National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Planning a Study Trip to the NCSML

A study trip to the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library (NCSML) is an exciting enhancement to classroom and in-home learning. Students who visit the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library have the opportunity to experience:

• Czech and Slovak immigration in the United States, with an emphasis on Cedar Rapids;
• Czech Republic and Slovakia history, geography, technology, etc.; and
• Czech and Slovak culture and tradition as they compare to the culture and traditions of the United States.

The NCSML provides a multicultural adventure, connecting students to the larger, global community in a personal manner.

In addition to school and youth group tours, the NCSML offers a wide assortment of tour packages available to motorcoach tour planners. For more information about motorcoach trips to the NCSML, please visit the Tour Planners page and contact Patricia Hikiji or Shirley Rosencrans at 319-362-8500 for more information.

WHAT DOES THE NCSML OFFER STUDENTS AND TEACHERS?

The NCSML offers two tour packages:

Tour #1:

• Homelands: The Story of the Czech and Slovak People,
• a restored 19^th century Immigrant home to learn about the Sleger family,
• and see the latest special exhibition in the Petrik Gallery (go to Special Exhibits) or hands-on seasonal activity.
• This tour takes approximately 1 hour and costs $2.00/student, $2.00/chaperone. Teachers and school staff are admitted free of charge. Max. 45 people total.

Tour #2:

• Homelands: The Story of the Czech and Slovak People,
• a restored 19^th century Immigrant home and learn about the Sleger family,
• see the latest special exhibition in the Petrik Gallery (go to Special Exhibits) or hands-on seasonal activity, and take a walking tour of Historic Czech Village.
• This tour takes approximately 2 hours and costs $3.00/student, $3.00/chaperone. Teachers and school staff are admitted free of charge. Max. 90 people total. Please note: this tour takes place in all types of weather; so, encourage your students to dress appropriately. The walking tour takes approximately 55 minutes.

Please make your tour reservation at least 3 weeks in advance. Early booking is recommended for early fall and all spring dates. See below for details regarding making a reservation.

MAKING A RESERVATION

1. Call Jan Stoffer, Museum Educator, at 319-362-8500 to make your reservation.

2. Be prepared to provide the following information:

• Name of school/organization
• Contact person
• Telephone number
• Mailing address
• Number of students
• Ages/grade levels of students
• Preferred date and time (please have 1 or 2 alternative days and times in mind)
• Anticipated number of adult chaperones and school staff coming (2 adults per group of 15 students is usually sufficient)
• Which tour package you are interested in
• How the you will pay for the tour
• Additional information, i.e. how a study trip to the NCSML ties into what students are learning, additional information you are looking for, if the students or teachers will be making purchases while on the walking tour, if students be working on an assignment during their visit to the NCSML, etc.

3. Pre-visit materials are available. Also, the NCSML offers off-site visits to school groups before they tour the NCSML. Students will receive an introduction that prepares them for their visit and provides valuable background information to them and teachers. To receive pre-visit materials or to schedule an off-site visit, call Jan Stoffer at 319-362-8500.

 

4. If you would like to use the NCSML facilities for lunch, please ask if the room or garden is available for use. In addition to the NCSML’s Heritage Hall, you may use the NCSML Garden or Sokol Park, located right across the street from the NCSML.

 

Students eating at the NCSML should remember to use their manners, that they are ambassadors of their school, and to keep in mind that the NCSML is a place of business and open to the public. Please encourage your students to bring a ‘no waste’ lunch. Also, we request you bring a trash bag and remove your waste from the NCSML.

 

5. After booking your tour, you will receive a confirmation letter. Please review the confirmation letter for accuracy and contact Jan Stoffer if you need to alter your tour arrangements.

PREPARING TO GO TO THE NCSML

1. Review and conduct pre-visit activities. These materials not only help prepare the students for their trip, they also inspire a sense that students belong in the NCSML and build anticipation for what they are about to see at the NCSML. Encourage students to prepare questions for the docents and staff.

2. Please have your class prepared to divide into groups of no more than 15 students. If this is not possible, please talk with Jan Stoffer for other possible options.

3. Nametags are very helpful for our staff and docents. Please have everyone wear a nametag in a visible location.

4. Please review NCSML expectations for students visiting the NCSML:

• Flash photography is allowed in the Grand Hall and on the walking tour. Photographs may be taken in the galleries if no flash is used.
• Food, beverages, candy, and gum are not allowed in the NCSML galleries. Arrangements may be made for items purchased at the bakery or meat market.
• Students are expected to stay with their groups, be courteous to their guides, and be respectful of other visitors to the NCSML and businesses on the walking tour.
• Docents and staff will let students know when it is appropriate to touch an item on exhibit.
• Students working on writing assignments or worksheets while touring the NCSML should have a pencil and notebook on which to write. Pens are not allowed in the galleries.

