“Researching the Value of Educator Actions for Learning (REVEAL) was a three-year, National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded research study carried out by the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) between 2013 and 2017. In collaboration with TERC and Oregon State University, the team explored the role of museum educators in deepening and extending family engagement and […]
Bring the Family: Children’s Museum Wisdom for the Rest of the Museum Community
In an interview with exhibit and program designers at the Boston Children’s Museum, Margaret Middleton explores some of the common questions museum professionals might have about creating successful “multigenerational social learning experiences” that engage both children and adults. Middleton, Margaret. “Bring the Family: Children’s Museum Wisdom for the Rest of the Museum Community.” WestMuse Blog. Western Museums […]
Create.Connect at Conner Prairie
Created in partnership with the Science Museum of Minnesota, and funded by the National Science Foundation, Create.Connect is an exhibit and program space at Conner Prairie Interactive History Park that brings together science and history focused on Indiana’s history. The activities promote conversation between family members to elicit relevant connections to visitors’ own lives. Create.Connect Conner […]
Steal This Idea
Here is a collection of simple, cheap, effective, tested techniques that have worked in other exhibitions and may be applicable in your museum – try it out! Making Work Fun Sampling chores from the past encourages visitors to compare/contrast to the present. Try a Board Game Games can highlight the role of chance within history, […]
Exhibit Prototyping
Test, revise, and test again. That’s prototyping – designing for success through an iterative process. About Exhibit Prototypes Answers the question, “why prototype?” and lists some types of prototypes. Prototyping “The Old Ironsides 1812 Discovery Center” Blog posts detailing the development of this exhibit through prototyping and evaluation. Prototyping “All Hands on Deck” The lessons […]
Design Strategies
Let’s build some exhibits! These articles will help you build your exhibition team, frame your content for a family audience, and utilize the seven characteristics of successful family-friendly exhibitions. Putting Families First Why it’s important to put families at the center of your exhibit design and the practical implications of doing so. PISEC: Exhibits to […]
Using Questions and Quotes
Exhibits that incorporate compelling historic quotes and historical questions foster personal connections between visitors and stories of the past. Using Questions and Quotes Questions and quotes promote conversations and help visitors make personal connections. Audience Research Results: Labels with Historical Characters An overview of the prototyping and evaluation process for the use of life-size historical cut-outs in […]
Why It’s Important
Why should I bother with all this, you ask? These articles explain the benefits of engaging families for your institution, visitors/users, community, and society at large. Plus there’s some good advice on convincing others that it is important, too! Why Family Learning is Important Lynn Dierking describes why it is important to embrace family learning […]
Resources
Understanding Today’s Families These articles give insight into the makeup and characteristics of family audiences, as well as provide examples and case studies. Understanding Today’s Families The USS Constitution Museum team describes today’s Generation X families and the challenges they present to history museums. 10 Steps to Family Learning The USS Constitution Museum invites you […]
What It Is
What do we mean by family learning and engagement? What does it look like? How can I tell if I’m doing these things at my site? Experts define and discuss these concepts. Laughing and Learning Together Family learning and how it looks in different families and at different times in the family life cycle. Dierking […]
Exhibits
Learn to design, write engaging text, prototype, and revise your exhibits for better family learning. We’ve shared our best ideas for you to steal. Design Strategies How can you design exhibits that result in family learning? This sections provides the how-to and some examples to “steal.” Drafting Text Well written text will get visitors talking to each […]
Peopling History
There’s a reason why reality shows are so popular! People care about other people and their experiences. Focus on the human story and use first-person labels to increase engagement and interest in your exhibit. Telling the Story Through People By personalizing the story and telling it through people, visitors connect on a personal level. Visitors […]
Family Friendly Content
How can you maximize family engagement in your galleries? Connect exhibits to themes that are universal and relevant to visitors, organize them thematically rather than chronologically and include a delightful surprise or two. Developing Content to Engage Families How you can develop exhibit content that puts families first and draws on their needs to inform […]
Drafting Text
Visitors will read. We promise. What’s more, well written text will get visitors talking to each other. So, keep it short. Try the first person voice. Use quotes. Ask questions. And don’t forget the fun. Family Friendly Content Ways to develop content that families can relate to, understand, and have fun with. Peopling History How focusing […]
Family Learning in Interactive Galleries (FLING)
From 2007-2011, three major art institutions, Frist Center for the Visual Arts, High Museum of Art, and The Speed, participated in a study examining “families’ value and use of interactive galleries in art museums and their motivations for visiting the spaces.” The Family Learning in Interactive Galleries website includes multiple resources related to the project, […]
What We Do and Do Not Know about Family Learning in Art Museum Interactive Spaces: A Literature Review
In preparation for the Family Learning in Interactive Galleries (FLING) project, the principal researchers gathered all available literature on family learning in museums. This comprehensive review, circa 2010, covers the changing definitions of family, facilitation, audience motivations, social interaction, audience goals and values, parent behaviors, as well as describing the life-cycle of a family’s visit […]
Scamper: An Idea Generation Process
Michael Michalko, an internationally acclaimed creative thinking expert and author, developed a method called SCAMPER to guide people through the process of generating ideas. Designers and facilitators can try this method as a way to prototype solutions to small problems or as a quick way to try to improve an aspect of an exhibit or […]
The Entry Point Approach from Howard Gardner
Harvard Professor Howard Gardner argues that there are five points from which learners can enter into a topic: The Aesthetic, Narrative, Logical/Quantitative, Foundational, and Experiential. Using this theory can help program and exhibit designers offer visitors a variety of ways to access our content and activities. This concept comes directly from his work on Multiple Intelligences […]
The Engaging Museum: Developing Museums for Visitor Involvement
This practical guide outlines various ways professionals can develop their programs, exhibits, and general museum atmosphere to best engage the public. Using examples mostly from the UK and Canada, Graham Black offers a synthesis of best practices and research to date, as well as case studies and infographics to illustrate his points.
Visitor Research from the Victoria & Albert Museum
Well-known for their intensive audience research, prototyping, and evaluation processes for both programs and exhibits, this page contains numerous project reports and papers.
