Our Trip to the Musueum!

Good afternoon everyone!

Have I told you lately how much I enjoy spending time around your wonderful children?  They inspire me everyday and they have so much to contribute to our class!  Thank you for sharing them with us!

There was a great buzz of excitement in our class leading up to our field trip.  We spent time preparing ourselves for this adventure and discussed what some expectations were and we made agreements about what to do in case of an emergency.

How will you take care of your partner?

We have been practicing taking care of our friends every day in a variety of ways, but we have special agreements when it comes to taking care of your partner when we take a walk.  Some of those agreements applied to how we could take care of our friends on a field trip, including holding hands, following the group, walking in line, and being gentle with your partner.  The students found it easy to transfer these same agreements and apply them to what to do on our trip.

What does the Family Driver need from you?

The class agreed that when they would be in the car with a Family Driver, they would practice being quiet and avoid causing any distractions so that everyone would be safe.  We did a little bit of role playing for how to hear for instructions from the Family Driver, staying in their seat the whole time, and some activities they might do in the car.  They came up with some great suggestions, such as counting red cars, trucks, trees, and finding numbers and letters in license plates.

What is acceptable behavior in a museum?

Some students in our class have experienced trips to different museums in their life and offered their expertise to the group.  They were able to model how to walk quietly, observe and respect the different artifacts in the classroom, stick with their Family Member, and how to take stick with their partner. 

What do you do in case you get separated from the group?

I provided the students with a scenario to consider:  during the trip, you find yourself looking closely at a piece of art, and when you turn to your partner, you realize that you are alone and the rest of the group has gone on to the next exhibit.  What do you do?  We walked through the steps of what to do in this case which included sitting right where you are, ask a mom, dad, or worker for help and hand them your Emergency Contact Card (provided to them prior to the trip) and ask them to call your teacher, but to stay in your space even if the person helping you asks you to join them somewhere else.  

Upon the arrival to the New Children's Art Museum, the students enjoyed  the playground across the street where we met up to have lunch prior to our tour.

We were greeting by our guide, Evan, who led us to the different exhibits by Jason Rogenes who has explored the possibilities of Styrofoam and other discarded materials:

Mike Eastman who uses electronic waste, providing a process of discovery and play; transforming discarded television and computer parts into user-activated magnetic sculptures:

Margaret and Christine Wertheim of The Institute For Figuring, who decided to keep and track all of their household plastic trash:

Ernest Silva's The Rain House provided a tranquil space with the sound of water tinkling on the tin roof as they worked to find the spaces to fit large puzzle pieces.

Vik Muniz, who invites visitors to compose their own “picture of garbage,” using broken plastic toys placed upon light boxes:

Chris Solars' Play Fill, which is a dumpster converted into a play structure, where the students were asked to look at life through the perspective of a piece of trash

Check out this video about Chris Solar's Play-Fill.  It brought up much discussion from the students who were left with the following questions that students are responding to in their journals:

And lastly, Shinique Smith's Secret Garden, she uses discarded clothing as an artistic medium to explore the complex and accidental connections between individuals. (Pictures coming soon!) Check >>>HERE<<< for more details about each artist and their installations.

Have a great weekend!

Love, Gaby