The Docent Educator

20 Pages·2003·1.8 MB·English

by  Gartenhaus, Alan

Minds in Motion Vol. 12, No. 4 Summer 2003
THE QUARTERLY JOURNAL FOR DEDICATED EDUCATORS
Teaching Challenges
and
Solutions
Keeping ItFresh
Experience is a Powerful Teacher
Presenting the Challenge ofExpansive Teaching
Using CaseStudies to Meet Challenges in Museums, Galleries, and otherSites
A The Challenge ofCreating and Running a Large, OutdoorEducational Program
minds in motion
Presenting the Challenge of
Here'san oldtrickthat's Docents should recognizethat who is concernedwiththephysical
worthrepeating. amongthe reasons ourcollections compositions,properties,a—nd
Interlace the fingers are highlysignificantis theirintrinsic interactions ofsubstances what
ofyourtwo hands. abilitytoconveya myriad ofstories mightyoube interestedinwhen
Lookand seewhich hand's thumb and toreveal awidevarietyof lookingatthis collection?—
is on top. Now,unlaceyourfingers information and truths. Forinstance, T Ifyouwere adesigner aperson
andinterlace them again,butthis an historic home can tellvisitors whoplans andcarries outskiUflil
timeplace the opposite thumb on more than mere history. Beyond arrangementsofthings orspac—es
thetop. Howdoes itfeel? Ifyou find being ahousebuiltin acertainyear basedonforms andflinctions
it"awkward,"or"uncomfortable," and ownedbycertain people,itis a whatmightyoube interestedin
or"strange"youarelike mostpeople. reflection ofculture,values,lifestyles, whenlookingatthiscolle—ction?
Each ofus has aproclivitytodo artisticexpressions,architecture, T Ifyouwere ahistorian aperson
(and toview) things in acertain engineering,physics,mathematics, whoinquiresinto, studies,and —
Cover; routine waythat"feels"normaland construction methods,occupations, analyzespastevents andactivities
J
docentchallenges predictabletous. resources, materials,and more. whatmightyoubeinterestedin
studentstomake The same propensityto do The academiclabelsofart,history, whenlookingatthiscollection?—
discoveriesand andtoviewthings in predictable and science, and so forth are simply T Ifyouwere amathematician
discusswhatthey comfortablewayspersistswhenwe concocted contrivances,created for apersonwhocalculatesquantities,
findwhilelooking teach. Thatiswhy,when training cognitive convenience and —magnitudes,andformsusingnumbers
atpaintingsinthe nascentdocents, I like to introduce categorization. whatmightyoubeinterestedin
ToledoMuseumof them to acollection from avariety Thepersistenceofsuchlabels when lookingatthis collection?
ArtinToledo, OH. otvantage pointsbefore presenting can have the unintendedconsequence Then,aftergoingthroughthis
specific information offeredbythe ofpre-determiningTHEWAYwe exercise ofinterpretingusingthese
curatorialstaff Suchbroadexposure thinkwe are supposed to approach offeredperspectives,I askthedocents
gives newdocentrecruits a chance ourcollections and implementour to make alistofwhatthey,them-
to experience one ofthe greater teaching. ThatiswhyI enjoyusing selves,areinterestedin knowingor
rewards ofteachingin museums, these labels in aless anticipated learningaboutfromthiscollection.
—zoos,historic sites,parks,orgardens manner. Whenbeginningatraining I concludebytellingthem thateach
the manyways collections can session,I take docents into agallery oftheirvisitorswiUhave theirown
be approached,experienced, and space ordefinedareaofazoo,park, personalinterests andconcernswhen
appreciated. orgarden and,then,pose each ofthe theycome to this facilityandexplore
Labels such as"art,"or"history," followingquestions one—atatime. the collection.
