Children’s Museum of Maine in Portland
“We don’t care if they go away without learning a thing, as long as they’ve ignited a spark in the group. That’s what we hope to see,” explains Education Director Marilyn Solvay. “We like to think that it’s not as much a spark between the child and the exhibit but the child and whoever they are at the museum with — whether it’s their parents, grandparents or any caring adult in their lives,” she says.
In fact, those caring adults are really the museums most important audience, according to Executive Director Terrie Rouse, “Because it’s the adults who make the decision to come.” “So when adults come into the museum they need to pick up the feeling, immediately, through colors, activity and sounds, that this is a fun place and that learning is going on here,” she says. “Even though we call it a children’s museum it really could be called something else – “The Discovery Place” or something like that,” says Rouse, “because it’s really for all ages.” After just a few minutes inside that is easy to see. Inside the bright and airy hand-on facility in the city’s upbeat center, parents, grandparents and children are all laughing, learning and making that “spark” the museum likes to see.
Thirty years in the making
That spark between child and adult is one the Children’s Museum has been working on for nearly 30 years. Started in 1976 with some seed money from the Junior League and a dream, the first Children’s Museum of Maine was in a shared space in Cape Elizabeth’s Pond Cove Annex and then Fort Williams Park. In 1980, the Museum moved to a sunny house on Stevens Avenue on the space building: the former Chamber of Commerce building, next to the Portland Museum of Art on Free Street. Through the years and all the moves, the Children’s Museum of Maine’s mission remained on track: hands on learning for all ages. “The youth museum movement really started in the 1960’s,” explains Executive Director Terrie Rouse. “People began to realize that it is really important for everyone – children and adults to have hands on experiences. Consider that prior to this; museums had been basically behind glass. That’s important to preserve the exhibit but it makes it difficult to learn.” Ms. Rouse says that everyone learns through different ways (i.e.: touch, smell, taste, sight, listening, math skills, etc.) and different people learn better in certain ways than others. “You need to have institutions like the Children’s Museum to learn through your most powerful set of skills. It is really the ultimate respect for the child for the individual that he or she is,” she says.
In addition to the large changing exhibits, the museum has two floors of permanent hands-on fun for all ages. On the first floor, visitor will find “Our Town” – complete with a fire truck including all the bells and whistles, car repair shop, animal hospital, a bank with a working ATM machine, supermarket with a check-out scanner, a rocking lobster boat and even a farm with a cow you can milk. “The premise behind the space is to learn about their community,” says Marilyn Solvay, the museum’s Education Director. “Role playing is important, especially valuable is role playing surrounding the people in their everyday lives.” Whether they collect eggs like real Maine farm families do or get money out of the bank just like Dad, Solvay says play teaches kids awareness of everything around them in a safe environment. While the children on this reporter’s visit seemed to enjoy all the exhibits, the Museum has found there is a favorite. “The ATM machine – by far is the most popular spot. If it is down (due to unavoidable mechanical problems) people get upset, but that’s just like real life,” laughs Solvay.
The rest of the museum is dedicated to hands-on science exploration. Families can visit L.L. Bear’s Discover Woods. Kids can fly the space shuttle on a mock mission and check out animal tracks and facts in the Ranger Station. With so much to do, sometimes the parents are struggling to keep up with the wee ones.
“Lots of times the kids are more comfortable and end up teaching the adults,” says Solvay, “and that’s great to see the learning turn around and not just the parents actually learning the subject from the child but learning or re-learning curiosity and the excitement of learning.”
On the second floor kids can also do a ‘make and take’ project at the “Zoom Room”. The “Zoom Room” is an area for supervised arts and crafts projects structured around the main exhibit. “We try to use the whole museum and special performances to tie in with the centerpiece exhibits and the other exhibits to keep visitors focused,” says Solvay.
One of the best views of Portland can only been seen at the museum by the Camera Obscura, one of only three of a kind in the US. Using technology that has been in existence since the Renaissance and exploring the human eye, art and science, families are sure to delight in this exhibit.
The crunch
Like all non-profits and museums, funding has been tight in recent years at the Children’s Museum. With no endowment to rely on the Children’s Museum has been looking to more corporate sponsors and more repeat customers. On all accounts the Children’s Museum has been successful. In a typical year more than 105 thousand people walk through the museum’s doors. “Consider that is nearly half the population of the greater Portland area,” says Rouse. “By industry standards, that’s outstanding.” And to keep them coming, again and again the museum plans to keep changing and tweaking its exhibits and programs. In the words of six year old Ian of Portland, “This place is great! I love it here. It just keeps getting better!”
Just the facts
The Children’s Museum of Maine offers a wide variety of interactive exhibits and programs for children of all ages.
The Children’s Museum of Maine is perfect for children of all ages. The interactive facility is located at 142 Free Street in Portland, Maine, next to the Portland Museum of Art
Hours Day
Labor Day thru Memorial Day:
Monday: CLOSED to the general public
[Open from 9am – 11am for MEMBERS ONLY, closed the rest of the day]
Tuesday-Saturday: 10am – 5pm
Sunday: Noon – 5pm
Bargain Hunter’s Delight: First Friday night of each month is free from 5 – 8pm!
Open all week long during school vacations!
Memorial Day thru Labor Day:
Monday-Saturday: 10am – 5pm
Sunday: Noon – 5pm
Bargain Hunter’s Delight: First Friday night of each month is free from 5 – 8pm!
Admission:
General Admission: $6.00 per person (under age 1 free)
Group Rate: available to groups of ten or more. The group rate is $4.00 per person, but you must have a reservation so call in advance.
Contact:
828-1234
www.children’smuseumofmaine.org
