Walker on Wednesday from 9:00-11:00
The Walker is currently in process for creating and changing programs for disabled visitors, particularly those on the autism spectrum. On Wednesday I shadowed a tour for mentally disabled students from a local grade school with varying ages, where the tour aimed to give these students a fulfilling and interactive visit to a new place. It was a small tour, around 6 students and 4 chaperones not including the tour guide and me. The way the program found ways for each student to find or put themselves in the work by relating each piece to the students was engaging, and the flexibility of the tour helped it suit the student's needs and interests, even to the point of skipping over some exhibits in the tour and adding on new pieces that the students expressed interest in. I'm glad I got to shadow this tour, because I think this level of receptiveness and flexibility to students made their experience engaging and more valuable to them.