Lesson 5: The Cone of Experience

CONE OF
EXPERIENCE
Visual Symbols
Dramatized
Experiences
Exhibits

Field Trips
Still pictures, radio,
and recordings

Television
Verbal Symbols
Motion Pictures

Demonstrations
Contrived
Experiences
Direct purposeful
Experiences
-principal medium of communication bear no physical
resemblance to the objects or ideas for which they stand
-chalkboard/whiteboard, flat maps, diagrams, charts fits
the tempo of presentation of idea, topic or situation
-attention getting, particularly projected views
-is where it is on the cone because it is an
observational experience with little
-undertaken primarily for the purpose of experiencing something
that cannot be encountered within the classroom
-a solution to time and space constraints
-present objects or processes otherwise impossible
inside the classroom
-visualized explanation of an important fact or idea
or process
-help get closer to certain realities that are no
longer available at first hand
-an editing of reality substitutes for confusing
or unmanageable first hand experiences
-unabridged version of life itself direct
participation with responsibility for the outcome