In designing a curriculum for a college Fine Arts course, the author has developed types of assignments which require his freshman students to engage in critical and conceptual thinking rather than in rote repetition of information. The assignments are based on key concepts in the fields of music and art. Textbooks are considered only one among many sources of information to be used. While basic information in the subject area must be correctly formulated, students are encouraged to make contextual and inferential connections and to consider competing points of view. Students are expected to use key concepts of the subject field effectively, to analyze basic questions and issues clearly, to use professional terminology, and to recognize and distinguish the relevant from the irrelevant. Opportunities are given for the students to use learned concepts in real life contexts, such as performance. (PRW)