Dover Mini Maker Faire: Putting a Spotlight on NH Ingenuity

Tags

art, children's museum, creativity, Dover, Dover NH, exhibits, experimentation, families, Henry Law Park, learning, Maker Faire, making, New Hampshire, nh, problem solving, science, technology

New Hampshire is known for its “Yankee ingenuity, ” a place where generations have worked the land, manufactured goods and come up with creative solutions for reusing and repurposing materials. That spirit of making is alive today, and the Dover Mini Maker Faire is the place to find it. A hands-on festival for all ages, Maker Faire celebrates the thriving resourcefulness, innovation, creativity and forward-thinking technology that can be found in New Hampshire today.

On Saturday, August 23, the Dover Mini Maker Faire will take over downtown Dover, with four locations: upper and lower Henry Law Park, The Children’s Museum of New Hampshire, and One Washington Mill. Maker Faire attendees will be able to experience everything from quad-copter launches to spinning yarn from wool … 3-D printing to vertical gardening … driving an underwater submersible to learning how to tie flies … making a paper circuit pin to finding out how to make Star Wars costumes, and much more.

Over 50 makers and groups of makers will be on-hand hosting interactive demos, hands-on projects, small talks and workshops designed to inspire and educate attendees between the ages of 3 and 93 as to a sampling of “making” that is happening in New Hampshire businesses, schools & universities, organizations, and garage workbenches throughout the state and beyond. From engineering and product design, to arts, crafts, technology and homesteading, Maker Faire is the place to be inspired and connect with your inner maker!

2014 marks the 2^nd annual Dover Mini Maker Faire. The first Maker Faire was hosted in the Bay Area of California in 2006 as a place for makers to show what they made and share what they learned. In 2013, 100 independently-produced Mini (one day events) and Featured (2 or more day events) occurred around the World. In fact, this year’s Dover Mini Maker Faire is scheduled on the weekend between Sydney, Australia’s and Trondheim, Norway’s Faires. A licensed event through Maker Media, the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire is the host and coordinator of the Granite State’s only Maker Faire at this time.

In early 2012, the Museum began the process of becoming licensed to plan and host what would become the Dover Mini Maker Faire. “The Maker Faire concept was a perfect fit with the Museum’s focus on developing creative problem-solving skills and building a strong community focused on learning and collaboration,” says Jane Bard, Museum President. “What better way to shine a light on the innovation and creativity happening in NH but through the people, businesses, organizations and schools that are making that happen.”

In our increasingly complex world, the objects and technology that surround us can be intimidating and hard to understand. “There’s a growing distance between us and the world,” says Chris O’Brien from the LA Times. “We don’t know where our food comes from, how the energy we use gets made, and how to take apart our computer and fix it…The Maker Faire dares us to reverse that trend. And it inspires us to do that by gathering together thousands of people who embody that simple joy of creating things every day.”

Here is a sampling of the 55+ makers and maker activities scheduled to happen at this year’s August 23^rd Faire in Dover:

TOOOL – The Open Organization of Lockpickers – Teaching people to pick locks and understand how they work and why.

TDB Monsters – Focused around making creatures and characters out of discarded items and junk laying around. They create all sorts of other items, from a slithering bicycle, to jewelry made from almost nothing. Recycling objects is a major factor in what they do.

Port City MakerSpace and Manchester Makers – Projects and demonstrations by both organization’s members

Reproduction Retro Computers – Reproductions of Apple 1 and the SCELBI 8H computers. The Apple 1 is the first product of Apple. The SCELBI is the first personal computer, released in 1974, a full 2 years before the Apple 1.   There were around 200 of each system originally built. There are around 70 original Apple 1’s remaining. Original SCELBI computers are even scarcer, as there are only about a dozen original SCELBI’s known to exist. Both will running vintage computer software games from the 1970s. Users will be able to operate both computers.

EPLIS Comics – An all ages sci-fi action adventure comic book series. We’ll have a vendor table for our comics, and we’ll be doing two workshops: learn to draw cartoon characters, and how to create your own comics

3-D Printed Coins – Come make a fun maker crab coin or pin. You will be able to create a fun DIY project with a few materials.

Air Rocket Glider – Featured in MAKE issue #39. With its wings folded back, it launches on a blast of compressed air, on our new v2.0 Compressed Air Rocket launcher (CAR v2.0). When the ARG reaches apogee, the wings pop out for a gentle glide back to the ground.

