<p>This collection is designed to help educators bridge the classroom experience to a museum visit. It is intended to demonstrate various ways to use the Learning Lab and its tools, while offering specific, replicable, pre-engagement activities that can simply be copied to a new collection and used to help students engage with museum resources. </p> <p>Included here: </p> <ul><li>Section 1: a set of flashcards, a template document so that teachers can create and print their own specific sets, and strategies for their use in their classrooms. </li><li>Section 2: a variety of student activities and resources to explore artist Luis Cruz Azaceta's "Shifting States: Iraq," a metaphorical representation of the unrest taking place in Iraq, and more broadly, an exploration of the human condition during times of crisis.  This section includes an image of the work from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, an explanatory video with curator E. Carmen Ramos, two  Thinking Routines - "See, Think, Wonder" and "The 3 Y's" - from Harvard's Project Zero Visible Thinking and Global Thinking materials, and  an array of prompts and Learning Lab tools to help students think critically and globally.  </li><li>Section 3: a short assignment to get participants started using the Learning Lab.</li><li>Section 4: spacer tile template to serve as chapter headings in longer collections.</li></ul><p>This collection is adapted from a teaching collection on the same theme (Luis Cruz Azaceta's "Shifting States: Iraq" ( <a href="http://learninglab.si.edu/q/ll-c/mBWHa8fHUy9vJsE5" style="background-color:rgb(63,63,63);">http://learninglab.si.edu/q/ll...</a>), that includes extension activities. It was created for the 2019 cohort of the Smithsonian-Montgomery College Faculty Fellowship Program on the theme, "The Search for American Identity: Building a Nation Together," and then adapted for the 2020 program on the theme, “Humans and the Footprints We Leave: Climate Change and Other Critical Challenges". </p> <p>Keywords: #MCteach</p> <p><br /></p>

<p>This collection is designed to help educators bridge the classroom experience to a museum visit. It is intended to demonstrate various ways to use the Learning Lab and its tools, while offering specific, replicable, pre-engagement activities that can simply be copied to a new collection and used to help students engage with museum resources. </p> <p>Included here: </p> <ul><li>Section 1: a set of flashcards, a template document so that teachers can create and print their own specific sets, and strategies for their use in their classrooms. </li><li>Section 2: a variety of student activities and resources to explore artist Luis Cruz Azaceta's "Shifting States: Iraq," a metaphorical representation of the unrest taking place in Iraq, and more broadly, an exploration of the human condition during times of crisis.  This section includes an image of the work from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, an explanatory video with curator E. Carmen Ramos, two  Thinking Routines - "See, Think, Wonder" and "The 3 Y's" - from Harvard's Project Zero Visible Thinking and Global Thinking materials, and  an array of prompts and Learning Lab tools to help students think critically and globally.  </li><li>Section 3: a short assignment to get participants started using the Learning Lab.</li><li>Section 4: spacer tile template to serve as chapter headings in longer collections.</li></ul> <p>This collection is adapted from a teaching collection on the same theme (Luis Cruz Azaceta's "Shifting States: Iraq" ( <a href="http://learninglab.si.edu/q/ll-c/mBWHa8fHUy9vJsE5" style="background-color:rgb(63,63,63);">http://learninglab.si.edu/q/ll...</a>), that includes extension activities. It was created for the 2019 cohort of the Smithsonian-Montgomery College Faculty Fellowship Program on the theme, "The Search for American Identity: Building a Nation Together," and then adapted for the 2020 program on the theme, “Humans and the Footprints We Leave: Climate Change and Other Critical Challenges." </p> <p>Keywords: #MCteach</p> <p><br></p>

