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Why are children’s museums museums? – Take 2
Visitor at the Peoria PlayHouse Children’s Museum, during the museum’s first week of operations. As I emerge from the chaos of opening a new museum, I am still thinking about the question “Why are...
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What are useful ways to think about museum research?
This week’s guest post is by Christine Baron, Assistant Professor Social Studies and Education at Columbia Teachers College. Chris is a former high school history teacher and museum educator, and...
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Should museum professionals get into museums for free?
One of the great perks of working in the museum field is free entry into other museums. I recently went to Indianapolis, and visited three museums in two days. The cost of visiting these three museums,...
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When does the risk of misunderstanding outweigh the value of an activity or...
Franke L. Smith is an Education Coordinator at Hickory Hill, a Watson-Brown Foundation historic home, near Augusta, Georgia. At the American Alliance of Museums conference in May, Franke and I began a...
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When do we edit participation?
Last week, in honor of Bastille Day, we opened the PlayHouse Art Room to the public with a flag-making activity. We saw a range of flags created by kids and parents. As I share them, imagine some music...
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Why can’t the goal of museum field trips be exposure?
Recently I spent a few hours writing a blog post to be submitted to The Whiskey City Collaborative, a local Peoria blog. Originally, this post was an exercise in thinking about how communities can help...
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Will this work?
Last week I wrote about exposure as a goal for field trips, and readers debated whether exposure was passive. As I stated in a reply to this post, I don’t think exposure is passive for the visitor, but...
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Schools and Museums: Interview with Sarah Schertz
Sarah Schertz has a Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood Education and Early Childhood Special Education from New York University. She was a part of the 2015 Peoria Playhouse Teacher Team. She teaches...
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Should we accept this gift?
A month ago, a donor offered to buy the Peoria PlayHouse Children’s Museum life-sized replicas of three dinosaur heads: Tyrannosaurus Rex, Allosaurus, and Velociraptor. This offer coincided with a...
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Should exhibits tell stories?
This is a post I have been trying to write for a long time – over a year. I’m still struggling, so bear with me. There has been a great deal written over the past few years about museums and...
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Can what museums choose to exhibit or promote define the character of their...
Lately, I have been thinking about the relationship between museums and cities, and how museums support or impact their cities. As part of this exploration, I picked up Gail Lord and Ngaire...
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What do Stories Do? Interview with Lane Beckes
A few weeks ago I shared a post questioning whether storytelling was an appropriate or useful format for museums exhibitions. This post received a number of comments, including people suggesting that...
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How do museums in small cities gain and wield soft power? Interview with...
Ngaire Blankenberg is Director, Europe and Principal Consultant at Lord Cultural Resources, where she has worked for the past eight years. Lord Cultural Resources is one of the largest consultancies...
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What role do museums play in a small city? Interview with Patrick Urich
Patrick Urich is the City Manager of Peoria, Illinois. As City Manager, he is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day activities of the City of Peoria, including the budget and all city departments...
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What happens when parents join their kids in play, exploration and museum...
This week’s post is by Amanda Nobis, a junior at Bradley University, and the first Research Intern at the Peoria PlayHouse Children’s Museum. This summer I had the opportunity to help form a...
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What do Stories do? Act II: This American Life’s “Put a Bow on It”
In two recent posts I explored the role of storytelling in museums, and particularly in museum exhibitions. In Should Exhibits Tell Stories I questioned whether storytelling provokes the response...
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Should Museums Celebrate the Holiday Season?
A few weeks ago, I walked into the Peoria PlayHouse Children’s Museum to find floor staff creating a clever string of “lights” made of construction paper and cardboard tubes. They wanted to hang it...
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What are your Museum Questions?
As the end of 2015 approaches, I am wondering: What compelling questions need to be explored in 2016? Please share your ideas, either in the comments section, via social media, or by email. (See the...
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What is a “good” science demonstration?
Recently I saw a video of a science demonstration in a children’s museum, and found myself wondering if the children were learning anything. What is the purpose of science demonstrations in museums?...
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AmeriCorps Fellowship: Peoria PlayHouse Children’s Museum
How can a museum truly be “for everyone”? What do strong community partnerships look like, and how far can they be expanded to support museums, community partners, and the people we serve? Think...
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