... or perhaps I should say the whole universe?
To make up for the decline in visits, many museums are taking their lessons to the classroom, through traveling programs, videoconferencing or computer-based lessons that use their collections as a teaching tool.While I understand the reason for this trend, and it's to be commended -- kids love novelty and a glow in the dark classroom sounds great -- let's not forget about teaching kids how to be out and about in the world, to travel, and to discover delights which are not pre-screened or pre-tested. I remember trudging to the top of the Bunker Hill monument in third grade, whacking my head on the low ceilings of the USS Constitution in the fourth grade, and feeling extremely socially awkward during the lunch portion of our fifth grade field trip to Strawbery Banke.
“Even if they can’t come to the museum, we can bring the excitement of science to the school,” said Ms. Slivensky, one of seven traveling educators at the Boston museum.
These small humiliations have stayed with me all these years. I don't remember much else from these experiences. Hmmm. Perhaps an inflatable planetarium might've actually taught me a thing or two...
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While I think it is commendable to bring the museums to the children if the children can't get to the museums, I think there is certainly a lot more to be gained by the physical being in such a learning space. For starters, the kids get to experience what a museum is about, learn to make choices about what to see and what to read, and learn to do this perhaps more independently than if sitting in a circle in the confines of their classroom. A museum experience encourages independent exploration and learning. For yourself, you've learned to duck from now on at the Bunker Hill Monument. I think that's a fairly valuable experience, doncha think? Ouch.
I keep thinking of Ruth Gordon in Harold and Maude encouraging Harold to L-I-V-E ...LIVE!
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