<p>This teaching collection is designed to be used in the Frost Art Museum's "Exploring Latinx Artists from the Frost Art Museum Collection" workshop on November 6, 2018, to guide participants in a looking activity and to demonstrate the range of tools available in the Learning Lab. </p><p>It is adapted from a teaching collection on the same theme (Luis Cruz Azaceta's "Shifting States: Iraq" <a href="http://learninglab.si.edu/q/ll-c/mBWHa8fHUy9vJsE5">http://learninglab.si.edu/q/ll...</a>) , which aims to help students think critically and globally using two Thinking Routines to explore the painting. The work is a metaphorical representation of the unrest taking place in Iraq, and more broadly, an exploration of the human condition during times of crisis.</p> <p>Included here are an image of the work from the Smithsonian American Art Museum, an explanatory video with curator E. Carmen Ramos, a contextual video featuring the artist himself, three suggested Thinking Routines - "Colors, Shapes, Lines," "The 3 Y's," and "Headlines" - from Harvard's Project Zero Artful Thinking and Global Thinking materials, three other works by Azaceta in the Smithsonian collections, and an array of prompts and Learning Lab tools.</p> <p>For use in Social Studies, Spanish, English, American History, Art History classes</p> <p><em>This program received Federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center</em>.<br /></p> <p><br /></p> <p>#LatinoHAC</p>

<p>This collection includes a wide range of Irish contemporary and traditional music in the Smithsonian collections, with two lesson plans for grades 3-5 from the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage.</p><p>#SmithsonianMusic<br /></p>

<p>This collection is a standalone flashcard or online activity designed to generate discussion for Mexican American Studies classrooms and workshops. The collection includes:</p> <ul><li>images to spark discussion</li><li>questions to guide you in considering and selecting objects</li><li>a word document template that educators can use to edit (or create from scratch) and print flashcards with images and descriptions on opposite sides of each flashcard.</li><li>the Learning Lab Getting Started Guide</li></ul> <p>This collection was co-created with Maritza De La Trinidad, Laura Esparza, Gilbert Flores, Francisco Guajardo, Liz Lopez, Chris Milk, Aurelio Montemayor, <a href="https://learninglab.si.edu/profile/9">Tess Porter</a>, <a href="https://learninglab.si.edu/profile/212">Philippa Rappoport</a>, Veronica Rodriguez, Liliana Saldaña, and Elizabeth Salinas, and serves as a preview of the Learning Lab platform and springboard for discussion during the <em><strong>MAS Digital Archives: Integrating digital cultural resources in your curriculum </strong></em>workshop, held online with the University of Texas at San Antonio's Institute of Texan Cultures and Mexican American Studies Program, the Intercultural Development Research Association, and the Smithsonian Office of Educational Technology, as well as the <em>Exploration of Ethnic Studies</em> workshop, held online with City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department, <em>Academia Cuautli,</em> Texas State University, the Museum of South Texas History (MOSTHistory), and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley's (UTRGV) <em>Historias Americanas </em>program during academic year 2020-2021.<em> </em>The collection can be copied and adapted for use in your own classroom. </p> <p>This program received Federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center.<br></p> <p>#MexicanAmericanStudies #EthnicStudies #HistoriasAmericanas</p> <p>Keywords: TEKS</p> <p></p>

<p>This collection is a standalone flashcard or online activity designed to generate discussion for Ethnic and Area Studies classrooms and workshops. The collection includes:</p> <ul><li>images to spark discussion</li><li>questions to guide you in considering and selecting objects</li><li>a word document template that educators can use to edit (or create from scratch) and print flashcards with images and descriptions on opposite sides of each flashcard.</li><li>the Learning Lab Getting Started Guide</li></ul> <p>This collection was co-created with Maritza De La Trinidad, Laura Esparza, Francisco Guajardo, Chris Milk, <a href="https://learninglab.si.edu/profile/9">Tess Porter</a>, <a href="https://learninglab.si.edu/profile/212">Philippa Rappoport</a>, and Elizabeth Salinas, and serves as a preview of the Learning Lab platform and springboard for discussion during the <em>Exploration of Ethnic Studies</em> workshop, held online with the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department, <em>Academia Cuautli,</em> Texas State University, the Museum of South Texas History (MOSTHistory), and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley's (UTRGV) <em>Historias Americanas </em>program during academic year 2020-2021.<em> </em>The collection can be copied and adapted for use in your own classroom. </p> <p>This program received Federal support from the Latino Initiatives Pool, administered by the Smithsonian Latino Center.<br></p> <p>#EthnicStudies #HistoriasAmericanas</p> <p>Keywords: TEKS</p> <p></p>

