Study in the Childrens museum

Today we went to the Cincinnati Childrens museum to observe the different styles of play, the intensions of the instructors and the childrens activities and reaction to the purpose.

This museum is specially designed and built for children between two and ten years. There are fewer objects to have a look at, but a lot of interactiv stuff and play for children. Everything is colourfull, and it's possible for the children to touch and play with it. There are no ancient objects, but every-days stuff. Children don't have to be quitly, they can talk, and laugh, and run around.

The purpose of this museum is to let children learn while they are playing. It's important to have different areas for different ages, especially for younger childeren (from one year to the age of 5 years) because they develop very quickly.
There should be one area for children between the age of seven to twelve month because in this space of time, they like to explore, to find hidden objects, and to shake things. For example, there should be balls and cubs and other stuff from foam plastic children can play with.

The next area should be for children between the age of one and two years. Children in this age like to walk, to climb stairs, to run and to hear stories. There should be different books with interesting short stories and a lot of pictures, different kinds of steps like a ladder od some ropes to go up. The ground should be coverd with different kinds of material, for example, foam plastic, carpet, plastic stones etc., and a lot of room to run around.

Children from the age of two and 3 1/2 year like to learn new things and explore. Water, sand and different kinds of material would be very interesting for them.

Children between the age of 3 1/2 and 5 years want to know a lot of things. They like doing arts and like to play with "real stuff". For example girls like to do their own household, care about the dolls and do all the stuff their mums used to do. It would be good for the girls to learn during the play to use fresh and healty food, or do do fresh cooking. There should be a lot of interesting information for the children about food, and care for pets etc.

Children between the age of 5 and 8 years like to learn a lot of new things and want to know how the world works. In the Childrens M-useum there was a place where the children could build a door. There should be books for children with different kind of stories in big letters, so that they can read them on their own and their should be some instruments to play with, or for the boys technical stuff.

In the veterinarian exhibit, children should learn to care about their pets. On the wall was a list with some instructions for the exhibit, for example to look at the pet ears, and eyes, and feet, to clean the teeth, and to brush it. Unfortunaty most of the children weren't able to read the instructions because they were too small. They played a little bit with the dogs and cats, looked at the instruments, and gave water to the pets. The main purpose to have a look at the health of a pet has not successfull achieved.

Traditional classroom learning is still very important to get the basic of an idea or the solution of problem, but it's also very important to let children learn by doing it on their own. For example, during an exhibit like the Childrens Museum, or a physical experiment, or to create something new and extraordinary.
The difference between traditional and interactive learning is that children get only information about things work, but they do not really understand how this thing is going on. For that reason, interactive learning is very important.
Children should know how things work, and when they are doing it on their own, they will lose their fear of new and unknown things and just try it, even if they have no idea what will be the result.

To try things without knowing the result is very important for adults, and it's also very important to lose the fear of new things.