Spark Interactive - Legacy of Light Goldberg Institute for Holocaust Education in San Diego

Spark Interactive reimagines what a museum experience can be by bringing Holocaust education directly to high schools and communities. Developed by the Legacy of Light Goldberg Institute for Holocaust Education, the mobile museum combines digital artifacts, audiovisual technology, survivor testimonies and guided education to help students understand how the Holocaust unfolded and why its lessons still matter today. At the heart of the experience is the culture: putting real people, their experiences and their voices at the center of history.

The idea started with a simple problem: not every school or community has the resources to give students access to a museum experience. Transportation costs, distance, scheduling and limited budgets can make field trips difficult or impossible. Spark Interactive offers a new solution by taking the museum to students instead.

In collaboration with Unified Field and Yazdani Studios, Electrosonic integrated immersive audiovisual technology, interactive displays, digital content and sound throughout the trailer. The design maximizes limited space while maintaining an immersive experience, transforming from a compact footprint for travel into a fully functioning museum at each destination.

main-holocaust-101.mp4 | Powered by Box

When the wheels retract, the trailer expands into an educational environment that can transition between exhibition, presentation and classroom configurations. Large-scale digital media, controlled lighting and carefully selected materials create a transportive setting that supports guided instruction and self-directed exploration. The trailer becomes both the exhibit and the setting for stories that might otherwise never reach students and communities throughout the region, inspiring curiosity, discovery and engagement.

The media system is more than screens. It is a coordinated interactive experience that supports individual discovery and group learning. Students begin with an overarching subtheme and question before using their tablets to explore different topics within that theme. Physical exhibit QR codes guide students to specific content, where they can explore historical stories, images, survivor experiences and follow-up questions at their own pace.

Students can respond using handwriting, keyboard input and selections, giving them different ways to engage with the material. Their interactions can be reviewed and used by educators during the learning experience, making the technology part of the teaching process rather than a replacement for it.

The large LED displays create a shared and immersive layer, while the tablets provide individual exploration. Educators guide the group, creating three levels of interaction: students exploring content, groups engaging with shared visuals and educators leading discussion. Students later return to the overarching question and connect their individual discoveries to a larger conversation.

Every technology choice was made to support the stories. LED displays put faces to names and help students connect with the people behind the history. The content helps students learn about the Holocaust while developing skills to recognize misinformation and better understand the information they encounter.

The integrated control system connects the audiovisual systems, allowing the space to power up quickly and operate smoothly wherever the trailer travels. The audio system is balanced for the compact space so stories and conversations remain clear without becoming overwhelming. Media programs can also be customized to support different school curricula and educational needs.

Electrosonic, Unified Field and Yazdani Studios had to consider equipment placement, system integration, content delivery, visitor movement and the demands of transporting the experience between locations. Every screen, speaker, interactive element and control system had to work together inside a space designed to move.

What makes Spark Interactive innovative is the combination of mobility, technology and student-centered education. The team took the culture and immersive technology normally found in a permanent museum and adapted it to a completely different environment.
Spark Interactive challenges the idea that a museum has to stay in one place. By turning a semi-trailer into a fully functioning immersive museum, the project brings education, culture and technology directly to students and creates new opportunities to connect young people with the people and experiences behind one of history’s most important lessons.

Partners

• Technology partners: DetaiLED, TSI Touch, Smart Monkeys, ISAAC, HLB Lightning Design, MRA Studios
• Creative partners: Unified Field and Yazdani Studios.