Working with code and beyond

Working with code

What wonders code can allow us. Who knew that a few simple elements, and a little bit of formatting, one can indeed create webpages that both stun and inform! Certain languages are easier to learn (HTML for one), while others rely on a little more advanced understanding of coding syntax.

 

I’m a firm believer in keeping things simple but at the same time, languages like Markdown allow a user to manipulate the structure of a document in multiple formats across a range of computers. Microsoft Word is a wonderful word processing program, but it has its limitations in terms of compatibility (I’m old enough to remember the issue when you needed to worry about opening Office 93-95 documents on the newer software) and longevity. Text files are simple, easy, and powerful in their own rights.

 

Of course, I’ve also been using HTML and C++ since the early 2000’s, so it isn’t hard for me to understand the uses and compatibility issues. Anyone remember Xanga? If you knew how to edit HTML, you could edit your blog to be really cool in terms of background, sound, and image embedding. Same with Myspace to an extent.

 

None of this is to say that StackEdit didn’t give me problems. At all. I’ve mostly used Notepad++ and TextEdit (depending on the machine) to do my coding. TextEdit was interesting, but GitHub did a better job of getting me accustomed to how pages can look with Markdown.

 

Small Museums and Families

Small museums: they tend to get overlooked in the grand scheme of planning weekend activities or scenic bypass tours. But they can and do provide a unique look at local history, up-and-coming artists, and little known stories of local regions. As a bonus? They often have pretty stellar community activities for every season.

Family time is important and precious; when you only have so many hours a week away from an office or a job, every second counts as a treasure. And small museums recognize this. They often focus on creating meaningful connections with visitors and providing information about the collections in individualized ways to get visitors, who may be from out of town or just passing through, to come back again and again for the human element.

Small museums often don’t have a large staff to pull from to work with the public while also working with the collections so most of the people you’ll run into are volunteers or docents, people from the community who have an interest in the material and being involved in the community. They are the perfect ambassadors for the collection because they bring that human element home even further by being able to pull information from the collection and provide it in a way that creates connection. Sometimes, they’re even great sources of local lore and history.

For families, small museums are the jackpot: they don’t take a whole day to get through but provide something for everyone without a huge price tag usually. Historical societies, local art galleries, smaller art museums, even a local college’s exhibits, can provide hours of educational entertainment that may have you exploring new ideas or seeing the world around you differently. Talk to the staff and volunteers, find out what makes it special to them, and before you know it, it’ll be your go-to destination when friends or family come to town.

For a family with limited together time, one way to both get involved with and enjoy a small museum is to volunteer. It may not sound like a whole bunch of fun, but once you get into the project (sorting magazines, assisting with maintenance of an historic house, playing a role in a living history museum) it’s more fun than you’d think. You can practice for weeks before hand as a family, sorting magazines or catalogs at the house, coming up with personal histories based on the time period you’ll be working with, and even going around and trying on vintage and antique clothing to get into character. These activities increase the fun of volunteering and help enhance the educational opportunities that small museums offer all visitors and guests.

What’s your favorite small museum? What made it special? Share your stories and anecdotes in the comments, or follow us on Facebook!

Tuesdays are for Toddlers: History style!

Here we are again for another round of Tuesdays are for Toddlers! This time, it’s a history edition.

History museums can be great places to visit, but many of them have that whole “please don’t touch” rule. That’s less than ideal for curious little minds that just want to explore the world with all of their senses. However, much like art museums, there are ways to make these institutions fun for even the youngest of visitors.

For toddlers, half the fun of exploring the world around them is taking part in what adults do. They are the masters of imitation, from facial expressions to catch phrases, and their brains are absorbing information at every turn of the road. Either before or after visiting a history museum, take them to an antique shop, or a thrift store that specializes in vintage clothing. Let your kids try on some of the clothes they have, especially hats, with the permission of the store owner/employees. If you have any family jewelry from loved ones and relatives, let them hold them (watch out for the mouth!) and have them come up with a story about that piece of jewelry. Let them create their own historical character and interact with their character; ask them questions about their lives and what they want to do with their lives.

Publishers are picking up more and more informational and educational biographies for children that tell stories about famous historical people, from Marie Antoinette to Abraham Lincoln. Some of them are actually fantastic and really worth a read. Take a look in the biography section of your local children’s bookstore and pick out a couple that your child might like or that fit their personality and spend a night reading to them. Talk about how it’s important to learn about history so that we learn from peoples mistakes and successes in the past.

And lastly, because I didn’t include a specific craft activity in last weeks Tuesdays are for Toddlers post, here’s one for today: Popsicle stick airplanes! Airplanes and flying are two things that can pretty often pique a toddler’s interest, regardless of sex. This is a fun way to get involved with your kids (prep work can be messy, so if you want to do it ahead of time to keep the mess down a bit, that’s perfectly okay) and still talk about how airplanes have changed our lives. Magnets not necessary, but it’s a fun way to hang their art from the museum last week on the fridge!

Tell me how your Tuesday with your toddler is going in the comments, and leave some suggestions for other parents too! Until next Tuesday!

 

Weekend at the Museum

While not  Night at the Museum, weekends at museums are always an opportunity to explore a little further and take a break from rushing.  Tuesdays are for Toddlers, but Thursdays are for the rest of us! I’m going to break this down by groups to make it easier to address unique situations.

