How do I Plan a Virtual Tour of a Museum?

Every student looks forward to class field trips, whether it is to an amusement park, a museum or even just to the park. A trip to the museum helps you make education exciting and allows you to sneak in information in an unsuspecting fun way. However, there are a lot of logistical and financial constraints that one has to battle to make such a field trip a reality. It is then that one can organize a virtual tour of a museum.

The task of organizing a virtual tour can be overwhelming. Staying organized would help avoid any last minute unwanted surprises and ensure a smooth and exciting trip.

• Learn from others

One of the first things to do as you start to organize a trip is to take a sneak peek into what others are doing. Doing a Google search on virtual trips would help you plan better, learning from other’s mistakes and capitalizing on what they had achieved.

• Choosing a museum

One of the first steps would obviously be to decide where you intend to take the students. One trick on making this virtual field trip a success is timing. Plan the trip so as to complement what is being taught in the classroom. For example, if your students are studying the Civil War, it makes sense to choose a museum that focuses on the same topic. This gives the children an added perspective and reinforces what you have already taught. It is also essential that the teacher goes through the exhibits in advance and chooses which ones will be most relevant for the students to look at.

• Logistics

Technology can be ones best friend or ones worst enemy. Ensuring that all technological aspects are handled helps you focus on the content, instead of distracting your energy and focus on figuring out a last minute solution to a technological glitch. Make sure every computer has the required softwares, like Google Earth, a photo viewing software, a video player, etc…

• Be Creative

Creativity is the key to success. The more creative you are, the more exciting it is for the children and the more likely are they to learn from it. Try coming up with new ways to do things on the trip. Use the internet to your advantage. Let the students wade through the museums website and some other carefully chosen websites. Ensure that you know what content is being viewed on the internet, so as to prevent any distractions.

• Keep the students on their toes

Student participation is also key to the success of the trip. Greater the student participation, the more exciting it is bound to be for them. Ensure that the students take this seriously. Informing the students that the trip is being graded often does the trick. Giving them ample assignments lets them feel their own way through the museum as well as help you capture and hold their attention. The use of worksheets also helps in this process.

What are some of the ways in which you can organize a successful virtual tour of a museum?

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