Every
teacher sees a field trip in a different way. Some see it as a stressful day of
coordinating busses and monitoring student behavior and chaperones. Others see
a field trip as time to relax and take a break from lesson plans for the day.
Still others view the day as they should, as a learning opportunity that gets
students out of the classroom and face to face with the content they are
learning.
Planning a
field trip is a tall order, especially in a time when content standards and
high stakes testing dictate almost every word of a teacher’s lesson plans. Many
teachers feel the pressure to keep their students in the classroom, rather than
“missing” a day of teaching by taking students to the museum. However, by
following a few simple guidelines for a successful trip, teachers can rest
assured that their students are adding to the vast body of knowledge and skills
they are expected to gain each year.
As a former
teacher turned museum educator, I have been on both sides of the fence, but in
both roles I can say with 100% certainty that the most integral part of a
successful museum trip is the implementation of pre and post lessons which
prepare students for and allow students to reflect on their experience outside
of school. The Australian Museum in Sydney, Australia encourages teachers to
fully prepare their students for the museum experience. Below is a list of
their guidelines for a good trip with commentary by someone who has been in
both sets of shoes. At the bottom of the post, you will find five examples of
museums across the country with exceptional pre and post visit lessons and
resources for teachers.
1. Establish baseline knowledge
·
Though this seems like common sense, many
teachers do absolutely nothing to prepare their students for the content of the
museum. Whether your class is participating in a facilitated experience or a
more self-guided tour, students need to have a basic understanding of what they
are going to see. Many museums offer ready-made pre-lessons that directly
connect to the content of their programs and exhibitions. Even museums that
don’t have lesson plans offer a host of resources and information on the web
and on site.
2. Create and discuss objectives for the trip
·
This is a great opportunity to work
collaboratively with students and prepare for the experience. Once the baseline
knowledge has been attained, students have an idea of the things they will
experience in the museum. Teacher goals are great, but students will also have
opinions about the things that they want to see and do. Ask them what they are
interested in and balance that with goals and objectives that school and state
standards dictate.
3. Organize yourselves
·
All the knowledge and objectives in the world
will not help a class who has no plan. Organization goes far beyond assigning
chaperones and packing bag lunches (though any teacher who has ever been on a
trip knows the first thing on everyone’s mind is LUNCH). First, familiarize
yourself with the museum. Ideally, do a visit alone or with family and friends.
Grab a map, take a tour and see what the museum has to offer. Prepare your
class in any way you can. Small children may need a discussion of museum rules
and behaviors while older students would benefit from advanced copies of the
map and exhibition information. Teacher
Tip: The best way to keep students focused is to allow some “free time” in
the museum before you have a facilitated experience. Letting them see what they
want to see, explore, find the bathrooms and take a look around before jumping
in cuts down on distractions.
4. ENJOY YOURSELF
·
Stop counting heads every five minutes and
worrying that Johnny is picking his nose or texting instead of listening to
every word you or the museum educator says. Most of your students will have a
great experience and learn and grow by leaps and bounds. Take the time to watch
them and see what excites them.
5. Compare new and old knowledge
·
The trip doesn’t end when the bus pulls back
into school. Connecting the pre visit, museum trip and beyond gives the trip
meaning instead of becoming a day free of planning or a “fun day” for the
students. Like pre-visit materials, many museums offer lessons and resources to
extend their content into your classroom after the trip.
6. Reflect on and use the new knowledge
·
Realize what worked and what didn’t. From the
logistics of the trip to the concepts learned, take time as a teacher to
reflect alone, with colleagues and with your class. Apply the knowledge you
learned on the visit to the themes you are teaching in your classroom. Link the
visit with other experiences and content areas to make the most of your trip.
Most museums
try their hardest to tailor their programs and resources to you and your class,
but just because it isn’t listed on their site doesn’t mean they can’t work
with you to meet the needs of your class. Standards alignment is one of the
first thing teachers ask for in museum programs, but there are a host of other
things that teachers need to make the most of a trip. Don’t be afraid to ask!
Museums
with a Host of Teacher Resources
·
The
National Building Museum, Washington, DC: NBM’s in house programming for
school groups is stellar on its own, but the resources and activities that it
provides to teachers makes it one of the best for pre and post visit lessons. Their
incredibly accessible site, linked below, allows teachers to download entire
lesson packets or individual activities that can be used for weeks before and
after the trip.
·
The
National World War II Museum, New Orleans, LA: Not only does the museum
provide lesson materials, but it also goes a step further in helping teachers
prepare for the experience. Their materials packet includes a list of museum
rules and reminders about the sometimes overwhelming experiences that naturally
accompany the content of the museum.
·
Rockwell
Museum of Western Art, Corning, NY: Like the National Building Museum, the
Rockwell provides a host of lessons and activities that are tied closely to
both state and national content standards. Their materials are listed by grade
level and subject to allow for easy access by educators.
·
Rock n’
Roll Hall of Fame and Museum, Cleveland, OH: In addition to some of the
best lessons and experiences I have personally ever seen students experience,
the Rock Hall expands their relationship with teachers by allowing them to
review and give feedback on their experience via their website. They are
constantly reflecting on and making small changes to their lessons based on the
information that they receive from teachers.
·
Museum of
Tolerance, Los Angeles, CA: Another museum with moving and sometimes
emotional content, the Museum of Tolerance works to inform teachers as best
they can of all of the things that students will experience on their visit. An
entire book of resources and lessons is available for download from their
website and can be accessed by anyone.
It's really interesting to see how many items on this list directly correlate with what we have all experienced and/or realized while developing and implementing our MTPs this semester! This is a great, concise list of points to keep in mind when developing programs for school groups, and I think it will certainly come in handy in the future. I especially liked the emphasis on pre- and post- lessons for museum visits; preparing for and reflecting on the trip gives students the opportunity to really get the most out of their museum experience. Thanks for the post and the list with examples and resources!
ReplyDeleteShannon I think this is a great list of guidelines for museum visits! There are definitely some things I think we can all relate to right now. It will be great to keep handy though for years down the line when we've all forgotten what it feels like to be on this side of the chaos and stress!
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Julie and Erika about what a wonderful list of resources this post contains.
ReplyDeleteI think as museum educators, one of the core challenges for our field will be encouraging teachers and administrators that the relatively small amount of effort and time expended on these extra activities (particularly the post-visit activities) will exponentially increase the value of the visit to the students and the education they derive from the experience. Research data from federal standardized testing actually shows that students who took field trips more often actually scored LOWER on the tests than those who took very few, or took none at all.
Given the concern of administrators about budgets and justification of costs, as museum educators, we know we will need to strongly advocate for the use of museums as regular supplements of traditional in classroom instruction. But it seems that just as important will be our advocating for a redefinition of what a field trip is and should be.