The Minnesota Children's Museum is designed for ages 6 months to 10 years. The majority of children seemed to be in the 3-5 age range, although we saw kids that were about 7 or so. The museum was very interactive, and busy, but not too crowded. There were just enough there.I liked the "Spark Cart" it is a do-it-yourself face painting station with small mirrors, paint and sponges. It was just outside the Clifford exhibit which was hugely popular.
Around 11 a.m. there was a costumed "Clifford, the Big Red Dog" that appeared, and lots of kids posed for photos taken by parents. Apparently Adventures with Clifford is a temporary exhibit running mid-February through mid-Sept. There is a giant Clifford on top of the museum building for advertising, and lots of themed books, clothing, and stuffed toys in the museum store.
There were some reading nooks in different areas, places to sit with a few picture books.
My favorite exhibit was "Our World" with the bus, world market, post office, Vietnamese restaurant, and medical clinic. It looked like fun :)
I also noticed anything with water seemed to be well-used. I liked the water theme within the "World Work" exhibit. There was something for all ages here; bubbles, water tubes, and a water wonder tot spot.
And the gigantic "ant farm" was very cute, kids could put on an ant costume (see photo) within "Earth World." There were a few live animals in this exhibits, including some large turtles swimming. Each exhibit seemed to have costumes, if the kids wanted to wear them. And most areas had handwashing sinks and air dryers.
On the walls I noticed there were inspirational quotations. On the rooftop garden the fence had the words: Sing, Transform, Play, Balance, Be. There was a tie-in with literacy through the words, quotations, and the book nook areas.
The museum store was much larger than expected. A nice selection of books, stuffed toys, etc...lots of "Clifford"themed merchandise.
The donor wall was just blocks on a wall, listing names. Nothing creative there, but it matched and blended well with the other wall signage.
The museum staff makes their own exhibits, there are also traveling exhibits loaned to other museums, and themed "trunks" for schools to borrow. The museum is open 7-days a week in the summer, closed on Mondays the remainder of the year. The building has an open, airy feel to it, as the entrance lobby is a wall of windows (glass) and the staircase is set back, so visitors can see the 5-levels of floors. There are some large hanging fish in the lobby. I have lots more photos to post. It was an interesting visit!
So - is there a large Vietnamese population in Minneapolis to warrant a Vietnamese store in the museum?
ReplyDeleteI really like the do-it-yourself face painting cart - that's a need idea. We could incorporate something like that for the dramatic play (theatrical) space we are considering for the second floor where kids could not only dress up but do their own makeup. It would be messy, but fun. Wonder if we could get Sephora to sponsor it???
The loaner trunks to schools is also an interesting idea. Definitely something to think about this upcoming year *if* we get the LSTA grant. We will be trying to create some travelling exhibits for other libraries and schools, so this would fit right in. What all was in the trunks?
Unfortunately we will never be at a point where we can fabricate our own exhibits - just not big enough (uh, I mean, NO SPACE), but it would be nice.
Michelle
I had the same question about what was in the travelling trucks. That is a nice idea and I seem to remember something similar to that when I was a kid. Looking forward to seeing your pictures Karye.
ReplyDeleteMichelle,
ReplyDelete--According to the U.S. Census, the Asian population is 5.1% in Minneapolis. I don't see breakout for country of origin.
http://factfinder.census.gov/
I thought it was most likely the museum's attempt at multiculturalism, which they do seem to strive towards. We don't know if there were grant funding requirements involved. In trekking through the City's SkyWay, we saw a variety of food represented.
--Discovery trunks loaned to schools are on a variety of topics including: world music, hands-on health, dino dig, earth world: forest, earth world: insects, festivals of light, celebrations: new years, community faces and places, global shoes. They have details on the topics including fee to borrow. They do charge schools for rental. --karye