Vertical Gardening by KinneBotanicals – Using long-lasting and environmentally friendly materials, they will demonstrate how to grow plants on walls instead of the floor, be they edible or ornamental. This method drastically reduces space requirements. It also adds an interesting aesthetic to any indoor or outdoor space.

Darkhill Cemetery Haunted House – 14 year old George Farrow’s passion for the past six years has been creating the Darkhill Cemetery Haunted House. This small attraction held in his parents’ garage every year focuses on using high quality detailed sets/scenics as well as computer controlled animatronics and spectacular sound and lighting. George will share some of the methods used to make his event come alive, such as foam carving/sculpting, carpentry, lighting/sound design, casting, molding, and more!

NEMO Equipment – This Dover-based company designs and manufactures outdoor equipment, tents, and shelters. Founded in 2002 NEMO Equipment has won numerous awards for its designs. Sold nationally around the US and in numerous other countries around the world, NEMO is recognized as a leader in outdoor equipment.

Automotive Technology – See how modern vehicles work! There will be demonstrations on the anatomy of an automotive wheel bearing, how Tire Pressure Monitoring systems work, and how modern computer systems measure air flow into the engine. Look inside the operating system of a modern vehicle to see what all the electronics do!

Advance tickets are now on sale for $10 and tickets at the gate will be $12. Children ages 5 and under are admitted free. Tickets can be purchased online at www.makerfairedover.com. For more information on the Dover Mini Maker Faire, please call 603-742-2002 or visit www.makerfairedover.com

30 years and counting …

Tags

30th anniversary, accessibility, children, children's museum, Children's Museum of NH, creativity, education, families, family learning, how chiildren learn, impact, kids, learning, making, mission, museum, problem solving, programs, vision, visitor experience, world cultures

The start of a new year brings a sense of promise and revitalization — a chance to reflect on the past and set goals for the future. Here at the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire, staff members have been sharing memories from the past 30 years as well as envisioning how we can continue to build a bright future for the Museum and everyone who is part of our community.

How do we do this? We ask ourselves tough questions about what we do, why we do it, and the impact we have on families, schools and community organizations.

Do we provide valuable experiences for visitors of all ages?

From First Friends for children as young as six months old and the Make It or Break It afterschool club for up to age 12, to the Dover Mini Maker Faire for all ages and the Alzheimer’s Café for seniors, we are engaging with people at all stages of life.

Do we give families reasons to keep coming back?

Our educators and exhibit team are always cooking up new ideas and experiments designed to deepen the impact of a Museum visit and provide fresh and exciting experiences for our frequent visitors.

Are we meeting the needs of schools? 

Tying our group visits to teacher’s curriculum makes a visit to the Museum relevant. For schools that can’t reach us because of distance or bussing costs, we will pilot taking our programs out to schools this spring.

Can everyone who wants to participate in the Museum access our programs and services?

Our Reach All Initiative ensures that families and schools have free or reduced price access to the Museum. Programs like Exploring Our Way also provide free access to families with children on the autism spectrum.

the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire

Although times change, some things remain the same, such as the need to provide children and families with a safe and stimulating environment where they can take risks, ignite their creative potential and explore their passions. This is what has been fueling our work for the past 30 years, and we look forward to the next 30 years of nurturing new generations of innovative thinkers.

Being Green: It’s more than the right thing to do

Tags

best practices, child development, construction, green, learning, mission

This year we were honored to be awarded Best Revitalization Project by Building NH at their annual awards ceremony.  This week we hosted a breakfast for members of the NH chapter of the US Green Building Council.  These events have gotten us thinking more about being green, and have motivated us to go back 4 years to review how and why we made the decision to go after LEED certification in the first place. The Children’s Museum of New Hampshire was the first LEED certified museum in the state of New Hampshire.  What is somewhat surprising is that it remains one of only:

• 20 LEED projects in New Hampshire
• 8 LEED Silver projects in the state
• 14 LEED children’s museums in the country
• 6 LEED Silver children’s museums in the USA

Many things that LEED certification encourages, or even requires, are good business practices and the right decision. For instance, there is a minimum required amount of construction waste recycled during building process. In our case that translated to over 54%, or more than 65 tons of waste that we kept out of landfill or the waste stream.

