Updates
Smithsonian’s “Year of Music” Digital Resources for Early Learning
Smithsonian’s “Year of Music” Digital Resources for Early Learning By: Ashley Naranjo, Manager of Educator Engagement, Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital AccessThe Smithsonian named 2019 its Year of Music, with 365 days of events and programming to celebrate and its many musical resources. Did you know that these combined musical resources constitute the world’s largest museum of music? To include young children and their famili...
Teacher Feature: Undergraduates Use Museum Resources for Lesson Development
Teacher Feature: Undergraduates Use Museum Resources for Lesson Development By: Ashley Naranjo, Manager of Educator Engagement, Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access Teacher Feature is a new series on promising practices in using digital museum resources in the classroom. Interested in contributing your approach? Send us a note! The Smithsonian Learning Lab team is always thrilled to hear about the many ways that educators and learners across the...
Going Beyond Stereotypes: Mexican Indigenous Dress and Musical Instruments
Going Beyond Stereotypes: Mexican Indigenous Dress and Musical Instruments By: Lisa Falk, Head of Community Engagement, Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona The Smithsonian’s Learning Lab collections are rich resources that can bring the world into your classroom. The collections can be used to unpack stereotypes. Use the Learning Lab to introduce your students to some real Mexican indigenous costume traditions by asking them, “What would Frida Kahlo wear?” A...
Teacher Feature: Ms. Kelly’s Second-Grade Social Studies Unit on Communities
Teacher Feature: Ms. Kelly’s Second-Grade Social Studies Unit on Communities Teacher Feature is a new series on promising practices in using digital museum resources in the classroom. Interested in contributing your approach? Send us a note! By: Ashley Naranjo, Manager of Educator Engagement, Smithsonian Center for Learning and Digital Access Projected at the front of Meghan Kelly’s second-grade classroom in Avonworth, Pennsylvania, ...
Using Artifacts to Inspire Critical Thinking
Using Artifacts to Inspire Critical Thinking By: Mary Manning, College and Career Readiness Specialist, Cleveland History Center You don’t need to be a museum curator to use artifacts in a classroom. If you decide to use visual thinking strategies, which offer powerful ways to unravel all the symbolic power of artistic images, they may not seem to apply to artifacts, especially those used in daily life that may not carry symbolic meanings. However, artifac...
