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

As principal consultant at Every Museum a Civic Museum, Sarah works with museums and museum educators to help them find their authentic civic missions and see the possibilities for igniting and enacting the collective impact of museum education in schools and our democratic republic. She believes that every museum can and should be a civic museum, and science-backed playful learning is crucial to that mission. Sarah is a co-chair of the Educating for American Democracy Community Learning Partners task force and a volunteer leader with the American Association for State and Local History, the American Alliance of Museums, and the Teacher InSites collective. For almost 15 years, Sarah was Director of Education and Interpretation at Ford’s Theatre, where she oversaw school and teacher programs as well as interpretive strategy and digital and on-site exhibitions. She previously taught middle-school history, English, and theater. Sarah serves on the boards of the National Council for History Education and Literacy InterActives and holds an M.Ed. in School Leadership and an A.B. in American Civilization.

Kristin Scarola, Creative Sparks Consulting

Kristin is an educator and consultant who creates experiences for museum visitors that are accessible, engaging, and informative with an emphasis on the power of creativity to enliven, transform, and inspire. With more than 15 years of experience in the field, she specializes in interdisciplinary learning and child development and applies her expertise as an exhibit developer, curriculum designer, and evaluator.  She has taught at numerous NYC cultural institutions, most recently supporting children’s museums to realize exhibits in new spaces. Kristin teaches preservice teachers as an adjunct professor at CUNY and serves as a peer reviewer for the Journal of Museum Education. Her practice is informed by her commitment to social justice, work as an artist, parenting a young child, and explorations in museums and the natural world.

Rebecca Shulman, Museum Questions Consulting

Rebecca has been working in the field of museum education for over 25 years. From 2015-2022 Rebecca served as the founding director of a children’s museum, where, among other responsibilities, she supported her team in the work of creating programs and exhibits for children and families. Prior to this role, Rebecca worked in art museums in New York City, spending over a decade managing a school outreach program for the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. As a consultant, Rebecca works with museums on strategic planning, staff and board development, fundraising, and evaluation. She recently worked with artist Pablo Helguera to create Flor de Juegos Antiguos, an interactive, game-based artwork in the Baltimore Museum of Art’s newly reopened education space. She has served on the boards of the New York City Museum Educators Roundtable and the New York City Arts in Education Roundtable, and is currently a member of the editorial board of Curator: The Museum Journal. She has taught at Bank Street College and Bradley Universities, and writes the Museum Questions blog, posing larger questions about the field, and has published a book, Looking at Art in the Classroom. Her work is informed by a passion for thoughtful, equitable, intentional teaching through exhibits and programs that empower individuals while offering them the opportunity to learn, reflect, connect.