Learning and Leading - February 2009

Museums in the Classroom

Periodicals
Help You

Are you looking for an online museum to complement a unit topic or theme? Do you want students to research museums to find activities and artifacts to supplement their studies and research? Here are some resources to start you and your students on cybermuseum visits anytime, anyplace, with no admission fees.

Transform Teaching

◼ Journal of Research on Technology in Education www.iste.org/JRTE

◼ Journal of Computing in Teacher Education www.iste.org/JCTE

Subscribe Today!

Great Museums

www.greatmuseums.org/virtual_ museums.html

Help student docents design their own cybermuseum tours or get good ideas for classroom exhibits.

Discovering the Museum Glossary www.albanyinstitute.org/Education/ Discovering

A wonderful
glossary of
museum
terms.

Resource Central—

Museum Resources www.resourcehelp.com/qser museum.htm

This comprehensive search engine offers a broad spectrum of links to hundreds of museums. Check out the San Diego Aerospace Museum for history of military and civil aircraft. Visit the Pilgrim Hall Museum—America’s Museum of Pilgrim Possessions to find rich resources for a Thanksgiving unit, or visit the American Red Cross link on this site if your goal is to study community service or teach civic responsibility and volunteerism. The National Cryptologic Museum is great for mathematics and social studies teachers, or any educator who uses cryptograms for teaching puzzle solving, mathematics literacy, and higher-order thinking skills.

You may also want to turn your classroom into a museum to showcase student work to family and friends. Hold a museum opening using exhibit banners, student docents, brochures, admission tickets, demonstrations, guest books, and souvenirs to celebrate completion of units of study and add additional literacy practice to any subject.