or"science,"tendtofocus consider- T Ifyouwere an artist aperson Itis atthisjuncture thatI speak
ation and,thus,teaching. One who has an abilityto create things withdocents aboutthe differences
contemplates sculpture as awork thatdisplayform,presentperce—ption, betweenclassroom teachingand
ofart at an"art museum,"orafossil and/orcommunicate meaning teachinginmuseums,historic sites,
as ascientific specimen ata"science what mightyoube interested inwhen zoos,parks, andgardens. Though
museum."But suchviews do not lookingatthis collection?— mostofus expecttoteach—aswe
carrytheweightoflaw,and are often T Ifyouwere abiologist aperson experiencedbeingtaught theway
transgressedbyless knowledgeable who observes,studies, andexamines itwas modeledfor—usbyclassroom
visitorswho maylookatthe sculpture life forms in orderto formulate a teachers in school andwhile those
as an intriguingsedimentaryrock system—atic,objective understandingof ofuswho teach in museums sharethe
and the fossil as acaptivatingthing them whatmightyoube interested title of"educa—tor"with ourclassroom
ofbeauty. inwhenlooking atthi—s collection? counterparts ourobjectives and
Ifyouwere achemist aperson
2
The Docent Educator Summer 2003
Expansive Teaching
methods areconsiderablydifferent. builduponvisitors'responses and becomes more explicable to docents
Ratherthanworkingtoward aseries introduce facts,information,and andits methods are more clearly
ofanticipatedresponsesbyfocusing academicperceptions as additional modeledandunderstood.
alearner's thinking,docents striveto waystoconsiderorunderstand.
expandthought. Ratherthanbeing This approach makespresentingsuch
concernedthatlearnersknowone facts,information,andperceptions
particularsetoffacts,ornames, lessthreateninglyauthoritative and
ordates andare abletorecallthem conclusivethanlecturingcan.
whentested,docentsworktoprovide Thegreatestchallengeto A/an Gartenhaus
multipleroutesforencouraging employingtheinquirymethodof
PublishingEditor
interestin,andexplorationof, expansive teachingis thatitis rarely
objects orspecimens thatare modeledfortheverydocentswho
imbuedwithunlimitedpotential. aretoldtoembrace itas amethod
Docents neednottestvisitors, ofinstruction. Eventhe staffwho
nordotheylaborunderthe same supervise docentprograms often do
formofaccountabiUtythatclassroom notemployinquirywhenproviding
teachers do,thereforetheycanenjoy trainingtodocents. The s—olution to
fargreaterfreedoms. Theycan make this challenge is apparent inquiry
inclusiveness andexpansive consider- shouldbeusedineducationaltraining
ation amajorcomponentoftheir sessions from theverystart,andin a
instructionalmethodology. varietyofcontexts,sothatitspurpose
Since adocent'sgoals areto
stimulateinterest,conveysignificance,
andencourage self-directedlearning,
he orsheshouldemployadifferent
approachthanusedintraditional
A
classroommethods. docent's
approachoughttobe onethatis more
open-endedandflexibly-oriented THE QUARTERLY JOURNAL FOR DEDICATED EDUCATORS
thanclassroomteachingoftenis. TheDocentEducatorisaquarterlypublicationdedicated
Once adocentexperiences Publisher/Editor toimprovingtheperformance,status,andjob satisfaction
learningfrominstitutionalcollections AlanGartenhaus ofvolunteerandstaffeducatorsteachingwithinmuseums,
inaninclusive manner,ratherthan as historicsites,gardens,parks,zoos,andclassrooms.
theexclusivedomainofaparticular AssociateEditor Thepublicationisavailablebysubscriptiontoindividuals,
JackieLittleton
subjectarea,theuse ofaninquiry aswellastogroupsandinstitutions.
approachwhenteachingthrough
mindsinmotion
open-endedquestioningbegins to TheDocentEducator TheDocentEducatorwelcomesunsolicitedarticles,
make sense. Questioningallows PostOfficeBox2080 announcements,comments,generalcorrespondence,and
viewerstoexplore collectionsin Kamuela,HI 96743-2080 USA advertisinginquiries. Theviewsexpressedorimpliedinthis
publicationdonotnecessarilyrepresenttheofficialposition
waysthatpreservetheirindividual phone: [phone]
ofthepublisher,andeffortsaremadetopresentavarietyof
perspectives andconferlegitimacy fax: [phone]
viewpointsforthereader'sconsideration.
totheirpersonalpoints-of-view. e-mail: [email protected]
Whenproperlyemployed, Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,orusedin
questioningalsoallows docentsto ISSN 1084-0443 anymanner,withoutthewrittenconsentofthepublisher.
7U1rightsarereserved.
