Interactive Virtual Learning
Bring the Museum to you using video chat technology! A Museum educator will provide a live museum-themed lesson in real time. Our virtual workshops are designed to involve students through inquiry, object analysis, hands-on activities, and demonstrations. These workshops are designed for school audiences but are easily adjustable to fit the learning level of any group.
Virtual Workshop Offerings
“Students were able to use information they had learned in a different environment and context. It made the class material applicable and added depth to their knowledge and understanding.”
All virtual workshops have associated activity materials that will be provided digitally for you to print and distribute. If you have no access to a printer, all activities can be completed with a blank sheet of paper. Virtual Programs are tied to the U.S. national education standard in Common Core and engage key 21st-century skills such as cross-disciplinary thinking and media literacy, as well as Global Competencies.
Greece & Rome
Design a Greek Coin
Coins can do more than make you wealthy! Discover more about the materials, symbols, and making process of coins to learn more about the messages they carry. Through interactive conversations, students will discuss coins they see in their lives. Together they will assist our Museum educator in creating a ‘class coin’ live, as students work on their own coin with a design that sends a message meant to be seen by the world!
*Lesson Materials: Paper, writing utensils, scissors, and tape/glue
*Students will be provided an extension lesson that can be done at home!
Daily Life in Ancient Rome
Embark on a virtual tour of a lavish Roman home to learn how to speak and write the real Latin terms for each room. Students will look closely at classical artifacts that would have been used inside the house to better understand the day-to-day lives of ancient Romans.
*Lesson Materials: worksheet and pencil (optional bedsheet for toga demonstration!)
*Students will be provided an extension lesson that can be done at home!
Egypt
False Doors
What did the inside of an ancient Egyptian tomb look like? What did people take with them into the afterlife? Students learn about hieroglyphs, tomb offerings, and false doors—ancient Egyptian passageways between the worlds of the living and the dead. Students then create their own false doors by drawing hieroglyphs, ancient Egyptian art motifs, and the things they’d take to the afterlife.
*Lesson Materials: Paper, ruler, and writing utensils
*Students will be provided an extension lesson that can be done at home!
Mummy Makers
Ever wonder how and why the ancient Egyptians mummified their dead? See how ancient Egyptian embalmed and prepared mummies for their journey to the afterlife! Using interactive demonstrations, students will explore mummification through each step of the process, including brain removal, evisceration, desiccation, and wrapping. This workshop uses realistic mummies as props.
*Students will be provided an extension lesson that can be done at home!
Mesopotamia
Making a Lasting Impression
Discover what life was like in ancient Mesopotamia through the study of cylinder seals. These tiny stone artifacts function as the earliest known signatures, with names and images that tell us about the identities of ancient people. Students create their own cylinder seal registers using pictures to represent what makes them unique.
*Lesson Materials: Paper, ruler, and writing utensils
*Students will be provided an extension lesson that can be done at home!
Mesopotamia: Journey to the City
Vividly explore the ‘cradle of civilization’ through artifacts from the earliest settlements, temples, and royal tombs. Learn how ancient Mesopotamian societal practices gave rise to the world’s first cities through investigation of Penn’s archaeological digs. Investigate some of Mesopotamia’s innovations: writing, law code, and professionalization of labor. Through interactive conversations, students discover how these ancient cities, in many ways, were not very different from their own.
*Lesson Materials: Worksheet and pencil
Science: Conservation
Can You Match That X-Ray?
Do you have the eye to preserve archaeological discoveries? Learn how scientists use technology and observation to reveal what lies under the wrappings of mummies! Then test your skills with a matching game that requires visitors closely study x-rays of animal mummies in the Penn Museum!
Preserving the Past
What role does a conservator play in preserving the past? Learn how we care for our ancient artifacts as students investigate the science behind deterioration and preservation by practicing the basics of conservation, viewing examples of conservation in the Museum’s collection, and discovering the incredible work of Penn Museum conservators.
*Lesson Materials: Worksheet and pencil
International Classroom
Bring experts with first-hand knowledge of archaeology, culture, and global perspectives to your students. Learn more about virtual International Classroom speakers here.
About Workshops
Technology Requirements
Not to worry, we can connect with most classrooms without the need for special equipment! The Penn Museum continues to use the BlueJeans Network as our dedicated bridge, which allows us to connect with most internet-supported hardware, such as video conferencing systems (H.323), laptop and desktop computers, and mobile devices.
We make it easy to reach your classroom and can connect without special equipment through a cloud-based bridge that supports most internet-supported hardware such as video conferencing systems (H.323), laptops, desktops and mobile devices. For the second consecutive year, BlueJeans Network received a top rating as one of the most secure and dependable video conferencing softwares by TrustRadius.
Plan Your Virtual Visit
Please use our Plan Your Trip button on the Traveling Programs Homepage to begin scheduling your Virtual Programs with the Penn Museum. You will be contacted by our Outreach Programs Manager directly after your virtual request is received to discuss program details and to schedule a Tech Check. These 15-minute test call is scheduled one week prior your first virtual visit and is conducted to determine the integrity of the connection between the Penn Museum and participating institution.
Cost: (30 student per workshop)
- $125.00 for each Virtual Workshop
- $200.00 for each Virtual International Classroom Workshop offering
Based on Class Size:
- 1-30 students are recognized as one class
- 30-60 students are recognized as two classes
- 60-90 students are recognized as three classes
Awards
For the fourth consecutive year, the Penn Museum’s Virtual Programs and workshops, offered locally, nationally and internationally, have been honored with a Pinnacle Award from the Center of Interactive Learning and Collaborations (CILC). This prestigious award is based on program evaluation ratings from participating educators.
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