Added: 12/25/2005 |
Kids museum wants parents to learn how to play again"We don't think childhood should end at 10," - says Jane Werner, executive director of the Kids museum of Pittsburgh. It would seem so from the explosion of kids museums nationwide. More than 25 have opened since 2000, continuing a building boom that began in the 1980s.
"The trend shows no signs of slowing," says Janet Rice Elman, executive director of the Association of Children's Museums in Washington, which has a list of 70 more kids museums that are under construction or in the planning stages.
Major children's museums have opened recently in Atlanta, Miami, Pittsburgh and Columbia, S.C. Large new ones are in the works in Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia. And children's museums in Boston and Chicago plan major expansions.
Many cities now see kids museum as a magnet for tourism, much as aquariums and art museums have been in the past. And, indeed, children's museums increasingly are on the agenda for traveling families. They're something parents look for now when they travel.
EdVenture kids museum, which drew 250,000 visitors in its first year, is typical of the new wave of children's museums. Bigger, brighter and bolder than its predeccessors, the $19 million, five-story building was designed from the beginning to be one of the South Carolina capital's main draws, and it offers an array of larger-than-life attractions. Among them: Eddie, a 40-foot-high, plastic-molded boy that kids can play on and within (they can climb inside his stomach, wiggle through his brain and slide out his intestines).
Like other exhibits at this kids museum, Eddie is intended to offer a mix of learning (aboutanatomy) and fun - and not just for the kids. "We wanted parents to learn how to play again, and to get down on their children's level," Horne says.
The concept of a kids museum dates back more than a century. Several factors have been driving the trend. For starters, parents are seeking more informal learning environments for their kids as a break from the increasing structure at schools. The school environment has become very focused on achievement. Children's museums are focused on the child.
Another factor is America's concern with safety; kids museums are perceived as safe havens for play. They also benefit as families look for ways to spend more time together.
One recent twist is a move away from the trend of sprinkling attractions with high-tech computer screens and video monitors.
"We tried to do a no-screen museum," says Jane Werner, executive director of the kids museum of Pittsburgh, which reopened in November after quadrupling in size. "We kind of had this mantra of (kids should) play with real stuff. We think the real learning happens between families and with conversations that they have (while playing)."
The Pittsburgh museum is loaded with areas for role playing where the whole family can get involved, such as a pretend car garage and a woodshop. There's also an art studio filled with supplies.
Like other new children's museums, Pittsburgh kids museum also has tried to make its activities appeal to a wide spread of ages, from the littlest toddlers to teens.
Article comments:
No comments for this article yet. Post your comment now!
