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Philippa Rappoport

Lead, Education and Engagement
Smithsonian Office of Educational Technology
Smithsonian Staff

I work in education and engagement, teacher professional development, and outreach at the Smithsonian Office of Educational Technology (OET), and have a particular interest in developing and producing trainings, programs, teaching techniques, and platforms that foster deep learning and contribute knowledge to improve practices in museum and preK-16 education and engagement. At OET over the last decade+, I created digital assets for schools, families, and new immigrant English Language learners to complement teacher professional development and pan-Smithsonian programming, including Learning Lab teaching collections, YouTube videos with tradition bearers, a handmade family stories book-making website, and online heritage tours.

Philippa Rappoport's collections

 

Museums as Pathways to Public Problem Solving? (The National Museum of American History)

<p>This collection complements Unit 7 of the EdX course, <em><a href="https://www.edx.org/course/teaching-with-the-smithsonian-addressing-21st-century-challenges-in-the-community-college-classroom" target="_blank">Teaching with the Smithsonian: Addressing 21st-Century Challenges in the College Classroom</a></em><em>. </em>It includes resources to support the session presentation by Margaret Salazar-Porzio from the National Museum of American History.</p> <p><br></p> <p>#MCTeach #EdXTeach</p>
Philippa Rappoport
12
 

Are Parasites Always Bad? (Smithsonian Environmental Research Center)

<p>This collection complements Unit 4 of the EdX course, <em><a href="https://www.edx.org/course/teaching-with-the-smithsonian-addressing-21st-century-challenges-in-the-community-college-classroom">Teaching with the Smithsonian: Addressing 21st-Century Challenges in the College Classroom</a></em><em>. </em>It includes resources to support the session presentation by Katrina Lohan of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. </p> <p></p> <p>#MCTeach #EdXTeach</p>
Philippa Rappoport
19
 

Outbreak: Epidemics in a Connected World (National Museum of Natural History)

<p>This collection complements Unit 8 of the EdX course, <em><a href="https://www.edx.org/course/teaching-with-the-smithsonian-addressing-21st-century-challenges-in-the-community-college-classroom" target="_blank">Teaching with the Smithsonian: Addressing 21st-Century Challenges in the College Classroom</a>. </em>It includes resources to support the session presentation by Ashley Peery of the National Museum of Natural History.</p> <p>#MCTeach #EdXTeach</p>
Philippa Rappoport
12
 

Digital Storytelling with Museum Objects in the Smithsonian Learning Lab

<p>This Learning Lab collection was made to complement the presentation, "Digital Storytelling with Museum Objects in the Smithsonian Learning Lab." During the workshop,  co-facilitators <a href="https://learninglab.si.edu/profile/24977">Dr. Antonia Liguori</a> (Loughborough University, UK) and <a href="https://learninglab.si.edu/profile/212">Dr. Philippa Rappoport</a> (Smithsonian Office of Educational Technology) will demonstrate a variety of techniques to incorporate personal experiences in the exploration and use of museum resources. They will share how the Smithsonian Learning Lab and Digital Storytelling (DS) can be used together to access digital resources, build learning experiences, and cultivate collaboration and community over distance.</p> <p>We will explore artwork from an exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC, <em><a href="https://artsandculture.google.com/exhibit/IgLygJNprGf3JA%20and%20https:/npg.si.edu/exhibition/eye-i-self-portraits-1900-today">Eye to I: Self-Portraiture as an Exploration of Identity</a></em>), which compels viewers to consider how self-portraits reflect an artist’s identity through what is revealed and concealed. </p> <p>After an introduction to the Smithsonian Learning Lab and previous experiences with Digital Storytelling within that environment, participants will be engaged in discussions about how Digital Storytelling can be used to support museum educators. In particular, digital storytelling as a co-created and participatory approach can foster workshop participants' capacity and disposition to understand and act on issues of global significance. <br></p> <ul></ul> <p>You will find in this collection: </p> <ul><li>a short icebreaker activity using exhibition images to start shifting from a cognitive appreciation of art to a personal connection to museum objects; </li><li>some examples of annotated objects that demonstrate the functionality of the Learning Lab; </li><li>some examples of digital stories made by students and also other educators during previous Digital Storytelling workshops; </li><li>a description of the Digital Storytelling process; </li><li>workshop participants' reflections;  </li><li>supplemental resources. </li></ul> <p></p>
Philippa Rappoport
38
 

Art and Technology Projects for Museums and Classrooms: From "Today I Am Here" to "Discovering US/Descubriéndonos"

<p>This collection contains assets and resources designed to help teachers (art, English, ESOL, social studies, and media technology), museum educators, and community-based informal learning educators recreate their own "Today I Am Here" project, based on the specific needs of their classroom or learning community. </p> <p>"Today I Am Here" is a project in which students make a handmade book from one piece of paper, that tells the story of how they got to where they are today. This project is wonderful in a classroom to show the breadth and diversity of the class, and to encourage cross-cultural understanding. </p> <p>Inside you will find instructions and images for the various components of the project, as well as samples of student work.  </p> <p>#LatinoHAC<br /></p>
Philippa Rappoport
15
 

