County Museum Launches Free Educational Outreach Program - Galveston
The Galveston County Historical Museum was awarded a grant from Humanities Texas to fund a new interactive educational program entitled “History at Your Doorstep” that takes the museum into the classroom. The museum will conduct a certified Continuing Professional Education workshop about the program for area teachers on Saturday, February 20th from 9:00 am to noon. The workshop and the classroom program are free of charge.
“Since we have no exhibit space for the public and class field trips to see, we decided we needed to take the museum into the classroom,” said Director Jodi Wright-Gidley. The program includes a visit from museum staff, as well as pre-visit and post-visit activities. “When we visit the classroom, we show a powerpoint presentation filled with historic photos from the museum’s collection, as well as some interesting artifacts. We also do hands-on activities like making whirligigs the students get to keep,” added Wright-Gidley.
Although the curriculum currently focuses on Galveston history, new lessons are being developed with area teachers including GISD mentor Claire Wilkins. Future lessons include county-wide history, Native Americans, climatology, and math. The curriculum, directly related to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills, are designed to be a useful supplement that can be included in many units throughout the year. They are available in English and Spanish. For more information about the teacher’s workshop or the outreach educational program, call Jodi Wright-Gidley at 409-766-2340. This program was made possible in part with a grant from Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. |