5. Please inform chaperones and additional staff that teachers and staff are responsible for all disciplinary issues and keeping the students focused and on-task while at the NCSML.

HOW TO GET TO THE NCSML

The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library (NCSML) is located at 30 – 16^th Avenue, SW, Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

From I-380:

1. Take the Wilson Exit. This is on the south side of town.
2. The off ramp leads to a stoplight, turn right (east) onto Wilson Avenue SW.
3. Go straight to the stoplight, at the corner of J Street and Wilson Avenue.
4. Take a left (north) onto J Street.
5. Go straight to the first stop sign. This is 16^th Avenue
6. At 16^th Avenue, J Street will split, stay in the right hand lane so you merge onto 16^th Ave. (east)
7. 16^th Avenue will split, stay in the right hand lane and take the spur that goes straight into Czech Village (east).
8. Go straight through Czech Village.
9. At the corner of 16^th and A Street, you will see the brick museum building and clock tower on your left. Turn left (north) onto A. Off-street parking is available in front of the museum. (The museum is on the west side of the river, so if you cross the bridge, you’ve just missed your turn!)
10. If necessary, call the museum at 319-362-8500 for assistance.

YOU’VE ARRIVED! WHAT DO YOU DO?

1. Free off-street parking is available for school buses in front of the NCSML. Additional free parking is available in the parking lot to the north of the NCSML or across the street in the Round House parking lot.
2. NCSML staff and docents will meet large student groups on the stairs in front of the museum. Please have students in their groups before the welcome begins. Students will receive their welcome in the Grand Hall in light of inclement weather.
3. Teachers and school aides, please identify yourselves to the NCSML docent or staff member leading your group.
4. Restrooms and drinking fountains are available for use upon arrival. Please notify the docents and staff if students need to use these facilities upon arrival. Otherwise, a break will be scheduled mid-tour.
5. Have fun! This study trip is intended to inspire and excite students about people in their community and the world around them.

IT’S OVER, AND WE’VE HAD A GREAT DAY!

Just because your tour has ended doesn’t mean the learning has! Post-visit materials are available for classroom and home follow-up sessions. Students are encouraged to keep asking questions. Try to ‘Stump the Museum Staff." We look forward to questions and comments we receive from those who have just visited the museum.

Students who have visited the NCSML are excellent tour guides. All students who tour the NCSML are issued a coupon giving the grown-up of their choice $1.00 off adult admission when they visit the museum with their child.

ADVENTURE GALLERY

	Students on a museum study trip learn about folk art and traditions in the permanent exhibition Homelands: The Story of the Czech and Slovak People.
	Museum educator Jan Stoffer uses the museum’s teaching collection to encourage students to think and apply recently learned knowledge in the Costume Square section of the permanent exhibition Homelands: The Story of the Czech and Slovak People.
	Immigration is a recurring theme encountered by students on a study trip to the NCSML. Here, Mr. Mills explains the settlement patterns of the Czechs and Slovaks in the United States to a group of second and third grade students.
	Hands-on learning is incorporated into museum study trips. Museum docent Dell Mills teaches a group of second and third graders about Morena, Old Mother Winter. The children may take their Morena home with them. Activities vary with the season.
	One of the most popular exhibits is the restored 19th Century Immigrant Home. Students have the opportunity to experience a Czech immigrant home built between 1880 – 1885 (the same time Brucemore was built). Five generations of the Sleger family owned and lived in this house for nearly 100 years. Most of the artifacts found in the home help tell the story of life among the working class in Cedar Rapids around 1900.
	The NCSML offers docent-led walking tours of Czech Village (16th Avenue SW). Students learn about the Bohemian immigrant settlement patterns and the rich history of this unique neighborhood.
	On a docent-led Village Tour, students may have several first-person experiences in a few of the businesses including the Saddle and Leather Shop.
	Museum docent and former elementary teacher Carol Black points out some of the architectural features found on Sykora’s Bakery.
	Sykora’s Bakery is a 100-year-old Czech Bakery. Owner John Rocarek often shares the history of the business (and a cookie or two) with students.
	Students learn about (and may have a chance to sample) Czech foods at Polehna’s, an authentic Czech meat market located on the Avenue since 1931.

For more information, contact Jan Stoffer, Museum Educator, at 319-362-8500 or jan@ncsml.org

 

Return to NCSML Home Page

 

The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library

30 - 16th Avenue SW, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52404-5904

Phone: 319-362-8500 · Fax: 319-363-2209

 

This page was updated December 07, 2005