By: Stephen Randall Roberts
T
eaching is in my DNA. I taught for 30 years in Missouri, six years in Chicago and in the District of Columbia. I retired from teaching in 2010. Upon retirement from DCPS, I completed the one-year training program to be a docent at the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) in Washington, DC. For 12 years and counting, SAAM has been an ideal place for me to continue honing my teaching skills while discussing art with children and adults.
Unfortunately, the Coronavirus raised its ugly head in 2020 and essentially shut down the District’s many museums. The last tour I gave in the brick-and-mortar museum was in March 2020. Since then, education staff and docents have been giving virtual tours via Zoom. Going virtual has allowed students - especially in D.C., Maryland and Virginia, but also throughout the nation and the world - to get a closer look at SAAM’s art. The pandemic has allowed most people to be creative problem solvers. Virtual learning is now stashed in every educator’s goody bag!
Over a thousand pieces of art are available for virtual tours. However, to allow for up-close analysis with students, docents select 6 or 7 pieces for one-hour virtual tours of SAAM. Interacting with students is among the noteworthy skills of the docents as we spend time talking with students K-12 about artwork and artists. On the website, teachers request specific tours that align with their school’s curriculum. Teachers of all subjects and grade levels will find something pertinent to their lessons. Each of the 12 tours has an essential question that serves as the big idea for the session. A description of each is available on the SAAM website, americanart.si.edu/education.