Children’s museums might seem like a relatively new phenomenon. But they’ve actually been around since 1899, when the Brooklyn Children’s Museum debuted. It’s still open and still popular.
In more modern times, traditional museums have joined the cause. Take the Guggenheim in New York, for example. In 1970 it began its Learning Through Art, a popular program in which artists visit New York City public schools and collaborate with teachers and students on art projects over 20 weeks. Their work culminates in the annual “A Year with Children” exhibition at the museum, where selected student works are displayed. It’s underway again this year through June 9.
These days, however, the notion of engaging children has burgeoned like never before, with programs that are increasingly innovative, engaging and fresh, experts in the field say.
“Historically, museums have presented themselves as hushed halls of contemplation, with static displays and whispered reverence,” said Arthur Affleck, the executive director of the Association of Children’s Museums. “It’s an approach that works for me and other adults, but the movement right now is for these spaces to become interactive places that cater to the interests of children.”
Tara Young, a museum consultant, professor at the Tufts Museum Studies Program and the editor of the book “Creating Meaningful Museum Experiences for K-12 Audiences,” said museums are more purposeful in their efforts for two primary reasons.
“Museums are more attuned to being relevant to all audiences, partly to ensure their long-term financial stability,” she said. Young noted that many struggled to bring in revenue during the pandemic — and even before — and that building relationships with young people was a way to ensure future audiences.
“Most American museums are nonprofit organizations, so they are also deliberate about engaging a younger generation to fulfill their missions as educational institutions first and foremost,” Young said.
Here are just a few examples of some of the newer programs for young people:
American Museum of Natural History, New York
The president of the American Museum of Natural History, Sean Decatur, described the new Beyond Elementary Explorations in Science (BEES) program, launched last fall, as a “weeklong field trip to the museum.”
The program invites fourth or fifth graders from a different New York City public school each month to use the museum as their classroom for the week, their teachers in tow.
Decatur explained that students spend their time exploring insect ecosystems. They learn about the role insects play in supporting different environments by roaming through the museum’s 5,000-square-foot Susan and Peter J. Solomon Family Insectarium at the new Richard Gilder Center for Science, Education, and Innovation. A laboratory of sorts, the gallery is full of live insects, pinned specimens, graphic and digital exhibits, and larger-than-life models of more than 100 insect species, Decatur said.
Students also have a dedicated classroom at the center to use during their visit.
Their teachers work with the museum’s educators to shape a curriculum and plan lessons in science, language arts, social studies and math. The school day starts before the museum opens at 10 a.m. so classes have at least an hour to enjoy the space to themselves, Decatur said.
The museum finds the students in collaboration with Urban Advantage, a network of city public schools that work to give students access to the largest cultural institutions in New York. Most recently, 12 classes from six schools have participated in BEES.
Portland Art Museum
Devised for L.G.B.T.Q. youth of all ages, Power Up! invites them to create art and share their backgrounds with others.
One attendee, Emma Hilliard, a fourth-grade student who identifies as nonbinary, said in written feedback to the museum, “I found many great friends and found the appreciation for trans people exhilarating!”
Brie Hilliard, Emma’s mother, also shared through written feedback that Emma faced a daily struggle to feel understood, and that Power Up! felt like a safe space.
“Emma certainly did not hold back at the event,” Hillard said. “As a parent, it was such a joy to watch them express themselves so openly to a crowd that received them with such enthusiasm and acceptance.”
What started as a small initiative targeting high school and college youth is now a significant part of the museum’s programming that is offered annually, according to Hana Layson, the head of the museum’s youth and educator programs who founded the initiative.
The first session in 2015 had about 80 attendees, compared with recent ones that have had more than 200, Layson said.
“A teacher from a local school approached me and said that he thought a program for queer youth would be meaningful for some of his queer students who felt isolated because of their identity,” Layson said, adding that she was “surprised at how many showed up.”
In addition to creating art using a variety of media, she said that students are invited to a discussion of gender identity and an open mic to share their stories, and can participate in a workshop led by an artist.
