ABSTRACT
The term "object lesson" or the notion of teaching with objects is initially found in the context of schooling and teaching of literacy, yet also consistently appears in descriptions of museum experiences crafted for the public with particular prominence in the nineteenth century. It is an idea that reaches across the broader realm of education and learning theory, a concept that continues to be relevant. Searching historical literature for the term "object lesson" offers a baseline for understanding the idea and its origins, but is not sufficient for more in-depth analysis. Constructivist learning is based on the idea of experience as critical to learning and recognizes active engagement as an essential component of experience, the bedrock principles of this progressive model, yet also at the core of object lessons. The Reggio Emilia philosophy incorporated a new appreciation for learning from the natural world with the idea of emergent curriculum stemming from ordinary discoveries and interests of children.
