We're blessed to have an array of botanical gardens, science, and art museums around Los Angeles. In our weekly class we'll dive into a different museum or garden each month, taking advantage by exploring the lessons and resources their exhibits, scientists, and curators provide. Our goal is to open up curiosity and exploring knowledge that our students will be able to take with them on their next visit, in person!
Exploring a museum can be an adventure, no matter your age! But with so many exhibits to explore and fascinating facts to absorb, it can be a bit overwhelming. This is precisely why our Connections classes were created! Our goal is to make learning exciting and establish personal connections, where we introduce concepts in the classroom first, laying a foundation for deeper understanding. This helps to foster curiosity and build insights into new information.
*This class has an online class site for additional learning and resources.
Here are a few examples of what we will be exploring:
The California Science Center (free every day)
- ECOSYSTEMS: Everything is Connected
- WORLD OF LIFE: From apple trees to honeybees, we’re more alike than you think!
- FIRE! SCIENCE & SAFETY: Spark your curiosity, Danger Detectives!
- AIR & SPACE: The Sky is Not Limit
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (free to L.A. County residents 3-5 pm Mon-Fri)
- MAGNIFICENT MINERALS: The NHM has thousands of gems, minerals, rocks, and meteorites, from across the globe. We'll investigate how geologists find and classify rocks and minerals, and strive to understand these stunning specimens, and how they showcase the beauty and diversity of Earth’s building blocks.
VISIBLE VAULT OF THE ANCIENT AMERICAS: We'll be exploring archeological findings from advanced civilizations like the Aztec, Maya, and Inca, and seeking to understand the stories they tell.
BECOMING LOS ANGELES: Exploring how people, place, and possibility helped create the city of Los Angeles.
- L.A. UNDERWATER: The Prehistoric Sea Beneath Us
The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens (free the first Thurs of the month, but books up quickly)
- THE ROSE HILLS FOUNDATION CONSERVATORY FOR BOTANICAL SCIENCE: Delve into the strange and wonderful world of plants.
- A VAST LIBRARY: Exploring the history of science and technology
- EUROPEAN, ASIAN AND AMERICAN ART: We'll highlight and explore some of the peices and artists from Huntington's vast collections.
- BORDERLANDS: Exploring "the relationship between art and land with respect to artistic materials, the movement of artists and objects, and how depictions of the landscape can express and affect our relation to it—and to each other,”
- MINEO MIZUNO: Exploring California-based Japanese American artist Mineo Mizuno’s site-specific sculptures
*There is a JR Edition of this class at 10 am for K-3 so siblings can learn and explore the same topics, taylored to their age and development.
I also hope to encourage community by helping to plan a visit to the location we are learning from once a month for families that wish to participate. Rather than an actual monthly ACE Field Trip, these will be more flexible and open, inclusive to anyone you want to bring along, with the hopes of fostering community and friendships.