pueblos and asking, '"How would you like to climb all 

 those ladders every time you went out of the house to play:" 

 That's long-range retention! 



This man was typical of the kind of child who apparently 

 receives very great benefit from the Museum tour — a slow- 

 learner and/or poor reader. This kind of child is not unique 

 to the inner city or lower economic levels. He is found in 

 the most elite suburbs as well. 



A young, sixth-grade teacher in one of the far north- 

 west suburbs has found the Museum experience so stimu- 

 lating to the slow learners and poor readers in his classes, 

 that he woiJd like to establish a small "museum" in his 

 classroom. The idea is to provide visual, tangible experi- 

 ences with the objects under study, for example, Indian 

 tools and household items. The interest in these items is 

 first stimulated by seeing them and, perhaps, handling 

 them. The poor reader is then sufficiently interested to 

 make a greater effort to read about Indian life in his text- 

 book. 



This process was reiterated by Mrs. O'Connell who felt 

 that, although because of their lack of eloquence they may 

 not readily indicate this importance, the Museum tour 

 may be more important to the slow-learning group than 

 it is to the average and superior students. She continued 



f 









• lJ8*- ^IxftA =*^u*>a 'ttfi*^ i^ 



to State that the Museum tour encourages the poor reader 

 to read extra-curricular books. These books may be at a 

 much lower grade level, but the reading is voluntary and 

 pleasurable. Due to the interest in Indian art stimulated 

 by Museum exhibits, several books on the subject have 

 been added to the library of Oscar Mayer School. 



In a letter the Sixth Grade Department of the Arling- 

 ton Heights Public Schools stated, "The slower students 

 could handle the museum displays easily in a structured 

 situation. They do like to see items of some interest. We 

 believe that the slower students need more concrete learn- 

 ing situations. Your displays help fill a basic need for this 

 type of student. They can get more from you (the Museum) 

 than from countless books and teacher lectures." 



Further corroboration was provided by the following 

 from Illinois Education, "Field trips which tie in with class- 

 room instruction are viewed by nearly every teacher and 

 and administrator as being an almost ideal learning ex- 

 perience for the slow, reluctant learner. Because this young- 

 ster usually has had limited positive contacts with the com- 

 munity, field trips not only provide stimulating experiences 

 but meet his needs for activity while removing him from 

 the often non-stimulating environment of the school and 

 classroom. And teachers have the opportimity to interact 

 with him on a more personal, one-to-one basis." 



The Chicago Board of Education gives Museum field 

 trips an unqualified boost when they state, "A visit to the 

 Field Museum of Natural History is a valuable educational 

 experience for every elementary school child." Further, 

 with the insight gained from the tour, "the pupils are 

 better able to observe knowledgeably how people have 

 striven and continue to strive to improve their ways of 

 living and to relate themselves to the improvement of com- 

 munity and city life." 



Finally, I consulted the children themselves. Some of 

 the older children gave parrot-like answers, saying what 

 they thought I wanted to hear, but by sifting through 

 garbled syntax, reading between the lines and collecting 

 back-handed compliments, I amassed an impressive array 

 of spontaneous and sincere solicited testimonials. 



I talked to one girl who remains unique and unfor- 

 gettable. She was a skinny, Negro eight-year old from a 

 poor neighborhood. She wore a red wool cap topped by 

 an enormous multi-colored pom-pom and her teacher de- 

 scribed her as an "uninterested student." I began by 

 asking her, 



"Is this your first trip to this Museum?" 



"No. I was here two times already." 



"Did you see the Indians then, too?" 



"I don't remember." 



"Oh. Well . . . what did you like best on your other 

 trips?" 



"Nothing. I don't remember nothing." 



After a long, disappointed pause, I asked, "Did you 

 come with your school class both times?" 



"No — only one of the times." 



Again we endured a long pause. Then she volunteered, 



"The other time I came on my birthday." 



"Oh?" 



"My mother told me I could pick two presents for my 

 birthday and if she could get them she would. I picked 

 a doll and a trip to this Museum with my mother and 

 father and brother." 



She liked and remembered something and whatever 

 it was merited the sacrifice of a toy and was worth sharing 

 with her family. That's a sincere tribute from any eight- 

 year old. From this one it was a rousing ovation. 



The success and value of a Museum tour can be meas- 

 ured in many ways, among them, the slow-learner's grasp 

 of a previously unreachable concept; the anti-school child's 

 pleasure in an educational institution; the appreciation of 

 order by a child from a disordered environment; and the 

 stimulation of the desire for knowledge in all children. 

 By these standards, I found the tours to be valuable and 

 worth all the effort and expense required. 



Page 12 SEPTEMBER 