The Docent Educator Summer2003
Experience a Powerfui Teacher
is
Over
theyears,I have especiallytothosewhosefirstconcern Therefore,shebelievedthattalking
soughtresources that is orderliness andpredictability. aboutthe subjectwould notbe fiiUy
wouldhelp docents Recently,however,I re- understoodorappreciated,and
and othereducators discovered apowerfiil advocate wouldhavelittle realconsequence.
understand more fuUythepositive forexperientialteaching. Itwas Instead,Ms. Elliottplanned adaring
impactofteachingthrough direct, abroadcaston the PBS show, "experientiallesson"forherstudents-
personal experience. I hopedto find "Frontline." Theprogramwas -one thatwould allowthe children
somethingthatdemonstrated how entitled"A Class Divided,"parts of toexperienceprejudice andbigotry
much more compellingthat method whichwere originallyaired onMarch andtodrawtheirown conclusions
ofteachingis than is the technique 26, 1985,in an ABC television afterhavingdone so.
oflecturing. Though some folks documentarycalled"The Eye ofthe Jane Elliottbeganbyconducting
recognize the usefulness of"doing" Storm". The FrontHne broadcast, abriefdiscussionofprejudice,asking
over"hearing"when teaching, and with its additionalfootage,was herstudents iftherewerepeople in
others arewillingtogive itatryeven presented in Februaryof2003. theUnited Stateswho are treated
iftheyare skeptical, manymuseum Ifyou have notseen either differentlybecauseoftheirskincolor.
educators simplyrejectthe notion or program,I highlyrecommendyou The students repliedthatblack
dolittle to actuallyincorporate itinto obtain a copyoratranscriptand people andAmerican Indianswere
theirinstructional methodology. experience itforyourself (Itis sometimestreateddifferently.
While some museum-types available from PBS.) Bothprograms Then,Ms. Elliottaskedherstudents,
protestthatan experiential approach are strong,provocative,and riveting. "Doyou thinkyou knowhowit
is less academic orless focused than And,while I believe it isbesttoget would feeltobejudgedbythe color
scripts,lectures,ordocent-ledtalks, a copyorversion ofyourown,Iwill ofyourskin?"
Ibelievethose arguments are attemptto summarize the programs Thechildrenallrepliedyes,
incorrect and diversionary. Itis my andreviewtheirlessons in the theydidknow. Ms. Elliottcontinued,
opinion thatsuch rejection is based paragraphs thatfollow. "Idon'tthinkyou'dknowhowthat
primarilyon issues of"comfort Theyearwas 1968. Itwas the feltunlessyouhadbeenthroughit,
zones." People are mostcomfortable dayafterMartin Luther King,Jr. wouldyou? Itmightbe interesting
teachingas theywere taught (even was murdered. Thelocationwas tojudgepeople [in class] todayby
though theirexperienceswere in RiceviUe,Iowa,arural town that the coloroftheireyes wouldyou
...
classroomsratherthangalleries, had no blacks, non-Christians,or like totrythis? The children
houses,zoos,parks,orgardens) and other minorities amongits popula- respondedwith anenthusiastic
mostcomfortablewhencontent tion. Aclass ofthirdgraders came "yeah!"
parameters andpersonalbehaviors to schoolupsetand confiisedbythe Then,Ms. Elliotttells her
are attheirmostpredictable. tragicevent. Dr. Kinghadbeen students that,since she hasblue eyes,
Teachingbyallowingothers their"HerooftheMonth"during she thoughtmaybe theblue-eyed
to do something,findsomething, the previous month,and the children people shouldbe ontop thefirstday.
orotherwise make discoveries does couldn'tunderstandwhyhe had When askedbyone childwhatthat
have an elementofunpredictability been killed. meant,she responded,"I mean the
inherentin itsprocess. Anythingcan Theirteacher, awoman named blue-eyedpeople arebetterpeople
happen,although things usually Jane EUiott,could have simplytold in this room."
happenwithin an anticipatedrange the children aboutprejudice and When severalchildrenprotested
ofpossibilities. Nevertheless,the bigotry,but she feltthiswouldhave this,Ms. Elliottc—ontinued,insistently
mere chance thatvisitors might hadlittle impactorlong-term effect. "Ohyes theyare blue-eyedpeople
sidetrackan educator's lineartrain- Prejudice andbigotrywere unfamiliar are smarterthanbrown-eyedpeople."
of-thoughtcanbethreatening. tothese children andoutside their Then,she toldherclass thattheblue-
realmofpersonalexperiences.
