VISIT THE ART MUSEUM WITH YOUR CLASS   Through a Child's Eyes features artworks in the collection of the Cincinnati Art Museum. If you live in the Greater Cincinnati region, you are encouraged to visit the Art Museum to see the original artworks. There is nothing that can replace a child's interaction with an original artwork. Scale, textures, color, and other tangible elements cannot be reproduced in a photograph. If you cannot visit the Cincinnati Art Museum, you are encouraged to find an art gallery or museum within your own community to enable the children to experience an exhibit of original art in an authentic setting. It won't be the same artworks you are studying in Through a Child's Eyes, but you may be able to find art that can have similar connections to the theme. Call your local organization to determine if they welcome young visitors and make a plan to do so. The Cincinnati Art Museum provides tours for early childhood classes in support of Through a Child's Eyes. Guided tours and opportunities for self-touring are available Tuesday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.       GUIDED TOURS AT THE CINCINNATI ART MUSEUM   Tours are led by volunteer docents and run for approximately 45 minutes. They are designed to present a rich visual arts experience, increase students' perception and analytical skills, and enrich and extend the school curriculum. During the tour, docents engage students in active looking and discussions by focusing on three to six works of art. The docent-led tour is intended to strengthen the children's learning related to Through a Child's Eyes.   Pre-Kindergarten: Down on the Farm: Reading, Writing and Roosters   Focus Artwork: Marc Chagall - The Red Rooster   Tour Duration: 30 mins   Tour Theme: Farm Community and Farm Animals   Pre-Kindergarten: To Market, To Market: Feasting on Art   Focus Artwork: Jacob Lawrence - Fruits and Vegetables   Tour Duration: 30 mins   Tour Theme: Community Helpers - People in the community that help us (policeman, store clerk, postman, etc.)   Pre-Kindergarten: Let's Celebrate Through dance   Focus Artwork: Joseph Henry Sharp - Harvest Dance   Tour Duration: 30 mins   Tour Theme: Why people dance; celebrations in which you may dance Kindergarten: Family First: My Place in the Community   Focus Artwork: Horace Pippin - Christmas Morning, Breakfast   Tour Duration: 45 mins   Tour Theme: Family Community - what is a family? First Grade: The Natural Community: Investigate and Conserve   Focus Artwork: Robert S. Duncanson - Blue Hole, Little Miami River   Tour Duration: 1 hour   Tour Theme: Natural Community, habitats and conservation   Second Grade: Why Do Communities Live on Water?   Focus Artwork: Maurice Prendergast - New England Harbor   Tour Duration: 1 hour   Tour Theme: Why communities grow on bodies of water, how water helps a community   Third Grade: The World Celebrates!   Focus Artwork: Joseph Henry Sharp - Fountain Square Pantomime   Tour Duration: 1 hour   Tour Theme: Celebrations around the world, why people celebrate   SELF TOURS   If you would like to lead your own tour in support of Through a Child’s Eyes, you are encouraged to do so. Visit the art museum on your own in advance of your class trip to locate the Focus Artworks in the galleries. Choose additional appropriate artworks that will engage your students as part of your tour plan. When choosing artworks for your students, ask yourself:   Does it contain questionable subject matter for the age of your students? Place yourself at their level, squat down on the floor in front of an artwork, can you still see it clearly? Is there a glare from the lights? Is it overwhelming from that vantage point? What can we do that is active with this artwork? Is there a game that could be played or song sung to enhance looking and discussion? Teachers should feel encouraged to be active with their groups in the art museum as it will enhance the visit and keep students engaged.   Once you have selected the artworks, consider what you would like to discuss with your students during the visit. Asking open-ended questions encourages discussion. Questions that work with almost every artwork include:   What do you see? How does it make you feel? What do you think is happening in this painting or sculpture? What makes you say that? Why do you think the artist painted or sculpted this artwork? What is familiar or unfamiliar to you in this artwork? Do you like or dislike this artwork? (Students don’t have to like everything they see. They should be encouraged to have an opinion about what they see at the art museum.)       A MONTH BEFORE YOUR VISIT   Consider a date to visit, and contact the your local art museum to schedule. In Cincinnati, call (513) 639-2975, Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. When calling to schedule a tour, please be sure to have the following information ready:   Date of tour Alternate dates and times School address Daytime phone number Number and grade of students Special interests Time of tour Name of school Name of teacher or group leader Tour topic Classroom studies at time of tour Special needs   Once your visit date is confirmed, send permission slips home with students. Begin to use the units contained in this curriculum to prepare students for their visit. Students that have been prepared prior to their visit have a more enriched experience at the art museum.       A WEEK BEFORE YOUR VISIT   Review these "art museum rules" with students:   Please do not run, chew gum, or use pens Please do not touch artworks, labels, or cases* Please use inside voices Please enjoy your visit You may take photos in the Art Museum but not of works in special exhibitions or created after 1978.   * To reinforce the "no touching" rule, you may wish to hang a large piece of white paper by your classroom door. Ask students to touch the paper each time they leave the room. After one week, look at the paper with your students. It will most likely be noticeably soiled. Explain to students that if everyone who visited the art museum touched the artworks, this is what would hapen.       DAY OF YOUR VISIT   Divide your class into small, evenly distributed, chaperoned groups. Once you arrive at the art museum for a guided tour, each group will have a docent greet them and lead them through the art museum. Self-guiding groups will also be greeted but invited to visit on their own.       AFTER YOUR VISIT   Once you return to school and for the next few days, students will want to discuss their visit. To enhance this discussion, you may choose to participate in the following post-art museum visit activities (see the links below) or return to the lesson activities for further study. You may also wish to do the unit’s Art Making Experience after the art museum visit as a culminating activity.     post-art museum visit: lesson 1 post-art museum visit: lesson 2