If you are looking for an effective way to teach art's fundamental elements -- such as line, space, color, composition, balance and repetition -- organize your class curriculum around these themes. Each unit should cover one element, define it, present examples and give an overview of movements that rely heavily on a given element. This approach can be especially effective with students who are beginners because they get to focus on one element at a time, building on knowledge of a previous element while learning how to use the next.
Teach your art class by type of movement or style. This option follows a typical art history course outline. It gives students a historical context to put styles of art into. If you are teaching an applied art course, students can produce a piece in each of the styles you study. Field trips to local museums and galleries can supplement text and online and visual course elements in the classroom. Teaching art by style is especially appropriate for students who have a basic knowledge of art's technical elements because they can apply these to different styles. For instance, students can focus on line, space and composition while studying cubism.
If you are wondering how to incorporate art into a civic or social justice course, introduce art with emphasized social themes and aims. How much art and how much social context you want to focus on depends on the nature of your class. You might design a course that focuses exclusively on socially aware art, or you might bring a weekly piece into your history class that is pertinent to the unit you are studying. The web has numerous lesson plans and resources for this teaching method, including American Masters' "Diego Rivera" lesson, which looks at the question of art ownership through Rivera's work and culminates in a class mural.
If you are limited in the number of classes you can offer at your school or organization, consider teaching an art class based on media themes. Basic units in this course include drawing, painting, photography, ceramics, graphic art and a supplemental unit on a topic such as home crafts, performance art or mixed media. These themes work well for beginning students, who may not know what media they want to study or for students taking on art as a hobby or side interest. Many high schools and colleges narrow classes by specific media, which you can do based on your expertise, student demand and school resources. These classes can explore any of the previously discussed themes through one medium in-depth.