The museums in DC are so inspiring. It makes me want to curate my own exhibit when I get home. I asked the kids if they wanted to make a small museum in our house and they said, Noooo! But I suspect if I just start on my own, they'll hop on board.
I can't decide if this will be a virtual museum or a real one. Maybe a little bit of both.
I have noticed a trend in some museums toward flash with minimal content. Not so here. The exhibits were sometimes flashy, but so deep as well.
They all start with a pithy title like:
If you can't make it to DC, try the book Written in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland (Exceptional Social Studies Titles for Intermediate Grades)
It was especially interesting to us since we had just visited Jamestown.
When you read about The Starving Time at Jamestown and see the graves it tells the story the usual way.
But when you see, in Written in Bone, the piles of horse, dog, cat and rat bones the colonists butchered and ate, it tells the story in a more intimate way.
My favorite part of the exhibit was where they identified colonists' occupations just by examining the bones.
Tailor's notches: chipping of the teeth and characteristic grooves made from holding needles in the teeth identify the owner of this jaw as a tailor.
The Library of Congress is making a huge push to digitize its collection and make it available to the public. On their website you can sign up for myloc.gov and make your own collection of books and documents housed at the LoC.
The National Park Service is going multimedia, too. They have virtual tours. I liked the flipbook documenting the construction of the Lincoln Memorial.
If you get inspired to curate your own exhibit, please share it with us and put a link in the comments section.
7 comments:
whoa! just stumbled upon your blog, and gladly so! so much so-- beaute pics, btw-- i'm gonna link ya. twack! there... you're on my links.
i love rocks. agates are wonderful! and even they praise God! like we all should, really...
great lizard pic, too! he looks happy. i like that. didn't sell my terrariums last weekend's garage sale, so maybe it's a sign.
Blessing~ mister dad
How is it that Clem can always find the scurrying things? Like Ellie, I guess. Looks like fun.
Mister Dad, welcome and thanks for the compliment and the link! You can always find a use for a terrarium, I say.
Stefaneener, Clem catches her share of crawlies, but this one my brother-in-law nabbed. We set him down later and admired how he blended with the rock.
You went all the way to Nevada for agate? Wow, you are an inspiration. I feel like I need to do better with exploring nature with my kids--our tendencies lean toward art and lit. You always give me good ideas--but I'm still not sure I'd drive all the way to Nevada for agate!
Tricia, we were visiting my parents at Lake Tahoe, so it was only a 2 hour drive. Also, the rock hunting group we went with did not spring the sad news that Fossil Hill was inaccessible until after we arrived in Lovelock.
But it was so worth it, for the vistas, the lizard, the lonely wildflowers, the happiness of kids with hammmers and not least because I got to say diatomaceous earth several times and I have long enjoyed how it rolls off the tongue.
WOW- what a lovely treat of a day!
I enjoyed this post very much because of the photos. Also, I think that doing this kind of stuff with your family rocks! Literally in your case.
By the way, there are agates on the beaches near us. If you like rocks, check out: Gem Trails of Northern California by James R. Mitchell.
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