review our preparation guide prior to the tour.

  • All students receive a Family Pass for free admission for two adults and up to four children under age 17.

Experience the Museum guided by a docent educator. Get more information to plan your visit and choose a theme from the menu below. Confirm student attendance and final payment with the Tour Administrator two weeks before the tour.*
Student $5
Required chaperones/teachers Free
1 chaperone is required per 10 students
Student aides Free
Additional aides $16

*No changes to headcount or tour theme will be accepted after the two-week deadline. The Museum cannot offer a refund if your head count decreases after your payment has been made.

Guided tours and studio

Request an on-site tour

  • Guided tours and studio workshops are each one hour. This combination is a two-hour Museum experience.

  • Studio workshops can be paired with the following tour themes:
    Exploring Art through the Senses; Line, Shape, and Color; and Communities and Traditions

  • Request a guided tour 6–8 weeks in advance.

  • Schedule buses or transportation early, allowing travel time to and from the Museum.

  • The Museum does not have lunch facilities; please plan accordingly.

  • Prepare students and chaperones; review our preparation guide prior to the tour.

  • All students receive a Family Pass for free admission for two adults and up to four children under age 17.

Enhance your tour experience with a studio workshop led by a Museum Educator. Workshops are available October–May, Wednesdays–Thursdays 9:30 a.m.–2 p.m. Tuesdays and Fridays have limited availability. Confirm student attendance and final payment with the Tour Administrator two weeks before the tour.*
Student $10
Required chaperones/teachers Free
1 chaperone is required per 10 students
Student aides Free
Additional aides $16

*No changes to headcount or tour theme will be accepted after the two-week deadline. The Museum cannot offer a refund if your head count decreases after your payment has been made.

Self-guided tours

Request an on-site tour

  • Request a self-guided tour at least 4 weeks in advance.

  • Schedule buses or transportation early, allowing travel time to and from the Museum.

  • The Museum does not have lunch facilities; please plan accordingly.

  • Prepare students and chaperones; review our preparation guide prior to the tour.

  • All students receive a Family Pass for free admission for two adults and up to four children under age 17.

Guide your group through the Museum with activities and resources from our Teacher Resources. Confirm student attendance and final payment with the Tour Administrator two weeks before the tour.*
Student $5
Required chaperones/teachers Free
1 chaperone is required per 10 students
Student aides Free
Additional aides $16

*No changes to headcount or tour theme will be accepted after the two-week deadline. The Museum cannot offer a refund if your head count decreases after your payment has been made.

Virtual tours

Request a virtual tour

  • Bring the Museum into your classroom

    Tours are led by a Museum docent educator and hosted on Zoom; a link will be provided upon confirmation.

  • $150 per classroom of up to 35 students

  • Each tour is 45 minutes, with inquiry-based conversations and activities using works of art in the Museum’s collection.

  • Request a tour 4 weeks in advance.

  • All students receive a Family Pass for free admission for two adults and up to four children under age 17.

  • Before your virtual tour

    Virtual tours offer engagement opportunities for a variety of learning styles. We recommend that students have a pencil and a sketchbook, notebook, or scratch paper for drawing or writing activities during the tour. Museum educators will open or join Zoom 10 minutes prior to the start of the tour to test audio and visual access with the teacher and to decide on student response procedures.

Tour themes for grades K–3

A Is for Art

Take a tour with the alphabet! Inspired by the book A is for Art by Marjorie Nelson Moon, this experience explores art from many cultures while reinforcing language development.

Animals in Art

Virtual available
Discover a menagerie of friendly animals and fantastic beasts in paintings and sculptures from different cultures and times.

Art from Many Places and Times

Explore highlights from the Museum’s collection and discuss the making and meaning of art from different cultures while honing art vocabulary and critical-looking skills.

Exploring Art through the Senses

Virtual available, Studio workshop available
Take a journey with art using your senses and imagination. Explore how works of art might smell, taste, feel, and sound.

Line, Shape, Color

Virtual available
Learn how artists begin to create masterpieces by getting to know the building blocks of art: line, shape, and color.

Storytelling in Art

Engage visual and verbal language skills to imagine, tell, and listen to stories that artists portray in their work.

Tour themes for grades 4–12

American Stories

Virtual available
Hear about stories, places, and people from across the United States, as represented by paintings, sculptures, and decorative artworks in the American art collection at the Museum.

Art by Artists of the African Diaspora

Take a closer look at artists of African heritage in the Museum’s collection. Through paintings and sculpture, explore connections between Africa, Europe, North America, and beyond.

Art from Many Places and Times

Explore highlights from the Museum’s collection and discuss the making and meaning of art from different cultures while honing art vocabulary and critical-looking skills.

Communities and Traditions

Virtual available, Studio workshop available
Investigate the customs of people who live both near and far, discovering the differences, similarities, and cross-cultural influences portrayed in their art.

Modern and Contemporary Art

Get to know distinct art movements (the “–isms”), from Realism to Abstract Expressionism, while comparing works from the mid-1860s to the present day.

Portraiture

Virtual available
Discover stories of people and animals by looking for visual clues in portraits from diverse times and places.

Social Concerns + Social Justice

Virtual available
Use a social justice lens to examine concerns such as poverty, racism, gender inequality, and representation while considering the perspectives of the artists and the impact of their stories.

Writing + Art

Virtual available
Discover works of art as inspiration for writing with activities from our book Look, Write, See: Activities for Teaching Writing and Learning About Art. For on-site tours, students receive a sketchbook for this 90-minute experience ($10 per student).