LEED also encourages using natural light and ventilation.  So we choose to open up formerly blocked windows including the two tall arched windows in the South wall. Natural light reduces our reliance on utilities and lowers operating costs. A high performance heating and cooling system, as well as double-paned, energy efficient operable windows, help reduce our need for air conditioning .

Some of the decisions we made when thinking about LEED also resulted in delightful and impactful visitor experiences.

Finished Cocheco Systems exhibit

Rear extension during construction

 

Adding the glass extension to the back of the building brought in light and allowed us to create an exhibit about the social and natural history of living on the River which is on the River and allows children to make connections between their play and the real thing.

As in all construction projects we had to put money into infrastructure, such as our 2,000 gallon cistern which captures rain water and eliminates all use of potable water for irrigation.  This is not something visitors will ever see. It can also be hard for visitors to appreciate the low-key landscaping done with New England Conservation Wildlife Mix which is designed to maintain native vegetation, increase biodiversity and wildlife habitat and reduce water usage.

Monarch Butterfly Teacher’s Network conducts butterfly release in Museum’s “back yard”

You probably have taken notice of our-low flow faucets and dual-flush toilets – did you know they save us an estimated 43% in water use, reducing our water consumption from 127,642 gallons per year to 72,721 gallons per year?!

That is just the infrastructure!  We have cabinetry built of fast-growth bamboo and natural plant fiber cellulose used for insulation and acoustic damping.  There is recycled content in the rubber and cork floor tiles, the bathroom countertops, and the carpet tiles.  And we choose low-voc paints throughout the museum, as well as non-volatile finishes on floors.

Here are some fun facts:

The diner furniture came from a diner in Gardner MA that went out of business, and the Panelite ramp railing and the classroom wood flooring panels were reclaimed from a furniture showroom in Manchester, NH

Our exhibits were also done as “green” as possible. To us this meant reuse, repurposing, upcycling, being local, and making sure we used real things.

Here are some examples:

sea life murals were painstakingly removed, restored and re-installed in our new museum

Submarine portholes and hardware salvaged from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in our Yellow Submarine

Bench seating and passenger counters in the Trolley came from real, retired, equipment.

Bobbins, spools, looms, and the carder are all reused from discarded factory equipment.

Mill machinery called adjustable warp beam heads used as part of donor signs throughout the museum

I have talked about the importance of being green for the Children’s Museum before, and each time I say being green is not just the right thing to do, it is mission-driven for us. After all, the Children’s Museum is about the foundational skills kids need for success over their lifetime.  Sustainability and stewardship are part of that. They are part of our overall health and wellness, how we relate to the land and built environment, as well as how we relate to one another.  We believe that it is our responsibility to set a living example, and to model our values of responsibility and good citizenship.

The environment of the Museum is also designed for learning – that is our expertise.  It is a best practice to provide a non-toxic, safe, and sustainable environment for kids to explore.  A significant portion of our visitors are physically on or close to the floor, might put something in their mouths, and their brains are still developing.  Kids learn in multisensory ways and we don’t want them to feel inhibited about exploring something through all their senses.  We want them to have an environment which best supports their development.  It is respectful of kids to be green.

“With each new LEED-certified building, we get one step closer to USGBC’s vision of a sustainable built environment within a generation . . .The Children’s Museum of New Hampshire is an important addition to the growing strength of the green building movement.”  – Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO & Founding Chair, USGBC

Top 3 Toddler Development Questions

Tags

child development, children, family, learning, nutrition, parents, potty training, questions, speech development, toddlers

Guest post by Alison Leighton, Child Life Specialist at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, and Seana Hallberg, Family Resource Coordinator for Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth’s clinic at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital

Seana Hallberg (left) and Alison Leighton (right) visited the Children’s Museum recently to answer parents’ child development questions.

In our work with children and parents at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, we get a lot of questions. Each day, we meet with families who are dealing with pediatric medical issues and try to help in any way we can, from answering questions and acting as a sounding board to connecting them with community resources and specialist care.

No matter who we meet or where we go, we find we get a lot of the same questions about child development. We recently spent time at the Children’s Museum of NH’s Toddlerfest and took questions from new parents and it was no exception. Their concerns were typical of what we are asked most often.

So here are our Top 3 Toddler Development Questions, along with the answers we can practically give in our sleep!

