I love visiting Museums with my kids. It is a fantastic way for them to learn about historic events without having to travel thousands of miles.
At 13, and 16 they are good at visiting museums now, but they weren’t always. We’ve had lots of days where we have only been able to complete a few exhibits and then on other trips, they would do 3 museums in one day. It’s all about picking the right location, and ensuring they are interested in what you’re going to see.
If they’re engaged and are excited, as they get older they will research and pick the museums or historical sites they would like to go to next.
Here are 5 Tips For Visiting The Museum With Kids
Pick a museum or Art Gallery that features exhibits close to their interests.
Do they love animals? Museum of Natural History. Space? Museum of Space and Air. Find a museum that focuses on an interest they already love.
My kids love visiting museums with Americana or animals so we have had great success with the Henry Ford Museum in Detroit, the Museum of American History in Washington, and the ROM in Toronto. What is nice is that all of these museums have some overlap with other interests that pique their interest in other subjects. Plus, when they have a good visit to one museum they will be open to going to another that may be outside of their interest.
There are also gems that are lesser know where they can learn about more niche subjects. For example, we have a really cool warplane museum about 40 minutes from us that is privately owned. It is not as well known as the AGO or Science Center, but a top recommendation if you have a family member who loves aviation. This rings true with train museums or exhibits at a historical location.
Do A PreVisit Learning Session To Get Them Excited
Before our first visit to the Henry Ford Museum, we watched videos with our boys about Henry Ford and his legacy, which increased their interest in the exhibits about his accomplishments. They also understood what they were looking at and were able to learn more about the evolution of his career.
We did the same before visiting Mount Vernon and Washington years before. This gave each location significance. It was no longer just a white house in the middle of a field. It was an important home where lots of important business was conducted. The pre-learning gave us a jumping-off point.
Let them navigate at their pace
Even though there may be 50 incredible displays you want them to see let them wander and learn about the items that catch their eye. There are some museums that we have visited 4 or 5 times and my kids find new things to learn each time.
We try to start at one side and work our way across so we don’t miss anything, but I do let them skip sections they don’t have any interest in. At Henry Ford, they love Driving America, Presidential Vehicles, Railroads, and Your Place in Time, but are not interested in agriculture, furnishings, or Mathematica so I let them skip in in favor of learning more in the other areas they love.
Take the tour
If the museum offers a tour – book it! The docents at most museums know the exhibits intimately which allows them to share information you wouldn’t learn from the plaques. They also bring a subject to life in a way that could help increase your child’s interest in what they are seeing.
My kids will always complain when I book a tour because it means we are locked into a full session. However, they always enjoy what they learn and reverb cool facts they learned on the way home.
One time we didn’t take the tour in Quebec City, I caught my son listening to a story from the guide that he recounted at dinner that night. Then he said we should book a tour so he could hear more.
We have noticed that many museums and historical locations have stopped doing the tours as they struggle to fill shifts. We will book it when it’s available.
Make A Day Of It
Bundle the trip to the museum with a lunch out or a trip to the park to make the day extra special. Often the museum has a cafe you can grab a bit at if you would like to break up the day and have some down time before tackling the second half. This is also a great time for them to process everything they have seen and ask questions they may have from exhibits they have seen.
In Washington, there are spots to eat as you walk in between the museums.
There are so many benefits to visiting museums with your kids of all ages. When they are little it piques their interest in a variety of subjects. As they get older what they see can support the learning they are doing in class and solidify the information they get at school.
I can’t count the times my kids have come home and said they are learning about something they have seen in a museum or a place we have visited. ‘Seeing’ the history firsthand connects them more with a subject than reading it in a book.
