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Contact:
Dori Panzer, Education Department
(215) 898-2681
education@museum.upenn.edu
-or-
dpanzer@sas.upenn.edu

Distance Learning
Bring the Penn Museum right to you with an interactive video conference! Supplement textbook study by examining the material culture of ancient as well as living people. Identify and describe the cultural aspects of specific groups, comparing and contrasting them to your students’ own experience.

Distance Learning programs are presented right in a Museum gallery and include:

• An interactive component – students ask questions and discuss the topic with the presenter
• Close-up view of selected artifacts in addition to those on exhibit in the gallery

Scheduling Information

• Each program is about one hour long, including time for questions at the end of the lesson
• Program cost is $125
• Recommended class size is 30 students or less
• Pre-broadcast materials are provided to help prepare the students
• All programs address national and state standards
• Programs can be formatted to suit any age
• Other topics or galleries are available
• Video broadcasts are available Mondays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (EST), with a minimum of three weeks notice. Other days by request and depend on gallery schedule
• A pre-broadcast test will be done either on the presentation day or within the week before. A facilitator from your school must be present during the test and the presentation

Available Programs

Daily Life in Ancient Rome
(for middle school students or adjusted for any age level)

What was it like to be a student in ancient Rome? How did they record their lessons?

Through this interactive gallery presentation, present-day students view and discuss artifacts that illustrate various aspects of daily life for the Romans. The discussion ranges from examining personal adornment and discovering the variety of materials used to make domestic utensils, to understanding the significance of the Emperor’s imprint on coins and public monuments.

Masks and Music in African Culture
(for grades 2 through 6 or adjusted for any age level)

Who wears a Hemba mask? Where was it made and what does it represent?

The African gallery contains artifacts from many Sub-Saharan African countries and cultures. In this program students discover the various ways that African groups use masks and music and then they compare the uses to their own culture. The presentation combines discussing artifacts displayed in the gallery exhibit, examining additional examples from the Education Department’s collection, and demonstrating how several of the instruments are played.

*Distance Learning through video conferencing is a work in progress for Penn Museum. We plan to develop additional programs. However, due to technical challenges of our building, not all galleries are accessible at this time.