4
The Docent Educator Summer2003
''Teaching by allowing
others
eyedstudentswouldgetfiveextra Iliedtoyouyesterday. Thetruthis to do something,
minutes ofrecess,whilebrown-eyed thatbrown-eyedpeople arebetter
peoplewouldhavetostayin. thanblue-eyedpeople." Immediately, findsomething,
And,thebrown-eyedpeoplewould theblue-eyedchildrenbecame upset
notgettousethedrinkingfountain. andconcerned. or otherwise
Theywouldhave tousepapercups. Whenaskedwhy,Ms.Elliott
make discoveries
And,she continued,blue-eyed beganbypointingoutthatablue-
childrenshouldn'tplaywithbrown- eyedchildhadforgottenherglasses, does have an element
eyedchildrenbecause theyaren'tas butnobrown-eyedchildrenwhowore
goodastheyare. glasseshadforgottentheirglasses. ofunpredictability
Then,Ms. Elliotttoldher Then,she hadthebrown-eyed
studentsthatthebrown-eyedchildren childrentake offthe collars they inherent in itsprocess.
wouldwearspecialcoUars sothat hadtowearandgivethemto the
people couldtellfrom adistancethat blue-eyedchildren,whowere told Anything can happen,
theywerebrown-eyed. Itwas atthis toputthemon. although things
pointthatthelessonbegantotruly Ms. Elliottverballyrewarded
takehold. She askedherstudents brown-eyedchildrenforsuchthings usually happen
who shouldgotolunch first. The astheirgoodposture andbeingwell
childrenresponded"theblue eyes." behaved. And,she reprimandedthe within an
Ms. EUiottagreed,and blue-eyedchildrenforthingsfrom
anticipated range
then said,"Nobrown-eyedpeople wigglingtohaving shorterattention
gobackforseconds. Blue-eyed spans. Shebeganto callthebrown- "
ofpossibilities.
peoplemaygobackforseconds." eyedchildren"the superiorpeople"
Whenonechild askedwhythe andtheblue-eyedchildren"slow"
brown-eyedchildrencouldn'tgo and"wasteful."
backformore,theteacherasked, Once again, teasingand person's eyes have anythingto
"Don'tyouknow?" tauntingtookplace,onlythe reverse dowithhowyoutreatthem?"
Thatchildanswered,"They're ofhowithadthe daybefore. When Thechildrenrespondedwith avery
notsmart. Theymaytaketoo much." Ms. Elliotttold one child,"I hate emphatic"NO!" Then, she asked
Asthelessonprogressed, today."He answeredthathe,too, theyoungsters ifyoushouldjudge
thechildrenbeganto divide into hatedit. Ms.Elliottsaidshe hated peoplebythecoloroftheirskin?
twocamps,theblue-eyes andthe itbecause shewasblue-eyed, Again,the answerwas an emphatic
brown-eyes. Tensionsbetweenthe andthe childsaidhehated itforthe "NO!"
twogroups mounted,andtheybegan samereason. Jane Elliottaskedifitmade
tocalleachothernamesatrecess and Therewere otherconsequences anydifferencewhetherpeople's eye
distmstone another,evenamong beyondthe nastyexchanges thattook colororskincolorswere different
childrenwhohad,untilthatday, placebetween children ofdifferent than theirown. Wasthathowto
beengoodfriends. Jane EUiottstates, eye colors. Those childrenwhose eye decide ifapersonwasgood orbad?
"Iwatchedwhathadbeenmarvelous, colorgroupwas on top actuallytested Againthe answerwas anemphatic
cooperative,wonderfiil,thoughtful higherthatdayandtestedloweron "NO!" The—students hadlearned
childrenturninto nasty,vicious, the daywhenlife,forthem,was thelesson fi—rmly,concretely,
discriminating,littlethird-graders reversed. andpersonally throughexperience.
inaspaceoffifteenminutes." Followinglengthydiscussions Ms. Elliotttoldherchildrento
Thenextday,Ms. Elliott bybothgroups ofchildren about take theircollars offand askedthem
reversedthelesson. Shetoldher howitfeltbeingonthe"bottom," whattheywantedto dowiththem.
class,"Yesterday,Itoldyouthat Ms. Elliottlead a"de-briefing"type To achild,theywantedto throwthe
brown-eyedpeople aren'tasgood discussion. She askedthe children, collars away. Some evenproceededto
asblue-eyedpeople. Thatwasn'ttrue. "Shouldthe colorofsome other tryandtearthem apart. "Go ahead!" Continued on
the next page.
