fostering historical curiosity through play: cohort 2024

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Authentic Learning Environments for Children and Families in History Museums and Sites

Developing a new exhibit space is a complicated and expensive project. This topical series and learning community will engage your team with a cohort of colleagues doing comparable work. Through workshops, resources, coaching, and discussions, we will analyze similar completed projects, share feedback on your ideas, and learn collectively, thus maximizing your efforts and ability to avoid pitfalls and learn from other museums - saving you tens of thousands of dollars down the line. 

This program runs April - October 2024 and includes:

• Four workshops led by experts in teaching and learning, developmental theory, play research, and history exhibits and education. 
  • Goal-Setting: What do you want to do and how will you know if you’ve succeeded? 
  • Developmental and Family Learning: Knowing your audience and how they learn 
  • Play Research: What do we know about play and how does this relate to engaging visitors with history? 
  • Making it Happen: Workshop your museum’s plans for a play-infused environment 
• Time to review your plans with colleagues from other museums and get meaningful feedback via four monthly check-ins following the workshops.
• Access to a dedicated community platform for communication and shared research including images of and responses to other inter-generational history spaces, prototype findings, and our collective thoughts on effective practice, and additional resources related to play and learning in a history education or museum context. 
• One 90-minute coaching session for your team with Sarah, Rebecca, or Kristin, depending upon your needs, with access to additional coaching at a reduced rate.

Participating Organizations

• Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (IL)
• George Washington's Mount Vernon (VA)
• George Mason's Gunston Hall (VA)
• Historic Oak View (NC)
• Maryland Center for History and Culture (MD)
• Sacramento History Museum (CA)
• Thomas Jefferson's Monticello (VA)
• The Molly Brown House (CO)
• The Wyckoff House Museum (NY)

Program Leaders

Sarah Jencks, Every Museum a Civic Museum

Kristin Scarola, Creative Sparks Consulting

Rebecca Shulman, Museum Questions Consulting