Use this activity to help prepare students for the “Investigating the Past” visit activity that they will complete during the class visit to the Getty Villa. 

Materials
Download the following items for your students from the self-guided activity page on the Getty website: http://www.getty.edu/education/teachers/trippack/villa_vsi_investigating.html

•	Pre-Visit Activity: “Object Investigation Report” (PDF, 266KB, 2pp.)
•	Student Worksheet (PDF, 982KB, 15pp.)
•	Getty Villa Map (PDF, 529KB, 2pp.)
•	Post-Visit Activity: “Writing Assignment” (PDF, 432KB, 4pp.)

Activity Steps

Step 1
In preparation for your students’ Museum visit, print, copy, and provide the “Investigating the Past” materials for each student. 

Step 2
Prepare your students for the pre-visit activity by leading them through an exploration of the works of art on the Getty website. Direct students to the “Explore the Collection” page at http://www.getty.edu/art to search for objects at the Getty Villa. For example, they can browse by object type or medium (e.g., “Decorative Objects and Vases” or “Sculpture”) or by theme or topic (e.g., “Mythology”). You might ask students to search for objects with a connection to ancient literature they have read, such as the Odyssey or the Iliad, or objects featuring gods, goddesses, and heroes they have studied.
Explain to students that the Getty Villa (vs. the Getty Center) houses mainly Greek, Roman, and Etruscan objects, including sculptures and artifacts of everyday life, dating from 6,500 B.C. to A.D. 400. The “Villa Top 18” at http://www.getty.edu/education/teachers/trippack/villa_top18.html provides examples of objects at the Getty Villa, but encourage students to explore beyond this list. (If class size permits, you may wish to divide students into four groups to perform the online research in groups, and then to later visit the Museum in those groups.)
Step 3
After students have browsed the works of art online, ask each student to choose one object that is currently on display at the Getty Villa. Have the students give you the name of their object (and URL if possible). (You can locate all the students’ objects in advance of the Museum visit by using the “Getty Bookmarks” feature.*)

Step 4
Instruct students to complete the pre-visit activity “Object Investigation Report” for that object. Tell students that as one part of their visit activity, they will observe this object in person.

Step 5
As you discuss the assignment with the students and answer any questions, remind them that, when they visit the Getty Villa, they must remain in their chaperoned groups at all times.

*Instructions for Bookmarking:

To locate the students’ objects at the Museum, use the “Getty Bookmarks” feature on the Collection page at http://www.getty.edu/art/. 

1.	Click the “Getty Bookmarks” link on the Collection page, or go directly to http://www.getty.edu/mygetty/. 

2.	Click the link “Learn more and sign up now!” to quickly create an account.

3.	Next, you will see a welcome page with instructions for adding bookmarks of selected works of art in the Collection. 

4.	When you go to a web page with a selected work of art, click the link “Add to Getty Bookmarks.” This will save the object in your bookmarks. Repeat for each object you want to locate.

5.	After all the bookmarks have been saved, go to your account page at https://www.getty.edu/mygetty/mygetty. Click the tab “Use Bookmarks.” 

6.	Now click the link “Create Getty Villa Tour” to get a printable museum floor plan with a list of the bookmarked objects and their locations. You can make copies of this for you and your chaperones.