1.) “My child has used certain words before but when prompted, he does not want to mimic. Is this normal?”

Children who are typically learning to speak are also seeking “mastery” of their new skills. This often involves practicing the skill repeatedly, but on their own terms. A general rule of thumb is by 12 months of age a child should use simple gestures as a way to communicate like waving, or simple signs. You can begin modeling simple signs as early as five months and doing hand-over-hand with your children to model the sign. Children as young as nine months are seen making approximations of simple signs. What’s most important is that your child is moving forward in her communication skills — using his sounds, gestures and facial expressions in increasingly complex ways. If you have concerns about where your child is developmentally, you should speak with your pediatrician.

2) ” My child is resistant to being potty trained. What do I do?”

Our general feeling surrounding this issue is that children need to show signs of readiness before we begin the stages of using the potty. Often a child will tell you that they are about to go, or after they have gone, they begin to hide when voiding, or they are dry at night. This shows they are beginning to have bladder/ bowel control. Every child gets to this place at different times. It is important to remember to make potty training exciting by reading books about potty training, talking about the potty, practicing sitting on the potty. Rewards can work wonders (such as giving a sticker for each time they go). If a child isn’t ready, it often becomes a source of anxiety and stress for the entire family and they do not gain the sense of accomplishment or mastery of an important new skill.

At the museum’s FoodWorks events, children are invited to sample colorful fruits and veggies they may not have tried before.

3) “I feel like my child only eats particular foods and I worry she isn’t getting all of the important vitamins and nutrients she needs. What should I do?”

As we all know, children can be extremely picky. Toddlers love to turn their noses up at the food we often want them to eat and those meals we slave over. It is important to remember to expose your child to a variety of foods beginning at a young age. Don’t assume your child may not like something … give it a chance. If your child does not like the food initially, they will begin to try if it is offered repeatedly. Children are more likely to resist if they are forced to do something. Try to be creative when making foods. Make smoothies with ingredients that they will not eat raw. Make fun snacks, etc. using cookie cutter shapes. In the process of making food, involve your children as they will be much more likely to try something they created.

– About Alison Leighton, Child Life Specialist, Wentworth Douglass Hospital:  As a child life specialist, I ease the stress and anxiety for families in the medical environment using the child’s method of communication, play to teach, learn and cope.

– About Seana Hallberg, Family Resource Coordinator for CHaD at Wentworth-Douglass Hospital:  As a Family Resource Coordinator, I am able to support families with the stressors of a child’s medical diagnosis and can assist families in finding socializing opportunities, educational and financial information and behavioral counseling. 

Meet the CMNH Experience Guides: Sarah

Tags

Allentown, children's museum, Children's Museum of NH, education, family learning, how chiildren learn, learning, Magic School Bus, museum educator, Musical Theater, New Jersey, science, teaching

It’s time to meet another member of the Experience Guide Staff at the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire!

Sarah is at CMNH the majority of the week and can usually be found hip deep in arts and crafts supplies in the Muse Studio.  You may have even heard Sarah’s voice while you were shopping for a pair of jeans.  Yes, you read that right!  Sarah has a lot to say so let’s jump right in and find out more!

Zach:  Sarah, how long have you worked at the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire?

Sarah:  I’ve been at the museum since October – so about 11 months!

Z:  Why CMNH?

S:  I’ve always loved working with kids and when I saw that CMNH was hiring I thought it would be a great opportunity to do different activities and exploration with families each day.  I loved that each day would be a new and different experience!  The other part of that daily surprise is the fact that I get to teach each day.  Interactive teaching with the visitors is the highlight of my job.

Z:  What originally brought you to New Hampshire?

S:  I came to Dover because I was accepted in to the Masters of Fine Arts program at UNH in Durham.  My focus is Creative Writing – specifically Poetry.

Z:  Where did you complete your undergrad studies?

S:  I attended Columbia University in New York City.  My focus in undergrad was Creative Writing but I also spent much of my time at Columbia attending and participating in musical performances.  I’ve been studying voice since I was six-years old so I definitely enjoyed working with classical music and opera at Columbia.

Z:  Wow!  You may likely be our only Experience Guide with an opera background!  Tell me, what – if any – experience did you have working with families before your time here at CMNH?

S:  For many, many years, I taught at a musical theater summer camp in my hometown of Allentown, New Jersey.