<p>This Learning Lab collection was made to complement the presentation "Digital Storytelling as a Teaching Strategy in the Smithsonian Learning Lab," as part of the series, <em>The Inclusive Memory Project in the Post Covid Era</em>", hosted by the Centro di Didattica Museale at the Università degli Studi Roma Tre. <br></p> <p>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>You will find in this collection:<br></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>#DigitalStorytelling</p>

<p>The Smithsonian Institution, the world's largest <strong><a href="https://www.si.edu/museums">museum</a></strong>, <strong><a href="https://www.si.edu/educators">education</a></strong>, and <strong><a href="https://www.si.edu/ResearchCenters">research</a></strong> complex, is 175 old this year. The Institution was founded in 1846 with funds from the Englishman James Smithson (1765–1829), a chemist and mineralogist who left his estate to establish in the United States an institution dedicated to “the increase and diffusion of knowledge.” Today, the museum includes nineteen museums and study centers and the National Zoo, with two more museums created by Congressional legislation just this past year.<br></p> <p>The Smithsonian Institution is committed to telling a full and inclusive history of America, and to catalyzing important conversations on issues affecting our nation and the world. This includes well-known and lesser-known stories. It includes curatorial voices, voices reflected in the collections, and visitor voices. As Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III said in introducing the Institution's new <em><a href="https://www.si.edu/raceandoursharedfuture">Our Shared Future: Reckoning with Our Racial Past </a></em><a href="https://www.si.edu/raceandoursharedfuture">initiative</a>, “At a moment when our country is in crisis, we the Smithsonian have a responsibility to help our nation move forward. To transform our understanding of race and racism. To amplify the voices of the communities we serve. To bring people together across different backgrounds, races, experiences, and beliefs. To create a space for all Americans to recognize how much they have in common: shared history, shared heritage, shared hopes for the future.”<br></p> <p>This collection was created to offer an introduction to the many ways the Smithsonian Institution uses stories to increase and diffuse knowledge, amplify voices, and build community, to share at the <a href="https://storytellingacademy.education/dst2021-conference-announcement-24-hour-online-marathon-in-june/" target="_blank">Digital Storytelling Conference 2021</a> in June 2021. This collection includes just a sampling of the amazing work, research, education, and engagement happening across the Institution. Please reach out to us at <a href="mailto:learning@si.edu">learning@si.edu</a> if you would like help or guidance using the Learning Lab or incorporating museum digital content into your storytelling or educational engagement. </p> <p></p>

