In one of my favorite “Peanuts” cartoons, Charlie Brown explains his reaction to a class field trip, I’ve seen one field, you’ve seen them all.” Teachers often encounter museum tours that leave us with the same reaction! On the brighter side, however, are an increasing number of museums, zoos, historic …
This handout was submitted by Maris A. Grannell, a docent-field leader at the Los Angeles Arboretum Foundation. The teaching device was created by Judy Hensleigh, teacher of a combined 3 and 4 grade at Glenfeliz School in Los Angeles. What a wonderful way to encourage careful, multi-sensory observation and creativity …
There are times when a decent has a certain degree of latitude in teaching about the objects or artifacts on a guided tour. In other situations, however, a docent’s choices can be more limited. This may occur for many reasons, including the audience’s level of awareness, the docent’s own comfort …
In its series ‘‘Sharing Science with Children: A Survival Guide for Scientists and Engineers, ” the North Carolina Museum of Life and Science offers the following as potential themes for teaching elementary aged students: Kindergarten First & Second Third & Fourth Fifth & Sixth Animals Many kindsHave different coverings …
Interdisciplinary Approach to Contemporary Art For 16 years the Whitney Museum of American Art has put together an annual symposium where graduate students present papers on art history before a public audience. This year the symposium had a new twist — none of the students were in art history programs. …
When Congress established the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities as sister agencies over twenty years ago, the legislation raised questions whose answers remain confusing to this day. Most people are pretty sure they could define “arts,” but they feel less certain about the …
Is an empty house truly empty? Imagine visiting a iiouse museum where all you see is the house — no furniture, no fabrics, no art collection, no memorabilia — no kidding! What is there to see? What could we possibly learn? At Drayton Hall in Charleston, South Carolina, visitors experience …
Because there is little else that one can do with the objects displayed in art museums besides look at them, such museums imply that all objects in their care, regardless of their initial uses, are valuable primarily because of their visual interest. This visual bias, which is at the core …
There is no doubt about it — Shadows-on-the-Teche is a remarkable place because of its setting, because of its history, and because of the resources available for making tours memorable. In telling the story of the Shadows, the museum staff is at a tremendous advantage over the staffs of many …
Art museums are natural laboratories where the ability to see with our eyes, our minds, and our hearts can be cultivated. Works of art issue invitations to each of us to step into the skin of others and see the world through their eyes. Art asks us to reflect upon …
If you’ve listened to a conversation without understanding what was being said, or seen a movie and not been able to figure out the plot, then you know how it feels to take a tour that lacks a theme. It’s confusing! A theme is the glue that holds a tour …