Today was the day that all plans went out the window. The school (from Costa Mesa) did not arrive until 10:35 (but they did call to inform us that they would be late). Thanks to Lonnie’s swiftness in getting things moving, we started immediately. It was decided that we would have two 45-minute tours.

I was splitting the tour with Jane, and thankfully, she could step in when I had to leave before the end of the tour. I started in Gallery 5 (Pyramid/Seismograph) by asking the students to take time to study the various works in the gallery. I then had them write one word on a card describing something that stood out in one of the pieces. They then gave the cards to me, and I read the words. They had to point out the work that was described. Their observations were quite creative. I pointed out that the room reminded me of the convergence of science and art.
As a follow-up, we discussed the explosion video and viewed its seismograph recording. We talked about heart rate and how the heart can react to things like fear, excitement, etc.
We then moved on to the next gallery.

Reflection (what would you do differently?):
I don’t think I could have done too much differently, given the circumstances.

Comments & Suggestions:
I would like to give a shout-out to Lonnie and how accommodating and helpful to us, not only in this instance but all the time.

Clipboards always work well for me. For example, in the AI gallery, ask them to sit with their backs towards Canvas on the Moon and as far away as possible looking at the other mirror-on-glass panels. Then, ask them to sketch figures that they see in those panels and share them with each other. This can lead to a discussion of what kinds of things Cai might have put in his AI model and what kinds of designs might have been generated by that model. This is so much fun because the kids love sharing their sketches with each other and with me.

Standing in front of Palmyra or Shadow: Pray for Protection.
Look at it from a distance and write down one word, then write down another word looking at it from a middle distance, and then sit down close to it and write down a third word. Then, share what they wrote down.
In the AI room, find all the places where they can see themselves in the mirrors. Speculate about why this might be and whether it affects how they feel about these works.

Lately, I’ve introduced on my tours the topic of immortality and how it influenced Chinese beliefs. While in the garden, I point to the mountains maquete and the Taihu rocks as being connected to the group of eight immortals in Daoist tradition. I point to the linghzi mushrooms carved on the staircase as a food that promoted longevity. When starting the gallery tour, I connect the discovery of gunpowder as part of the search for immortality. At the end of the tour I raise the idea that maybe Cai’s AI experiments are a way for him to search for immortality as his AI program will continue to create art long after he is gone.

I found the teacher makes a difference in the behavior, attitude and responsiveness of the students. This teacher circulated among his various tour groups, and when he would pop in on my tour, I would ask him to be a docent and ask the students a question about the artwork on view. The kids enjoyed seeing their teacher participate and we had some fun discussions.

I think you would need to judge if this would work in your particular circumstance.

I let them watch the mandala video first, so I wasn’t competing with it during my explanation. I had a picture of a sand mandala which I explained represented the universe and was used as a Buddhist teaching tool. I then pointed out the different parts, and the N, S, E and W gates and the progression towards the center which represents enlightenment. 
We talked a bit about Cai’s interest in Eastern religions and his desire to incorporate that in his work (use of symbols, Tibetan pigments, etc.), how the destruction of the sand mandala paralleled his destruction of the gunpowder mandala illustrating the Buddhist teaching re: impermanence. The kids seemed interested in discussing this, volunteering examples of impermanence.

I can still use the picture of the sand mandala since the video goes pretty fast, but simplify for younger kids.

If students are cooperative and well behaved, I find that it is useful to have them first explore a gallery by themselves, trying to figure out what is going on in the room. Then, I ask them to stand in front of their favorites and those are the ones where we spend our time.
Having them sketch in front of Hercules seems to work well.
Having them identify different things on the time line that they find interesting also works well.

I think it is important to be very firm if students are goofing around, not paying attention or wandering off.