This summer, greet your young visitors with a museum in your home. It is enjoyable to organize and fun to observe smiling faces that move independently without creating chaos.
3-D image, Mixed-media, 32” by 22”, gold frame, $ 599.

Museum at Home

It is summer and the children wll either be home home or taking trips to friends relatives. Most adults don’t plan for the onslaught of vacationing children and as much as they look forward to their company, they also dread it. With a bit of preplanning, much can be done to make the time spent in your house (or at a family gathering) special. It is possible to organize a space to permit creative activities to occur without having to worry about cherished possessions being destroyed.

Why not create a hands-on museum in your home. . .one that will stimulate curiosity and absorb the attention of active children? By thinking like a museum director you can provide opportunities for house bound youngsters to engage in creative, educational and thoughtful pursuits. It is not uncommon in hot weather for kids to spend hours in water play. With a bit of foresight their play will be a lesson in physics and hydraulics as well as a way to cool down. THey can dress in period costumes (culture and history), constructing forts and buildings (engineering), putting together 3-D puzzles (spacial challenges), putting on puppet plays (imaginative writing) and engage in activities that involve physical movement as well as mental stimulation. By expanding educational opportunities during summer vacation you also have a chance to test your own ingenuity and creativity. The process can be challenging and a great deal of fun.

When my children were young I was a frequent visitor to children’s museums and noted the way they were organized to permit kids to roam freely within environments packed full of learning materials designed for their age level. According to The American Association of Children’s Museums, “A children’s museum is defined as an institution committed to serving the needs and interests of children by providing exhibits and programs that stimulate curiosity and motivate learning.” They encourage parents to interact with their children while in the museum in order to make the experience more meaningful. That definition fits my family to a “T” so, when I moved to a community without a hands-on museum, I decided that I would make my home into one.

Maria Montessori had a great influence. She was a 19th century physician turned educator who became involved in designing Casa dei Bambini, a school for low-income children. As she experimented with curriculum and classroom design, “she began to see independence as the aim of education and the role of the teacher as an observer and director of children’s innate psychological development.” When my children were preschoolers I enrolled them in Montessori schools which I quickly realized were simply classrooms set up as mini-museums. They were organized spaces that permitted students to access materials when they wanted to do so. Manipulative were designed for problem solving, mastery, and use in surprisingly creative ways.

Montessori believed that young children were sensitive to order, enjoyed doing activities repetitively and were happiest doing practical things. She even taught two year olds how to peel carrots. Montessori developed an environment that was kid-size so that materials could be easily reached and put away when completed. Over time, very sophisticated materials were developed for schools run by teachers specially trained in her methodology.

With Montessori’s approach in mind, I started my own in-home museum to be operated on a shoe-string. Part of the challenge of permitting children to roam freely involves developing an organizational plan. I began by selecting a dedicated area for my grand experiment. It was a place devoid of objects that could be accidentally destroyed but could be filled with materials, supplies and educational toys to promote creativity and imaginative play.

I added shelving and assigned different locations to hold games and toys. There were construction areas, a place with math manipulatives, a reading area with pillows and a rug, a puppet stage, assigned shelves for puzzles and educational toys, a dress-up bin and a craft station. I also built a music tree with clips to hold percussion instruments that the entire family enjoyed grabbing during musical gatherings.

Before entering the play area children were given instructions for its use. They were told that they could take whatever toys or supplies wanted but they had to return them to their original location before selecting a new item. Training children to put items away after use is not difficult if the rules are explained and if you consistently follow up. Keeping the area clear for future projects not only makes a parent’s job easier but it makes the child’s space more accessible.

If an item was new, I took the time to demonstrate its use, exiting the scene as soon as it was evident that the toy was mastered and they could continue with their own creations. Part of the secret of a successful home museum is to introduce toys (activities) one at a time. When there were lots of little parts I put them on a tray that the child could take to a table or the floor. This made the clean-up cycle easier. Once my child knew how to use the toy in its intended way, she or he was free to create variations in the way they played with it. The goal was for my young ones was to master the activity and become independent of my interference. I wanted them to gain satisfaction from their successes and become motivated for the next challenge.

A home-museum environment does take careful planning, but once operational the task becomes more routine because the child has learned to select his/her own activity, concentrate on the task at hand, and move progressively from one skill level to the next. The toys are not jumbled one on top of another as they would be in a toy box and are within easy reach. Again, independence is the goal.

One last thought. . .a child of about two and a half years old is ready for your home-museum. At first it is best not to have too many toys available so the child will not choose items he does not know how to operate. When the manipulative is successfully mastered then the next challenge can be introduced. If several children use the space, each needs to understand which items they have earned the right to use. This system provides motivation and works well for older children as well as preschoolers. It oftn encourages older children to teach younger ones.

When I became a grandparent, I did not have a playroom available but I still wanted my grandchildren to enjoy a degree of freedom when visiting and of course, I wanted them to be engaged in meaningful pursuits. I used a large buffet in my dining area for it contained shelving and doors. It was perfect for storage and when the doors were open, shelves held a neat, organized arrangement of fun filled opportunities. Toys and supplies were well positioned at child height with areas for books, puzzles, art supplies, construction materials, etc. A separate box holding legos served as a plant base when the children were not there. Between meals, the dining table was covered with a protective cloth to avoid paint and clay spills. a wood floor permitted buildings to be constructed and small wheeled vehicles to be assembled from parts. Even after my grandchildren graduated to more sophisticated electronic toys and computers, the cabinet was kept ready for visiting youngsters. I wanted to be prepared and not worried about them getting bored while I spent time talking to their parents.

Yes, children’s museums are fun because they are child centered and permit freedom of movement. Exhibits are designed to allow learning to take place and are built to withstand use. Since a mob of children are not your concern, there are hundreds of toys on the market that will serve your purpose. If you do decide to set up a museum in your home, I would love to hear back from you to hear about your success. What toys did you select? What problems have you encountered?

Do comment below.
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