Writing by: Luz Chastel Messner
History of Children’s Museums
Introduced
The world’s first children’s museum opened in Brooklyn, New York in 1899. https://www.jstor.org/stable/41514609?seq=1
Mary Stewart Carey was one who set up a children’s museum, the largest museum in the USA. It is in Indianapolis, her museum is called, “The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis”. Over a 100 years later, many more cities and towns have started up a children’s museum. There are about two hundred children’s museums in America. Each state has an iconic children’s museum that works to be the best!
Why is the Children's Museum so important?
Children’s museums are so important for children because, “The importance of learning and brain development in early childhood.” - Sep 18, 2017- Anna Forgerson Hindley, Cynthia Raso, and Tiffany McGettigan. That actually helps children to learn in an easier and better way. Museums encourage critical thinking skills, spark curiosity, and encourage creativity. https://laillusions.com/the-educational-benefits-of-taking-kids-to-museums/
Not only that, museums keep children entertained for a long time. As for the present, museums are totally different from past museum design. And they add more present technology, art, culture, and/or tradition.
The Children’s Museum of Montana would like to add sign language within the museum. Adding more cultural awareness and including everyone is important. I have started teaching the staff sign language so that they can better understand and speak to deaf people like me.
What does the Children's Museum have?
Children’s museums have so many different things, such as, almost all children's museums have grocery stores, fireman trucks, libraries, and many more. For example, the Children's Museum of Montana in Great Falls, MT has a playground (parkour), pirate ship, costumes area, grocery store, schoolhouse, cabin model, doctor, dentist, train station set, lego area, and a few more. Other than museum exhibits, what do museums have? Most children's museums have a food court, but in Great Falls, MT has a coffee shop currently and plans for a restaurant in their new museum.
Why are some museums expensive and others cheap?
All museums have a different cost of admission. Most commonly, adults have to pay at least $15, and usually adult and kid entry is the same cost. The most expensive admission to a children’s museums I could find is in Indianapolis, where entry is $ 32 for adults and $27 for kids. Museums are expensive because most museums pay to see limited editions or old fashion (hard to find) exhibits. The historical and unique experience is well worth the money. For example, I used to live in Rochester, New York. Their children’s museum is called Strong Museum of Play. That museum has so many exhibits, they even have a butterfly area. Ticket entry to that place is $ 20 for adults and kids, but that museum is so big that it is 13.5 acres. That is why most museums are so expensive to enter. But trust me, it is worth it.
Thank you all for reading this! I hope you all enjoy this.