For families with young kids (under the age of ten), here’s a tip: Look around and find an exhibit that’s in the area for a while and take a day to visit and spend time together. For art museums, try talking about stories you see, imagining a world similar to the art, or designing a painting about your own lives. Take pictures of the kids in front of paintings they like, and make sure that if they want to move, take a video in front of sculptures (careful not to touch!). Museums are usually seen as places to be quiet and somber, but I promise, they aren’t supposed to stay that way. Laugh, talk, make memories!

For families with older kids (over the age of ten and into the teens): ask for a family day without electronics (we’ll have a special post about technology and teens later),and take them to a history museum. Walk around and show them where the technology that they use came from; find ways to relate what they’re seeing to their lives. Again, make noise, make jokes, make fun of each other. Learning happens best when experiences are personal and meaningful, and that can be a little difficult when the past seems so far removed from us. Talk about families and relatives, share your personal histories, and look at the objects on display as if your ancestors used them.

For individuals looking for a fun experience: Go to any museum in the area and find the craziest looking piece they have. Ask every visitor that walks by what they see or what they think the item is used for. While some may find it off putting, let them know you’re conducting research and need a few opinions. Think of this as one of those social experiments where you do something a little off to watch peoples reactions, but instead, discuss their answers and get into a conversation. It’ll be fun and intriguing for all parties involved.

For young couples with no kids: No matter where you go, look at things a little closer. Art museums: look closely at the brush strokes, and have one person start counting on one side and the other counts from the other side. Meet in the middle and compare numbers. History museums: compare wardrobes or accessories, even home decor, and guess when the next time that particular trend will come back around. Talk about what you’d always dreamed you’d be doing at this point in your life when you were young and how your families are different history wise. It’s always fun to compare family trees and what you used to be like.

If you have any other ideas or thoughts, please feel free to share them in the comments below! And remember to check with your local museums to find out if they have any special events or activities going on this weekend. You never know when an opportunity will arise to make memories and have fun!

Tuesdays are for Toddlers!

Today marks the first post of a weekly theme: Toddlers.

For the purpose of this blog, toddlers are going to be considered children from the ages of 1-4. They’re a challenge for some, mostly because of their growing personalities and often changing natures. Let’s think of them as snowflakes; not necessarily always fragile, but each one unique in their needs, thoughts, and learning styles. However, they are some of the most rewarding people to teach. Getting to watch their faces light up when they finally master a task or a subject is really quite wonderful.

Today, let’s talk about toddlers in art museums. Art museums can be less than entertaining and heavy on the confusion. But, there are ways to bring life to each of the works in the building through the eyes of children. You know that saying “from the mouths of babes”? The cool thing about toddlers is that they can come up with some fascinating stories and comparisons.

So, let’s spice up a trip to the art museum. Bring crayons and paper (please check with your local museums before bringing in pens or markers; some museums have strict policies about bringing writing utensils into the galleries), and ask them to draw their own stories. Talk about what they see in the pictures, and let them enact out what they see in sculptures. Getting kids moving allows them to focus a little better, and giving them an opportunity to explain what they’re seeing or feeling in art helps them express emotions and process the world around them.

For a follow up activity at home, take some potatoes, radishes, carrots, and celery (or whatever you have in the fridge or pantry), and cut them in half width-wise. Put some water-based finger paints in a bowl and lightly dip the vegetables into the paint. Each of these veggies creates a different shape and pattern on paper, and as you keep stamping with them the grains and fibers of the plants will retain the pigment in the paint. Have your kids explain the shapes and patterns they see, and describe the story they are depicting with shape and color. It’s a fun way to get involved in abstract art and gets kids involved in the museum visit with reinforcement when you get home.

One of my favorite groups to teach was toddlers because it allowed me to get down on the floor and see things from their point of view. Sometimes, I think that’s just about the most excellent way to see the world.

Welcome!

Museums are wonderful sources of knowledge and learning, housing artifacts and photographs for the public.  Art museums, history museums, natural history and science museums, all have something to offer for everyone.  They aren’t always the easiest places to navigate when it comes to understanding that knowledge, though. Having worked in museums, I can tell you: it isn’t always easy making that knowledge easy to understand either. How do you take a bunch of information and create meaningful experiences that everyone can relate to?

My main age groups were grade school kids from all different backgrounds and learning types, and teaching art was the BIGGEST challenge ever. But I promise, there are ways and ways and ways to teach about art and make it personal, meaningful, and memorable.

I watched families come to the museum and walk around, their kids bored or uninterested, and trying to make sense of labels and objects. Usually they would leave after an hour or less if they weren’t catching a planetarium show or a laser show at the Planetarium. If only they’d had some tools or tips to help them navigate what there was to offer!

Most museums offer weekend activities or special events for families and museum visitors, and they are some of the most widely attended days for museums. These events offer a chance for visitors to interact with aspects of the museums collection through activities, lectures, presentations, or even demonstrations. These same types of activities and demonstrations can be created anywhere by anyone.

This blog will explore ways that families, single visitors, and kids can interact with museums and their collections. From the types of questions to ask kids when visiting museums, to the activities that can help relate to art, and even ways to use art and history to relate to other subjects (math, science, and english!) in the classroom and at home.

If you have any questions, suggestions, or comments, or want more information about a subject just let me know in the comments! And thank you for joining me for Fun with Museums!