Inupiat Heritage Center National Affiliated Area -- Experience Your America

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Education
One of the principal tasks of the Iñupiat Heritage Center is to educate the general public on Iñupiat history and culture. IHC takes two approaches: education services within the museum and outside the museum, information about both can be found below on this web page.

	Contact with Schools It is an important part of IHC's mission to establish strong links with North Slope schools and provide education services to users. IHC will work closely with teachers to allow they to make better use of the educational resources available through exhibits, databases, handling collections and museum staff. IHC will maintain contact with the teachers at local schools, making sure that the schools know what is going on at IHC and how they can make use of it, and making sure that the museum staff know about developments in the schools. IHC will organize once a year a training day for teachers, held at IHC. Ideally this would be arranged through the North Slope Borough School District.
	Education Materials IHC will help teachers make use of IHC by providing educational materials, depending on the character of the museum, and the needs of the local schools. IHC will ask teachers what they need, such as simplified catalogues, booklets describing projects based on the displays, or worksheets.
	Planning a Museum Visit The IHC staff should plan school visits together. IHC suggests that teachers visit IHC before they bring the children, and that visits be booked in advance. The visit should be part of the work the children are doing at school.
	The School Visit Children learn little from a general tour. Rather IHC staff will discuss with teachers how to effectively use the children's time.

	School Loan Services The benefit benefit of a loan serve is that objects which might otherwise remain in store are serving a real educational purpose in the hands of teachers and children, while using objects in school encourages teachers and children to visit IHC. IHC will lend objects to schools from IHC's collection or from special loan collections, as long as materials used are conservation and security requirements. Teachers are encouraged to borrow objects from IHC collections.
	Talks in Schools Children appreciate people talking to them. IHC will arrange talks with North Slope schools and give a presentation at least once a year.
	Special Events Special events can last half a day, a weekend or two weeks, depending on the occasion. IHC will choose one theme at a time, which can range from an activity like cooking traditional Iñupiat foods, or a class of objects like hunting tools or a historical period.
	School Exhibits While schools are expected to continue to enhance their classroom curriculum with field trips to the Iñupiat Heritage Center, a variety of educational exhibits may be developed and displayed at the schools. Classroom related exhibit projects to be displayed in schools encourage teacher and student participation and provide opportunities to creatively learn and explore topics related to the art, history, natural sciences of the Arctic Slope, and the Iñupiat people. Teachers and schools shall be encourages to coordiante with the Iñupiat Heritage Center staff in the development of exhibits that enhances classroom learning. Educational kits, touring exhibits, school loan services, and local museum tours will serve as the nexus for the implementation of educational programs following the guideline of standards for culturally responsive schools. IHC will use Inuuqatigiit (The Curriculum from the Inuit Perspective) as a resource model for the implementation of educational exhibits.