This Way to Allentown!

Z:  That sounds like a lot of fun!

S:  Yes!  “Musical Theater Magical Camp” was a very enjoyable place to work!

Z:  Wow!  With a name like that it sounds even more fun!

S:  It really was a lot of fun.  Each session ran for 3 weeks and was open to children from 5-12 years old.  We would spend Week One getting to know each other, learning about theater, playing games and becoming comfortable with being on stage.  We would cast a full musical in Week Two and then teach them choreography, design and make the costumes, and create the set.  Then, after rehearsing throughout Week Three, we would put on a performance on the last day for the entire camp and all of the returning families.

Curtains up on the, “Pirates: The Musical” set, circa 2009

Z:  Did any of the children ever experience stage fright?

S:  Oh, yes!  We would often get parents who would sign their children up for our camp in an attempt to kind of bring them out of their shell.  These are the children that would be quite shy at the start of camp; often they would be the younger campers.  Which made it such a wonderful process that at the end of three weeks we’d be able to see these kids that had entered the process unsure of themselves and their abilities come out on stage and blow us away with their confidence!

Z:  I’m currently working on a production myself this summer outside of CMNH and I’m having some trouble with a few of the actors hitting their spots and remembering their lines.  Can I recruit you to come and fill them full of your trademark confidence??

S:  Well, I’m pretty busy at the museum this summer but we’ll see what I can do!

Z:  Sarah, switching gears a bit, I’d like to know if you or your family visited museums when you were growing up?

S:  We did.  We went to a ton of museums as a family.  My father is a software developer and he has worked on a number of projects and exhibits for museums.  He and his brothers did most of hardware and software for the Sony Wonder Museum in New York when it first opened.

Z:  “New York” meaning New York City?

S:  Yes!  Right on Madison Avenue!  I was able to explore the museum before they officially opened to the public while my father worked on different projects and exhibits.

Z:  How old were you?

S:  About 6 or 7.

Z:  I’m jealous.

S:  [Laughs.]  You should be!  My dad has worked with a number of museums since then and I actually got to do some voice-over work on one of his projects.

Z:  I’m somehow even more jealous now.  What was the voice work?

S:  It was an exhibit for the Children’s Museum of Houston that was also getting installed at the Liberty Science Center in New Jersey.  It was a Magic School Bus weather-based exhibit.  I provided the voices for two of the children in the Magic School Bus.

All Aboard the Magic School Bus!

Z:  Wow!

S:  He also worked for the Levi’s flagship store in Union Square in San Francisco – so for a long time, I was the voice of many of their in-store kiosks.

Z:  Did you actually get to travel to San Francisco?

Sarah’s voice will help you buy your next pair of jeans!

S:  I did!  The whole family spent the summer in San Francisco.

Z:  And how old were you then?

S:  I was 12 years old and it was wonderful to be there for the whole summer.  We really got to know the city.

Z:  I have to ask – did you visit any museums?

S:  We did.  We went to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.  It . . . well . . .

Z:  Yes?

S:  It was actually . . . an interesting experience.

Z:  I’m going to need you to tell me more than that!

S:  Yes.  Well.  They had a number of installations that were very advanced and were . . . well, perhaps a little over my 12-year old head.

Z:  I see.  Well, Sarah, please tell us:  What is your favorite museum in the world?

S:  That’s a really tough question to answer.  I very much love the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC.  I visited it constantly while at Columbia.  But . . . I’d have to say that the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City, NJ will always hold a special place in my heart.  When my father was working on the Magic School Bus exhibit, my friend and I were allowed to be at the museum before and after hours and we were given free access to all of the IMAX shows.  Most importantly, we were allowed to wear V.I.P. necklaces. [Laughs.]

Z:  I always knew you were a V.I.P.!  Sarah, what is your favorite exhibit at CMNH and why?

S:  My favorite exhibit is probably the Muse Studio.  I love the way we’ve been able to mix artistic creativity with scientific exploration.  You’ll see families and staff drawing, painting and collaging conjoined with learning how a prism works and how a lima bean plant grows.  It’s definitely the part of the museum that, as a child, you would have had difficulty getting me to leave.

Z:  Even as an adult we have a hard time getting you out of the Muse Studio!

S:  This is true.  [Laughs.]