This year’s workshop was led by the queer comic-strip artist Rupert Kinnard, whose work was featured in the museum’s exhibit on Black artists of Oregon.
Clyfford Still Museum, Denver
The first eight years of the Clyfford Still Museum’s existence were spent educating the public about who the namesake artist was, said Nicole Cromartie, the museum’s director of education and programs. Children became a part of the fabric in late 2019.
Located in Denver’s cultural district, the 28,500-square-foot museum is dedicated to the American abstract artist who lived from 1904 to 1980 and was a contemporary of artists like Mark Rothko and Jackson Pollock. Still wanted to bequeath his works to an American city that would construct a museum for the sole intention of displaying them. His widow, Patricia Still, chose Denver.
Cromartie said her background in art education had taught her that even very young children connect with abstract art. Yet the programming at Clyfford Still was geared toward adults and teenagers.
Seeing an opportunity to broaden the audience, she invited children from early learning centers and schools to pick their favorites among Still’s pieces. “The pandemic had hit, so we did virtual meetings where the kids selected works,” Cromartie said. Children who could talk recorded their interpretations of the works, which “became material for a kid-created audio guide for the show,” she added.
The exhibit, which opened in March 2022, led to two new programs. The first, an Art Crawl, is held three times a month for newborns through 14-month-old children, who can crawl freely through selected galleries and are encouraged to stop at each work to engage in an interactive activity.
Monthly Maker Mornings, for those 15 months to 8 years old, give children an opportunity to peruse the galleries and engage in activities such as painting a canvas in response to a piece and writing Valentine’s Day cards to their friends and family after reading ones that Still wrote to his children.
Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles
The Fiber Makers’ Circle, aimed at connecting young people with other generations, is one of the newest and most popular programs at LACMA for children of all ages said Naima J. Keith, the vice president of education and public programs.
“We formed our Fiber Makers’ Circle to meet our audience’s desire for intergenerational programs where every member of the family, no matter their age or skill level, can connect, learn and create together,” Keith said. “We’ve seen 5-year-olds with their 90-year-old great-grandmothers attend, laugh and have a great time together, and many families have come more than once.”
Held free of charge three to four Sundays a month in a drop-in setting, the circle is led by textile artists from the Los Angeles area who help participants create a work in their specialty. That could mean knitting, crocheting, embroidery or another textile form; the museum provides all the materials.
“We modeled this program after maker’s circles that have been around for centuries, like quilting bees,” Keith said. “Our Fiber Makers’ Circle can accommodate up to 30 people, and since its outset, it has been at or near capacity each time.”
Dallas Museum of Art
Serving youth has been a priority for this museum ever since it was established in 1903 and was named the Dallas Museum of Fine Art, according to Melissa Brito, its manager of access programs and resources. The collection encompasses art from all cultures and periods.
“As an institution that started within the walls of the Dallas Public Library, education has been part of our DNA since the beginning,” she said. The shift to engage young people with sensory needs through its Open Studio program and an annual Barefoot Day came within the last year, Brito said.
Open Studio, offered twice monthly, gives children of any age with neurological challenges a chance to become artists in a free, four-hour drop-in session, with the first hour dedicated to a sensory-friendly experience.
To start, they visit a gallery to view a specific work or exhibition. They then retreat to the museum’s art studio, where they can create art in response to what they saw.
Brown noise as background music, known for its soothing effects, helps foster a pleasant environment, and noise-canceling headphones and fidget toys are also available to assist participants in managing stimuli.
Brito said artists young people have looked to for artistic motivation include Vincent van Gogh, Jasper Johns and Henri Matisse.
Barefoot Day, held for the first time on April 27 this year to coincide with Autism Acceptance Month, is a two-hour event in which young people with sensory needs can walk around the museum barefoot.
“Being barefoot may evoke the sensation of grounding and security, fostering a sense of awareness for the environment they are in,” Brito said.
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