<p>This collection includes activities to enable critical conversations in the classroom in an atmosphere of mutual trust and respect. The collection supports the "Identity and Narrative" first section and the "Transformation and Change" fourth section of the District of Columbia Public Schools course, "Critical Conversations," and can also be used in a variety of courses, including Ethnic and Area Studies, Social Studies, English/Composition, Media and Technology, and History. It addresses the following content standards: </p> <ul><li>Understand the importance of one’s identity as it relates to their place in history and influence in transforming today’s society.</li><li>Examine and identify master narratives and counter-narratives relating to individual and other affinity groups.</li><li>Evaluate the complexities and factors that influence and dictate identity formation.</li><li>Identify and analyze their social, ethnic, racial, and cultural identities and examine societal perceptions and behaviors related to their own identities.</li><li>Identify and analyze the issues and root causes that currently affect the DC community. </li><li>Create solutions that combat injustices within the DC community. </li><li>Understand how critical consciousness can lead to action.</li></ul> <p>The collection is split into seven sections of activities and resources that build on each other but can also be used modularly. It includes a range of suggested activities aimed to develop in students visual literacy skills, empathy, confidence, and self-expression, and introduces users to the five-step Digital Storytelling process: briefing and story-circle (here these are the "close-looking" and "considering representation" activities); writing; recording; editing; and sharing. The final suggested activity asks students to reflect on their own lives and how they can be agents for change in their own communities. These suggested activities are detailed on the left side panel of each section heading tile. They should open up directly so that you see the descriptions, but if not, click on the paper clips to open them.</p> <p>The materials and methodology for this collection reflect my work in heritage education and community engagement at the Smithsonian Office of Educational Technology (OET) and as a college instructor in Russian culture and folklore, as well as work specifically in Digital Storytelling, which I have been practicing since having had the pleasure and good fortune of being introduced to it by <a href="https://learninglab.si.edu/profile/24977" target="_blank">Dr. Antonia Liguori </a>(Loughborough University, UK) when she was a Smithsonian Fellow at OET in 2018. Dr. Liguori's research project, "Storying the Cultural Heritage: Digital Storytelling as a tool to enhance the 4Cs in formal and informal learning," explored the use of Digital Storytelling in combination with the digital resources of the Smithsonian Learning Lab. (You can read more about that project <a href="https://repository.lboro.ac.uk/articles/conference_contribution/Digital_storytelling_in_cultural_and_heritage_education_Reflecting_on_storytelling_practices_applied_with_the_Smithsonian_Learning_Lab_to_enhance_21st-century_learning/9319391" target="_blank">here</a>, and click on "Conference Proceedings, pages 63-75.) Also reflected here is work from two multi-year, ongoing, inspiring program partnerships: in Family Literacy Engagement with Micheline Lavalle of the Fairfax County Public School Family Literacy Program and Beth Evans of the National Portrait Galery, and in Educator Professional Development and Digital Storytelling with Professors Sara Ducey, Jamie Gillan, and Matthew Decker of Montgomery College.</p> <p>Digital storytelling is very special. I hope you can experience the magic of it in your classroom. Please do share your experiences on the Padlet at the end of the collection.</p> <p>#EthnicStudies #MexicanAmericanStudies</p> <p><br></p> <p><br></p>

<p>This collection serves as an introduction to the opening panel of the 2020 Smithsonian-Montgomery College Faculty Fellowship Program. This year's theme is “Humans and the Footprints We Leave: Climate Change and Other Critical Challenges." Three Smithsonian staff members will present at the session, including Igor Krupnik (Curator of Arctic and Northern Ethnology collections and Head of the Ethnology Division at the National Museum of Natural History), Alison Cawood (Citizen Science Coordinator at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center), and Ashley Peery (Educator for the exhibition "Outbreak: Epidemics in a Connected World, " at the National Museum of Natural History). Their bios, presentation descriptions, and other resources are included inside.<br><br>As you explore these resources, be sure to jot down any questions you have for the presenters. It is sure to be a fascinating and fruitful seminar series!<br><br>#MCteach</p>

<p>Lei making is an important part of Hawaiian culture. These twisted strands are worn on important occasions and given as gifts of welcome. In this collection you'll find a demonstration video by Mokihana Scalph, as well as performances of children's stories, dance performances, and images of leis and ti leaves, to give context to the performances.</p>

<p>Students use a Global Thinking Routine to explore both a portrait and a work of literature that together offer a  rich view of the Chicano experience in the American southwest in the middle of the 20th century. </p> <p>This teaching collection features Gaspar Enríquez's portrait of Rudolfo Anaya. It is the first commissioned portrait by the National Portrait Gallery of a Latino sitter by a Latino artist. Both artists address the Chicano experience and confluence of cultures in the American southwest.</p> <p>Included here are the portrait, a bilingual video with National Portrait Gallery curator Taína Caragol, the "Step In - Step Out - Step Back" Thinking Routine from Harvard's Project Zero Global Thinking Strategies, two other works by Gaspar Enríquez, and some links to National Portrait Gallery supporting materials. </p> <p>Teachers and students can pair the portrait and read Rudolfo Anaya's coming of age novel "Bless Me Ultima," first published in 1972 and reflecting Chicano culture in rural New Mexico in the 1940s, to gain a deeper understanding of the Chicano experience in the American southwest.</p> <p>#LatinoHAC #EthnicStudies<br /></p>