Essential Information about Experience Guide Sarah

Favorite Color:  Green (Most shades of green, but not Turquoise!)

Favorite Animal:  Dachshund

Favorite Movie:  Contact

Favorite Type of Music:  Classical  /  Favorite Artist:  Elvis Costello

Books We Love for Family Learning

Tags

babies, books, child development, children, children's books, children's museum, Children's Museum of NH, Dover, education, families, family learning, how chiildren learn, Kathleen Thorner, learning, library, nh

There is no better feeling than that of spending time happily engaged with a child. And we know from emerging research into brain development that children get more out of the time and attention adults spend on them than previously believed.

You may have heard the phrase “parents are a child’s first teacher.” This idea that the primary adults in a child’s life are their most important influence is true not simply about learning language or how to hold a spoon, but also in establishing lifelong values. When an adult includes a child in activities they enjoy – whether music, drawing, reading, building, or anything else – the child associates that experience with the shared good feeling.

Intrigued? Museum staff and Dover Public Library‘s Children’s Librarian Kathleen Thorner have compiled this reading list to help you make the most of family learning experiences.

These books peek inside the developing brain to help us better understand just what babies know, when they know it, and how they learn:

Einstein Never Used Flashcards: How Our Children Really Learn – And Why They Need to Play More and Memorize Less by Kathy Hirsch-Pasek and Roberta Michnick Golinkoff with Diane Eyer. 2003

The Scientist in the Crib: What Early Learning Tells Us About the Mind by Allison Gopnick, Andrew Meltzoff and Patricia K. Kuhl. 1999

Eager to Learn: Educating our Preschoolers, the National Research Council, National Academy Press. 2000.

Here are some resources to help you plan outdoor adventures with your family:

Best Hikes with Kids. Vermont, New Hampshire & Maine by Cynthia Copeland, Thomas Lewis & Emily Kerr. 2007

New Hampshire Off the Beaten Path 8th: a guide to unique places by Barbara Radcliffe Rogers. 2009

These books are packed with ideas for how to feed the imagination and spirit of the children who share your home:

Winnie the Pooh’s Rainy Day Activities by Sharon Harper. 2002

Kitchen Science by Peter Pentland. 2003

I’m a Scientist: Kitchen by Lisa Burke. 2010

I’m a Scientist: Backyard by Lisa Burke. 2010

Festivals, Family & Food by Diana Carey. 1996

The Nature Corner by M.V. Leeuwen. 1990

Science for Early Learners

Tags

chemistry, children, kids, learning, museum, science, scientific method, teaching

In the year since I’ve been teaching Jr. Science Explorers here at the Children’s Museum of NH, I’ve gotten some pretty funny reactions when I tell people what I do. I teach a science class for preschoolers.

“Science? For preschoolers??”, they ask quizzically. “What do you teach them?”

“Oh, you know, mostly chemistry and physics. We also do some physical science and a little biology.” The reactions are often a mix of surprise, curiosity and sometimes doubt.

“Really? Physics? For preschoolers?”

Of course, I choose these terms to get a “wow” response and try to impress that my preschool students are serious about science and what they are learning. Because my students are little scientists. They have lots of ideas and big questions, you know, like all preschoolers. And they can be very invested in what they are investigating. We aren’t just mixing dirt and water together. But, wait, sometimes we are actually.

And that’s the thing I try to get across to my friends. Science at the preschool level is just about being curious, wanting to find out “what happens if…” and to test out what we think in order to construct new and, hopefully, deeper understandings.

Jr. Science class team brainstorms with Kiki in preparation for an Egg Drop experiment

My students come to me with lots of ideas about their world. These come from their own experiences, through play or maybe some guided activity at home with their parents. Sometimes their knowledge comes from books they’ve read, and even from TV (thanks, Curious George and Sid the Science Kid!).

As the teacher of Jr. Science Explorers, my job is to provide the venue for sharing these ideas and for taking them further. We always start class by sharing what we know about the topic because, after all, we are a community of scientists and learners. Then we might take a question about the topic and use that to guide our science exploration. It’s really as simple as that: what do you already know, what questions do you have about it and let’s see what we can discover and learn together.

Color mixing can yield unexpected results for budding scientists.