5
The Decent Educator Summer2003
Continued
from she told them. "Nowyou knowa learningthrough The experience of
the littlebitmore thanyouknewatthe directexperience
previous beginningofthisweekabout andpersonal ''doingsomething'
page. prejudice." The children answered, discovery and responding to doing it
"Yes ... alotmore!" conveyed the
In the 1985 interview, lessonmore creates such a —
afterwatchingthe 1968 filmingof powerfullyand
herclassroom activity,Jane Elliott memorablythan powerfulencounter
was asked torhercomments. alecture oran
far morepowerful
She said,"I knewthe nightbefore instructor-led
(when Martin Luther Kingwas shot) talkwould have. and memorable
that itwas time to dealwith this Jane Elliott
[racism] in aconcreteway,notjust was a classroom than mere listening
talkingaboutit,becausewe had teacherwho
talked aboutracism since the firstday recognized a or looking at things.
ofschool. I decide atthatpointthat teaching
Though developing
itwas time to trythe eye colorthing, challenge and
which I had thoughtabout many, developed a andconducting
manytimes but neverused." solution thatwas
The students ofthat 1968 class both useful and such learning experiences
werebroughtbacktogetherfora important.
reunion,whichwas filmed forthe Alongtheway, may seem more challenging
1985 documentary. Theyspoke of and incidental to
howthelessons ofthat dayin third its reason for than lecturing,
grade hadbeen unforgettable; how creation,she
they arent.
the emotions and discoveries ofthat proved the power
lessonwere indeliblyembossedin ofteaching They simply require
theirminds; and howtheystill through student
retained the message and emotions of involvement and a change in the approach
thatlesson so manyyears hence. experience.
Leastyou thinkthatthis form Educators in a docent takes.
oflearningis onlyeffective for museums,
youngsters,you shoul—d knowthat historicsites,
experientialteaching teachingby zoos,aquariums,
havinglearners engage in direct— parks, and
experience,ordoingsomething gardens should take note. The orlookingatthings. Though
is equallyeffective forolder students opportunitytovisityourfacilitymay developingandconductingsuch
and adults. The eye colorlesson, be an experienceuntoitselfand, learningexperiences mayseem more
andthe experientialmethod of therefore, memorable. But,to ensure challengingthanlecturing,theyaren't.
teachingaboutprejudice and that students remembermore than Theysimplyrequire achange inthe
—
racism thatmakes itsopowerful, justgoingtoyourfacility that they approach a docenttakes.
hasbeen appliedtoadultaudiences. learn fromyourresources and — And,do notthinkthat
Ms. Elliottwas hired to use itto rememberlearningfrom them experientialteachingneedhave the
sensitizeprison system employees of apowerful and dynamicteaching intensity,complexity,or angstof
the IowaDepartmentofCorrections. encounteris required. JaneEUiott's eyecoloractivityto
And, though thelesson neededto The experience of"doing be successflil. Experientialteaching
be adapted slightlytofitthe conver- something"andrespondingto activities can be simple. Consider
sationleveland demeanorofthe doingitcre—ates suchapowerful howeasyitwouldbe touse oradapt
adultgroup,itwas taughtin a similar encounter farmore powerful these experientialactivities asyou
fashion. Evenwithan adultaudience. andmemorable than merelistening readthefewexamplesofferedbelow.
6
The Docent Educator Summer2003
Havevisitorsimaginepackinga Take this Last Opportunity
smallbagtobringon ajourneyfrom
the EastCoasttotheAmericanwest
iftravelingbywagonduringtheearly to Publish
1800's. Whatmighttheyhaveto
leavebehind? Whatpersonalitems Your Teaching
wouldbeimportantandportable
enoughtobringalong? Ideas and Techniques!
Afterlookingatan abstract
paintingorsculpture,askvisitors
howtheymightdefenditto agroup
ofskepticswhowereusedtoviewing Submitanarticleforpossiblepublication.
worksthatwereveryrealistic? Developatextaddressingthe themeofourfinalissue.
Handoutdifferenttypesof
snakeskins,animalpelts,and/or
othersamplepropstothevisitorsin Planning,Executing,andConcluding Winter2003-04
yourgroup. Askthemtouse their Submissiondeadline: September1,2003
sensestodescribeforthe others how
theirproplooks,feels,andsmells.
Arrange forvisitorstolookat
Toreceivewritersguidelines,
specimensthrough microscopes
ormagnifyingglasses. Havethem sendus aself-addressed,stampedenvelope
discuss howthe enlargedviews differ ore-mailus [email protected].
fromthose seenbythenakedeye. Allarticlesareeditedforpublication.
Letstudents decidehowthey
mightre-organizetheartworks,
historicobjects,plants,orscientific
specimensinagallery,exhibitionhall,
Questioning Art
orgiven space. Havethem discuss
whatconcepts orattributesguided
an inquiry approach to teaching art appreciation
theirre-organization.
Askgroups ofvisitors to byAlan Gartenhaus
brainstorm alistofthemanychores
thatmightberequiredtomaintain A text presenting strategies and activities
ahistoricproperty,mansion,zoo, that can be applied to any work ofart in any setting.
park,garden,oraquarium.
