Fifth Grade Art Experience
The Fifth Grade Art Experience (FGAE) is MAM’s signature education program, welcoming every fifth-grade class in Missoula County and within a 70-mile radius. For many, it’s their first visit to a contemporary art museum.
The program uses inquiry-based tours and hands-on artmaking led by professional artists and trained docents, and each student leaves with an original work of art and an enduring connection to MAM. After artmaking, students enjoy lunch in the classroom or MAM Art Park before walking to the Missoula Public Library for a tour, storytelling, and the opportunity to sign up for a library card.
FGAE welcomes rural communities and Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes schools through funded transportation, reaching more than 500 additional youth each year.
Since its inception, FGAE has served over 50,000 youth, amplifying access to art, creativity, and community connection across Western Montana.
MAM is deeply grateful for the Art Associates of Missoula who have generously supported the Fifth Grade Art Experience for 40 years.
To join a welcoming community of artists and art enthusiasts, learn more at artassociatesmissoula.com.
Current year
40th Year: 2025 - 2026
The 40th annual Fifth Grade Art Experience focused on exhibitions Stella Nall: Offerings From My Heart; JM Cooper: Adel Sheep Shearing; and Jennifer Leutzinger, Delia Touché, and Brittney Denham-Whisonant: Rearranging Stars. FGAE took place October 7 - December 19, 2025, with Museum as Megaphone, from December 8–12, featuring special live days with the Stella Nall. Special thanks to the Art Associates of Missoula, Missoula County Public Schools, the Jane S. Heman Foundation, and Inspired Classroom for their generous support.
Exhibitions
Stella Nall: Offerings From My Heart
JM Cooper: Adel Sheep Shearing
Jennifer Leutzinger, Delia Touché, and Brittney Denham-Whisonant: Rearranging Stars
FGAE schedule
9 AM: Class arrives at MAM.
9-9:30 AM: Intro and welcome in the classroom.
9:30-10:30 AM: Tour three exhibitions in small groups.
10:30-11:30 AM: Hands-on artmaking with a professional teaching artist.
11:30 AM-12 PM: Clean up and lunch in the classroom or the MAM Art Park; classes walk over the new Missoula County Public Library for a tour and related stories.
Artmaking experience
The students will engage in learning by illustrating an animal that is important to them inspired by the art on display at MAM. They will work side-by-side with a professional artist to develop new art techniques while engaging in critical thinking about the environment.
Registration & Questions
To sign up for FGAE, please contact Aidan Dolbashian or Gabe Morrison at
📧 aidan@missoulaartmuseum.org | gabe@missoulaartmuseum.org
For program-specific questions, contact Janaína Vieira-Marques at
📧 janaina@missoulaartmuseum.org
Past Seasons of FGAE
39th Year: 2024–2025
The 39th year of FGAE ran from October 8-December 20, 2024, and featured tours of three galleries containing the works of Jonathan Marquis, Jane Ash Poitras, and Mary Ann Bonjorni. The art project portion of the program centered on the artwork of Jonathan Marquis. Students created their own landscape compositions inspired by Marquis's illustrations of glaciers. Teaching artists introduced students to relevant drawing techniques such as cross-hatching, scumbling, and atmospheric perspective, and invited students to pay close attention to the use of colors and shapes in their illustrations.
Exhibitions
Mary Ann Bonjorni: Head and Heart
Jonathan Marquis: Something To Hold
Jane Ash Poitras: Keeping the Circle Strong
38th Year: 2023–2024
The 38th year of FGAE ran from August 3- December 21, and featured tours of three galleries containing the works of Molly Murphy Adams, Joeann Daley, and an assortment of work from Make it Funky: Bay Area Influence on Missoula Ceramics. The art production portion of the program centered around the artwork of Molly Murphy Adams. Students produced a mixed media art piece by developing a subtractive monotype print and adding elements of collage to it. The projects were designed to be landscapes from a birds-eye view similar to the artist’s concepts.
Exhibitions
Molly Murphy Adams: The Space Between
Make it Funky: Bay Area Influence on Missoula Ceramics
Joeann Daley: Montana Remembered