



and we began to tour the Museum. The teachers put all of 

 the problem children into one group — Mrs. Sidwell's — and 

 I tagged along after them. 



Inspiteof Mrs. Sidwell's friendliness and encouragement, 

 the children had few questions regarding the Indians and 

 were generally unresponsive. Their attention span was 

 brief and, except for an exhibit of Indian children's toys, 

 they were easily distracted. 



By the time we got to the animal exhibits the children 

 were more relaxed and had apparently decided that I was 

 no source of disciplinary action. As we crossed Stanley 

 Field Hall a scrawny boy, who frequently broke into ener- 

 getic dance steps, had pulled a cigarette in a long black 

 holder out of his back pocket. He stuck it into his mouth 

 in a manner strongly reminiscent of FDR, puffed out his 

 chest and convulsed his buddy. 



It was this boy who asked the most observant questions 

 about the animal exhibits. He and several of the other chil- 

 dren were very interested in the deer and beaver, but when- 

 ever one of them raised his hand to ask Mrs. Sidwell a 

 question, the teacher passed behind him, placed a hand on 

 his shoulder and frowned. They stopped trying to ask ques- 



problems. The teacher was young and cheerless. She 

 seemed to know the children and their needs and was not 

 indifferent to them, but seemed discouraged and tired. I 

 asked her, "Have you been here before with a class?" 



"No, although we take many tours a semester — since the 

 government money is available — we haven't been here be- 

 fore. This is the first time we have had a g^iided tour of any 

 of the places we have been." 



"Does it make a difference?" 



"Yes — the children seem to be getting something out of 

 it and there is some point and organization to what they are 

 seeing, instead of just wandering around. Besides, it's very 

 hard to take 35 kids to a strange place with no one to help, 

 except maybe one mother. Just maintaining discipline then 

 is hard enough." 



"Is it worth the effort?" 



"Emphatically yes. If you could see them in the class- 

 room — they twitch and wiggle and can't seem to sit still. 

 They get so bored so easily. This helps to create a positive 

 approach to school." 



"How much do you expect them to retain? Any of it?" 



"No — no facts. They will, hopefully, get a general im- 



M^^»>^ flti^ ^am{v mid^ :ii,M/it. 



tions and we moved along quickly, quietly and with dis- 

 cipline. 



When we were in the Hall of Woodland Indians Mrs. 

 Sidwell had pointed out a necklace of grizzly bear claws and 

 commented on the bravery of the Indian who had such a 

 necklace. Now, as we paused before an exhibit of grizzly 

 bears, I said to the little girl next to me, "See — there are 

 the grizzly bear's claws. Remember the Indian's necklace 

 made of grizzly bear claws?" 



The girl looked at me and then looked at the grizzly 

 bear. She examined him from snout to stern and then 

 asked, "Where are the claws?" 



"On the ends of his feet — like toenails." 



"Oh, I didn't know what claws were." 



How much were they actually comprehending? I asked 

 the teacher and she shrugged her shoulders and said, "Some 

 of it — not all, but they understand some." 



These students were third-graders doing upper first grade 

 work. Some were slow learners and some were discipline 



pression of what they have seen. They won't remember any 

 facts specifically. If we come again — and then perhaps 

 again — and took the same tour, then they would begin to 

 remember facts and associate them with other things they 

 have learned. It takes constant repetition — everything. 

 Over and over and over." 



"Is this a good response for them?" 



"Yes — they're doing well. Better than some other 

 times." 



The tour over, we returned to Stanley Field Hall, the 

 children were reunited with the other two fractions of their 

 group and the volunteers had a moment to rest and discuss 

 this group. It's not easy to take a group on tour and, al- 

 though new on the job, these women were good at it. They 

 feel that they are doing something worthwhile and look for- 

 ward to their tours — and it shows. 



Academic preparation for a Museum tour is as varied 

 as the teachers who present it. .Some teachers give no intro- 

 ductory material at all, apparently thinking that the Mu- 







Page 10 SEPTEMBER 



