Educational activities:
teaching activities, education and enhancement of the MArTA
THE MArTA MUSEUM
On a daily basis the National Archaeological Museum of Taranto combines the scientific and research work it does on its collections with an array of targeted activities aimed at enhancing the value of its items and at providing teaching and training experiences for all types of public thus becoming a vital and inclusive hub which dispenses emotions while communicating culture.
The Educational Service of the Museum designs and implements workshops as well as advanced themed and educational itineraries of different duration to further expand the cultural offer of the Museum while ensuring the best response to the different needs of the public.
"Baby steps at the MArTA"
The projects “Baby Steps at the MArTA” (“Primi passi al MArTA), consists of a series of activities addressed to the children of nursery schools and the early years of Primary School, offering them a number of educational itineraries to help them discover the Museum with the assistance and guidance of experts who are capable of stimulating their curiosity. The assumption is that a playful approach applied to the experience of the Museum and to archaeology, with the aid of specially designed educational aids and games to develop skills such as observation, exploration and hands-on experience, facilitates learning and makes the experience of the Museum attractive and exciting.
Cultural offer – Wednesdays at the MArTA
The rich network of relationships with the associations and public bodies of the territory puts the MArTA in a position to offer an array of cultural events that go beyond the traditional offering of a museum including, for example, concerts, readings, screenings, theatrical and dance performances, and presentation of books. The conferences held on Wednesdays open to everyone known as “Wednesdays at the MArTA” have been particularly successful. They offer the opportunity to speak about the on-going research which is presented by the Museum staff, scientific collaborators and Italian and foreign specialists and scholars, with a special emphasis on the archaeology of Magna Graecia.
Through this multiplicity of projects and initiatives the Museum has become a driver of development for the territory while at the same time enhancing its identity.
Education
There are also numerous educational activities that the MArTA carries out in collaboration with the schools and educational institutions of every level and degree in the city and the territory. Besides the internship programs, there are also the work-based learning programs, which raise awareness among the students of the importance of protecting our heritage while teaching them about the Museum’s collections and how to deal with the complex structure of its functions and activities. In the 2018 European Year of Cultural Heritage the Museum began a discussion with the Secondary Schools of the Taranto territory on the theme of cultural heritage, in light of the Faro Convention, taking the stance of a body that stimulates the community to increase its awareness of the value of cultural heritage and its contribution to well-being and quality of life. And it does this by working with the younger generations. The students were guided in drawing up an interactive community map of the city of Taranto, using all the stimuli coming from their perception of history, traditions, resources and elements that characterize the landscape. They produced a product that expresses the “identity” of the territory intended as “an archive of memories”.
In other cases, the younger ones, trained by the museum’s scientific staff, in turn illustrate the items on display along the themed itineraries, such as those created for the European Day of Wine and Oil Culture. In other cases, some finds kept in warehouses, currently under study or subject to new restorations, are presented to the children so that they can then relay to others their experience of seeing items that have never been seen. This is done, for instance, on the occasion of the FAI Spring Days.
Inclusion
The Educational Services of the Museum have long been committed to guaranteeing each visitor the widest possible access and use of our rich cultural heritage, by planning and proposing workshops, events, guided tours and multi-sensory itineraries, designed to allow each visitor an experience of engaging and rewarding visits and to ensure that there is full inclusion. The involvement of numerous local associations and specialists from various sectors makes it possible to monitor the routes, and this enables us to assess the benefits deriving from the use of the museum’s heritage, in terms of perception of participation, motivation and satisfaction of the participants.
For any further information on educational activities, please write to man-ta.didattica@cultura.gov.it
