What is Learning by Doing

As referenced in the chapter title, the Children’s Virtual Museum of Small Animals is a website where multimedia documents are collected, based on the real experience of groups of children from many parts of the world. There, people can find photos and videos of insects and spiders, with scientific names and classification, place and date of discovery, and age of the class, group, or single kid who found it. There are also drawings, texts, and other things related to the real, possible, or fantastic meeting between children and small animals: voices from actual experiences, slide shows about “watching details,” pictures of creations by artists close to kids’ imagination, suggestions on how to use technical tools. Children there can act as protagonists in producing and sharing information, just like usually scientists, journalists, photographers, and video makers do, through the global information society. It is also the “extension” of a method, a way to address scientific issues with children, which has given regular, excellent results with hundreds of groups during many years. The author presents it as a work in progress, calling others to meet and exchange, suggest, and propose additions, also from different experiences and points of view. Digital means are proposed to show the “objects” of the study as well as the “process of studying” by children, with all their enthusiasm and surprise, as is evidenced particularly from their voices. Other children visiting the virtual Museum should be called to come and take part in it from their usual real life environment, making new discoveries and sending documents, sharing experiences and ideas, worldwide.