8/7/2023 0 Comments Mt pleasant discovery museum![]() ![]() ![]() So we had to do a lot of thinking about how to provide neat activities for everyone kids who can’t or don’t want to climb up, and how to encourage adults to get up there with the kids, too.” “The Rocket Climber was something the founders wanted to happen, but was put on hold because of its location - it’s in the silo section of the museum, which is 19 feet wide and 30 feet straight up. One of the things kids wanted to see in the museum were exhibits featuring outer space.and they’re about to be able to see it in a whole new way. They can see it’s all connected.”Ī bank exhibit gives kids a hands-on way to learn about money “They’re counting the money, and the farmer’s market exhibit is right there, so you can watch them sell things at the farmer’s market and then take their money to the bank. “Kids love playing at the bank,” Conway says. A bank and farmer's market exhibits encourage realistic play. The Water Works water table gives kids a chance to play with water pressure by controlling flow into tubes, slides, and wheels. When they're done traveling the world and getting busy with the bees, other exhibits allow exploration through tactile activities and hands-on practice real life skills. Our kids can hop on the bike here, power the screen with their pedaling, and share the same experience,” Conway says. “We sent a GoPro to our friends in Okaya, and they recorded what it was like to ride a bike through their city. Pleasant’s sister city of Okaya, Japan by giving kids opportunities to learn Japanese, wear kimonos, and tour the city by pedaling a bike that powers a screen. The One World exhibit offers a look at Mt. The Beemazium encourages both adults and kids to observe a live beehive and crawl and climb around a human-sized honeycomb. The fruits of those conversations can be seen in the museum to this day. KidZibits is an exhibit design company based in Minnesota, who back in 2011, met with the museum as well as both adults and kids from the community to ask what they wanted to see in their museum. “They tell us what they think is cool and what’s not, and that is super helpful,” Conway says. Meeting monthly, members of the museum’s Youth Advisory Club are kids ages eight to 17 who help run events and fundraisers around the community, as well as give feedback on what the museum is doing. ![]() ![]() The museum isn't just designed for kids though. ”But beyond that, we know that play is so important to a child’s well-being, we’re helping just by getting them in here playing and moving, learning gross and fine motor skills, and interacting and building relationships with other kids." “Our exhibits are all aligned with academic standards for kindergarten through fifth grade, and include Head Start’s early learning framework, too,” she says. To some, the large space might seem like little more than a big playground, but Conway says there is some serious learning going on here.īrightly colored paper cranes hang inside the museum “Then about two years ago, I came on as Executive Director,” she says. Initially, Conway started off by helping the museum write grants from home, and then began doing some development work. “That first day I went and talked to the Director and asked about how I could help.” “Five years ago, I brought my oldest child here and thought it absolutely amazing,” she says. Their idea grew and eventually gained the support of the Morey Foundation, which gave $1 million dollars to help start the museum, as well as offered another $500,000 “dollar match” to encourage residents to donate to the museum as well.Ĭonway’s path into the museum also started with her being a mom. Since opening their doors in 2012, over 230,000 people have visited the museum to examine (and play with) it’s many hands-on, interactive exhibits, and it continues to attract around 40,000 people a year, with around 30% of the visitors being from Isabella County.Ĭonway says that idea for the museum started when three local women - Jennifer Fields, Heather Prout, and Shelly Smith - met at a mom’s group. Liz Conway, Executive Director of the Children's Discovery Museum “We're trying to enhance the community by inspiring creativity, learning, and curiosity,” she says, “so we want kids to come in and touch things and explore. Pleasant’s Discovery Museum, it sounds like a recipe for learning. To Liz Conway, the Executive Director of Mt. Giving kids 12,000 square-feet of water to play in, paper rockets to throw, a live beehive, and endless places to hide, crawl, and jump probably sounds like a recipe for disaster to most parents. ![]()
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