So to those people who are a little surprised when I tell them I teach science to preschoolers, I explain that when we mix blue and yellow colored water to see what we get and then paint with it, it might look like play, but it really is chemistry. We are learning that when you mix things, you can make a reaction. We are learning to use tools that are helpful to scientists, like how to use an eye dropper (also a great fine motor skill to work on for this age group too!). We are learning the importance of following a set of instructions to get the desired result.

And we are also learning that sometimes the process creates surprising results, like getting brown water when the kid next to you made green. But that’s an important discovery nonetheless. And it’s seeing it that way — not as a mistake, but as a discovery — that is important to learn, too! After all, it’s those unintended results that further science along. We wouldn’t have penicillin if Alexander Fleming had not accidentally contaminated his work and grown the mold that became an antibiotic.

A young student investigates the properties of water droplets during a summer science camp at the Children's Museum of NH.

So when I say chemistry, and people imagine a lab with bubbling test tubes and Bunsen burners, its not exactly that. But it is the foundation for that scientific learning and discovery: talking about your ideas, asking questions and wondering, wanting to test your ideas, and making some new discoveries along the way.

And who knows, perhaps that student with the brown water could become the next Alexander Fleming.

Embracing Change

Tags

change, education, learning

Change. One word that means so much. Seasons change. Our children’s needs and interests change as they grow. As your family changes the experiences you seek to do together change as well. Here at the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire, changes are underway – changes designed to keep pace with the needs of the curious children and engaged adults who walk through our doors.

For us, change can take many forms and has many dimensions:

To Deepen Impact

Many of our exhibits can be used in different ways with some changes to supplies. For instance, have you ever wondered what it would be like to make and launch folded paper constructions in Build It Fly It? Simply using folded paper or recycled materials rather than foam shapes opens up new ways to think about the exhibit, its uses and possible outcomes. What flying contraptions have you always wanted to try in that space?

To Support Repeat Visitation

You might be one of the many families who visit the museum 4 – 9 times each year. Change offers new options for you to explore during a visit so the Museum remains challenging, engaging and fresh. New materials, exhibit props, staff-facilitated programs and take-home activities are designed to allow you to make new connections between what you already know – and new ideas.

So, for example, did you know you can build and decorate your own soapbox kit cars in to race in the Thinkering Lab? Buy two from the museum shop, borrow our kit of wood files and decorations, or take them home to make, then bring them back and race head-to-head. We purposely designed this space so that the make-your-own cars we have in the exhibit are just a launching pad for your imagination and the opportunities are endless. In the future, look for other car-building materials, like Legos or recycled materials.

To Stay Relevant and Meaningful

Flexible change, such as exhibit kits that we can share with interested visitors, allows you to customize your visit. Did you know you can ask our Experience Guide staff to bring out a beaver pelt and teeth, or owl pellet dissection activity? Take down more materials in the Studio, or give you a kit of materials to design and construct a different flyer to test in Build It Fly It? We want to be responsive and give you the ability to personalize your visit. After all, we don’t know what your interests are unless you share them with us!

To Support a Broad and Diverse Audience

From crawling infants, to inquisitive 4^th graders, from new parents to grandparents, from the casual museum-goer to the Museum member who visits us every week, change helps us reach every visitor in a new way. The Studio’s monthly theme and changing weekly activities are designed to support a variety of learning styles and a broader age range. Our goal for this space is for the youngest visitors and those with the most skill and longest attention spans to both find something interesting to do, and be successful. We are challenging ourselves to come up with projects that meet all our goals and which you find fun.

To Build Relationships

When we choose the theme of an exhibit, we think about how it will allow us to connect and collaborate with, local audiences. From the Trout in the Classroom project to recipe-sharing in the World Café we look for local relevance, a NH focus, a good visitor experience, and opportunities to build relationships. Another way we do this is by incorporating visitor-made work in the Museum, and including your faces and voices within the Museum. This allows the Museum to truly reflect you – our users – and it keeps the experience fresh for all. We think your work, images, and words are beautiful and inspiring and we are glad for the chance to celebrate the creativity in action here everyday.

What do you think? As you visit the museum over the next year, keep a look out for ongoing change at many levels. Do you see different elements and props in our exhibits? Did everyone in the family find something to do the month in the Studio? Did our Experience Guide staff share something new with you or invite you to try a special activity? Do you see comments, artwork and perspectives of our community?

We truly want to know what works and what still needs work. What do you want us to try next?