Discusstheitemsontheirlist,
embellisheachitemwithfurther
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(Volume3,Number3) Spring1994 in Grades6through9
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The Docent Educator Summer2003
The Challenges of Creating and Running
As
educatoratthe program for3rdthrough 5thgraders continualcommunication among
EarlyAmerican thataddressedIllinoislearning allthree educatorsresultedin atruly
Museum in east- standards in socialsciences,science, integratedwhole.
centralIllinois, language arts,andphysicaleducation. Environmentaleducationfocuses
by mostofmytime is spent conducting Theresultis aprogramwe call onrelationshipswithin the prairie
Sandy schoolfieldtrips through ourfacility. "Prairie Adventures,"whichhasbeen foodchain. Students role-play
Osborne Everyprogram I present has two runningforoverfouryears now, various animals,forming"human"
basic challenges: educational content andthatkeepsthe same strong foodwebs. Theyengage in an
andlogistics. The educational needs skeletonwhile continuallypursuing insect scavengerhuntin a small
ofthe teacherinclude those ofher solutions forremainingchallenges. prairie patch.
students,school,district,and state. As itwas conceived,the program Arelativelylongwalkthrough
These must meshwith our wouldbe held atourdistrict's Lake thepark'slargerprairie standgives
museum's mission"tocollect, oftheWoods Park. Our"outdoor hands-on opportunities forplant
preserve,and interpretthe history classroom"was an acrein asmall identification in the horticultural
ofeast centralIllinois,specifically botanicalgarden thatbordered the portion. Children learn aboutplant
Champaign County,forthe education EarlyAmerican Museum,agreen- lore and adaptation,climate andsoil
andenjoymentofpresent and house,an office building,a small conditions, and experience the
Riture generations." prairie patch, aone-room school- "Prairie Chicken Stomp!"
Logisticalconcernsbecome house,andfurthergardens. There's corn a-plentyin the
routine and,therefore,minimal. Ouroverallobjectivewas to historicaleducationsegment.
Ofcourse,anydayorgroup has the provide a qualitylearningexperience Students compete in acorn shock-
potentialofdumpingthe unexpected where a studentwillcome awaywith buildingcontest,shellcorn,and
A
atyourfeet,throwingroutine out abetterappreciation ofthe interde- make cornhuskdolls. selection
thewindow. Overtime and through pendencyofthe animals,plants,and offarmingimplements and
experience, most docents and staff people ofeast-centralIllinois prairie kitchen artifacts form an indoor
growcomfortablewiththeirdaily in the mid-to-late 1800's. "What's It?"activity.
challenges. Theyacquire sufficient Duringtheplanningstage, Althoughpresentedindividually,
tools or solutions to presentgood both the educational and logistical thesethreecomponentsofprairielife,
qualityprograms mostdays and components ofthis projectwere i.e.-animals,plants,andpeople are
become adept at solvingon-the-spot addressed. Eacheducatorneeded intricatelyentwined. Howcould
problems. freedom to develop herprogram as we mosteffectivelyhelp students
Aspecificprogram often an individualunit,while atthe same understandthis"piece ofthewhole
presents its own unique setof time fittingitcohesivelywith the pie"concept? We agreedthatsome
challenges, and finding its equally othertwo. The physicalandnatural visualandphysicalreinforcement
unique setofsolutions is simulta- characteristics ofour site needed to was required.
neouslyfrustratingandexciting. blendwithboth thevisitor's and Eachstudent's namebadgehasa
This situation arose severalyears ago educationalneeds ofthe program. triangularcyclicflowiconwith spaces
when mysupervisor and Iwanted to Formattingthe educational forthree stickers. Eacheducator
create aprogram incorporatingour contentbeganwithbrainstorming. affixes anappropriate stickertothe
district's three education entities. Whatspecific information did cycle attheendofherpresentation.
Champaign CountyForest each educatorfeelwas imperative This icon/stickerconceptwas our
Preserve Districtis comprised of to include? Whatcommon threads solution to two majorchallenges.
three distincteducational sectors: were apparent amongthese? 1) Itenables alleducators toeasily
environmental,horticultural,and Howmuch contentoverlap is summarize andreviewwhatthe class
historical. Wewanted to collaborate valuableversus redundant? While alreadylearned andflowintothe next
toproduce an in-depth education designingourindividualprograms, segment. The students have avisual
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The Docent Educator Summer 2003