Making "Family Memory" Storybooks: Fun for the Whole Family

<p>This collection includes a series of easy-to-do book projects designed to get families talking and creating together. Any of them can be used in the classroom (English, art, social studies), as a home project, or in an informal learning setting. All books are made from a single sheet of paper.</p> <p>Titles are ordered generally from most complex to least complex for topic, and include:<br />"Our Home" Nature Walk Album<br />Today I Am Here<br />Connections<br />My Hero<br />Music Memories<br />Kitchen Memories<br />Special Person<br />Family Treasure<br />Things That Make Me <em>Me!</em><br />I Am A Star<br />My Clubhouse<br />Family Flag<br />My Name</p> <p>At the bottom, you'll also find an interview with the creator of these design templates, book artist Sushmita Mazumdar, and a video of her reading one of her own books.<br /></p> <p>Click on any of these demos and accompanying downloadable instructions to make your own "family memory" storybook!<br /></p> <p>tags: art, crafts, crafting, how-to<br /></p>
Philippa Rappoport
47
 

Making a "Things That Make Me Me!" Family Storybook

<p>This collection includes an easy-to-do book project designed to get families talking, creating, and celebrating together our unique and shared qualities. It can be used as a home project, in the classroom (English, art, social studies), or in an informal learning setting. Together with guidance from the "Talking about Race" materials from the National Museum of African American History and Culture, this book project can also be used as a prompt to talk about race with young learners. </p> <p>The book is made from a single, large sheet of paper. Click on the demo and accompanying downloadable instructions to get started!</p> <p>tags: race, art, arts, crafts, crafting, how-to</p>
Philippa Rappoport
6
 

Social Justice in the Time of Pandemic: Presentations from the National Museum of African American History and Culture

<p>This collection serves as a preview for the fifth of six seminar sessions in the 2022 Smithsonian-Montgomery College Faculty Fellowship Program. This year's theme is “Social Justice in the time of Pandemic."<br><br>Colleagues from the National Museum of African American History and Culture - Kinshasha Holman Conwill, Kelly Elaine Navies, Doretha Williams, and Auntaneshia Staveloz - will discuss signature programs of the museum's engagement, collection, digitization, and outreach strategy. </p> <p>Resources included in this collection have been recommended by the presenters for participants to explore before the seminar session itself. A fuller description and presenter bios are included inside the collection.<br></p> <p>Special thanks to Danielle Lancaster for her support of this program.</p> <p>#MCteach</p> <p><br></p>
Philippa Rappoport
29
 

National Museum of the American Indian: Saving Sacred Spaces

<p>This collection serves as a preview for the sixth of six seminar sessions in the 2022 Smithsonian-Montgomery College Faculty Fellowship Program. This year's theme is “Social Justice in the time of Pandemic."<br><br>Four colleagues from the National Museum of the American Indian - Maria Marable-Bunch, Shawn Termin, Renée Gokey, and Hayes Lavis - will present and discuss the museum's <em>Living Earth</em> series and partners' work to safeguard sites sacred to Native peoples and nations. <br></p> <p>Resources included in this collection have been recommended by the presenters for participants to explore before the seminar session itself. A fuller description and presenter bios are included inside the collection.<br></p> <p>#MCteach<br></p>
Philippa Rappoport
16
 

Social Justice in the Time of Pandemic: Smithsonian-Montgomery College Faculty Fellowship 2022 Opening Panel Resources

<p>This collection serves as an introduction to the opening panel of the 2022 Smithsonian-Montgomery College Faculty Fellowship Program. This year's theme is “Social Justice in the time of Pandemic: The Hurdles Behind, the Urgency of Now, and Moving Forward after Covid." Five Smithsonian staff members will present at the session to explore the various ways that the Smithsonian is addressing issues of social justice in the time of pandemic. Presenters include Ashleigh Coren (Smithsonian American Women's History Initiative and National Portrait Gallery), Ariana Curtis (Our Shared Future: Reckoning with Our Racial Past Initiative and National Museum of African American History and Culture), Healoha Johnston (Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center), Andrea Jones (Anacostia Community Museum), and Ranald Woodaman (National Museum of the American Latino). Their bios, presentation descriptions, and other resources are included inside. (Click on each tile for more information.)<br><br>As you explore these resources, jot down any questions you have for the presenters. It is sure to be a fascinating and thought-provoking seminar series!<br><br>#MCteach</p>
Philippa Rappoport
22
 

Artist and Archivist: The Papers and Legacy of Angel Suarez Rosado

<p>The Archives of American Art seeks to identify and acquire personal papers and institutional records of national significance in the arts. This topical collection explores the documents and objects from the papers of Angel Suarez Rosado, a living artist of Puerto Rican descent, and their lasting significance to the public.</p> <p>Included here are a bilingual video with curator Josh T. Franco, an exhibition webpage from Rosado's site-specific installation at the Allentown Art Museum in Pennsylvania, and the Archives of American Art homepage where users can explore online collections, resources, and publications, and a final discussion question. </p> <p>#LatinoHAC<br /></p> <p><br /></p>
Philippa Rappoport
4
 

Carnival Celebrations: Masks (Lesson Plans, Activities, and Background Information)

<p>This collection comes from a set of lessons plans to introduce students to the culture of Puerto Rico by looking at customs and objects - specifically masks - connected to the annual celebration of Carnival. The lessons are split into four levels, covering grades K-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12. They were originally adapted from a set of activities that appeared in <em>Our Story in History: A Puerto Rican Carnival</em>, a website produced by the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History - also shown in a link inside the collection, along with instructions for students to make their own masks. The lessons include objects from the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in New York, the George Gustav Heye Center, and the Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History. </p> <p><br /></p>
Philippa Rappoport
6