Sharon Shaffer, Executive Director of the Smithsonian Early Education Center, outlines methods for using hands-on exploration of objects to prepare students to experience museum exhibits and to extend the lesson following museum visits.
Smithsonian National Museum of American History curators share secrets of how they develop the individual stories presented in exhibitions such as "America on the Move." They then help students who are creating their own family stories by analyzing objects, documents, and other resources. This presentation continues from the presentation "America on the Move, Part One: Migrations, Immigrations, and How We Got Here."
To view this electronic field trip, select "America on the Move, Part Two: Creating Stories" under the heading "Electronic Field Trips."
A talk with Dr. Lonnie Bunch, founding director of the new National Museum of African American History, about the new African-American Museum. This Smithsonian Institution museum has been decades in the making and soon will be assigned a location in downtown Washington, DC. "It is a challenge to make sure that this is a museum that allows people to revel in African-American culture," Dr. Bunch has noted, "but it [will also be] a museum that says what it means to be an American. Everyone will want to come here because it will help us understand courage and resiliency and other traits."
To view this lecture, scroll to "Lonnie Bunch," and select "Watch the Video."
The American Museum of Fly Fishing maintains the world's largest collection of angling and angling-related items, numbering in the thousands. Its collections and exhibits thoroughly document the evolution of fly fishing as a sport, art form, craft, and industry in the U.S. and abroad, dating as far back as the 16th century. Rods, reels, flies, tackle, art, photographs, manuscripts, and books form the major portions of the Museum's collections.
The museum offers exhibits and occasional recreational and educational events.
The Smoky Hill Museum preserves, presents, and interprets the history of the Smoky Hills region. Exhibits include "Crossroads of the Heartland," which traces the area's history; the Prairie Education Lab, which recreates life in an 1860s cabin; and "One Keeper's Place," where children can solve interactive history mysteries.
The museum offers exhibits, educational tours and programs, and occasional recreational and educational events.
The Santa Fe Trail Center interprets the historic transportation route known as the Santa Fe Trail. This regional museum and library preserves artifacts and manuscripts related to the blending of the major cultures along the Trail and enhances understanding of the continued development of the Trail. The center presents interrelated interpretive exhibits, learning programs, and resource materials to engage the public in learning about its past.
The center offers exhibits, school tours, and research library access.
The collects and preserves artifacts that tell the story of the Frontier Army from 1804 to 1916, and Fort Leavenworth from 1827 to the present through the use of its collection of historical artifacts.
The museum offers exhibits.
The Gallery stands as a major center of American art, both historic and contemporary. Founded "for the purpose of encouraging American Genius," the Corcoran's collection of 18th-, 19th-, and 20th-century American art represents most significant American artists. The Corcoran possesses a collection of European art as well.
The museum offers permanent and changing exhibits, tours (including tours for school groups), classroom materials for loan, and recreational and educational events (including professional development opportunities for educators).
The Museum exhibits over 120 cars ranging from 1894 to 1999 and automotive displays on three floors. The museum has the most extensive collection of Auburn, Cord, and Duesenberg automobiles in the world, and features the largest exhibit of Duesenberg automobiles on public display in the world.
The museum offers exhibits, tours, research library access, educational programs, and recreational and educational events.
The Museum houses a collection of over 100 aircraft, missiles, and cockpits dating from a replica of an early 1896 glider to modern-era aircraft such as the B-1B bomber, the SR-71 Blackbird, the U-2 Dragon Lady and F-15 Eagle. Exhibits tell the story of aviation events from World War II to the present, including exhibits depicting the mission of Robins Air Force Base, the largest industrial employer in Georgia.
The museum offers exhibits, tours, educational programs, and occasional recreational and educational events.