X-rays and Donor Wall- Juliana

X-Rays

One of the biggest challenges with facilitating the X-rays is getting people to acknowledge that they are there in the first place. Since many young guests simply play with the toys without noticing that the x-rays are there, one of the ways Angela suggested to help maximize the engagement of those guests was to already have the x-rays out on the light table. When I have facilitated the x-rays in the past, I try to find the x-ray of the toy that a child is already playing with and lay it out on the table. Next, asking guests what they see and if the image looks familiar is a great way to maximize engagement at the higher engagement levels. I have noticed that this simple question definitely helps them start to make connections and maximize their engagement with this exhibit. I also like the suggestion of using VTS, asking guests what more they can find within the x-ray. I will definitely try this strategy next time I am facilitating the x-rays.

One time I was over by the light table, observing kids play with the magnetiles and the toys from the x-rays. An adult came up to me and told me that the turtle wasn’t working (wasn’t turning on or doing anything when she pressed the buttons). I told her that it is actually part of the x-ray exhibit, and brought out the x-ray of the turtle to show her. She was fascinated by being able to see all of the inside parts of the toy, and called her daughter over to show her. This interaction, while very brief, helped the guests to make connections, and encouraged them to identify different parts of the toy.

Donor Wall

As Sophia mentioned in her presentation, a guest’s engagement at the Donor Wall increases when there is more than one person participating. So the other day when I saw a young boy, maybe 5 years old, playing with the Donor Wall by himself, I went up to join him. We were taking turns turning the knobs and watching the balls go down the wall. Then I showed him how you can hit the circles to make them light up, which he became very excited about. He could barely reach even the lowest circles, so he would get a running start to jump up and was eventually able to reach them. This simple challenge of trying to light up the circle encouraged the boy to stay at the exhibit longer and therefore expanded his engagement. 

Another technique I used in order to optimize his engagement was asking him how the balls get all the way to the top of the wall. He was very curious about this, so I helped him figure it out by turning the wheel for a him a few times so he could observe from a few steps away. He noticed that the balls disappeared at a certain point while the wheel was turning. It took him a few tries to figure out that the balls were not just magically appearing at the top, but that they were being sucked up through a long tube on the side of the wall, which he was very excited to eventually find.