Kids In Museums Manifesto - Part One

This week, I wanted to look more generally at London’s museums, and the way they work with the lovely ideas promoted by the Kids In Museums Manifesto. Kids In Museums is “the voice of family museum visitors across Britain” and work alongside museums to help create places which are educational, safe, fun and entertaining for all types of families and all types of child. Their website is well worth a look when choosing a museum to visit, as more often or not, the museums which have signed up to support the Kids In Museums Manifesto have a wonderful attitude to helping make your visit with your preschooler as helpful, stress free and memorable as possible. They understand that toddlers don’t use museums in the same way as other visitors and, for me, knowing the museum staff appreciate this and aren’t about to glare disapprovingly or tell you off simply because your child wants to zoom around a gallery first before settling to look at it in more detail (a habit noted by many educational specialists as being essential to ensuring a toddler feels safe in a space, which is necessary to provide an effective learning experience), or because your child wants to chat to the gallery steward in a slightly louder voice than the average visitor.

So, below are the first 5 rules of the manifesto, and I have shared my thoughts on which museums fulfil them exceptionally well, and which would certainly be graded with a ‘could try harder’!

1. Tell tales together with children and families. Share each other’s stories. Listen. Families and museums each have their own expertise.

To really get a sense of this in the most literal sense, look for museums which are running events during the weekends or school holidays. Recently, The Natural History Museum hosted a half term event called “The Campsite”; and one activity encouraged children to share their stories through writing, drawing or narration. These stories were then stored away for posterity, and the pleased look on small people’s faces as their carefully coloured in drawings were put safely away was lovely. On days when there are no special events, make sure you communicate with your preschooler, and encourage them to chat with the gallery stewards. As a museum volunteer myself, I really enjoy talking with young visitors about our favourite exhibit, or sharing stories about our experience in the museum. With the exception of one steward at the National Gallery (more on him another week) I have yet to meet a museum employee or volunteer who hasn’t been brilliant at listening and talking with Yiannis.

2. Be welcoming and greet each visitor. Tell visitors what they can do at the door, don’t pin up a list of things they can’t.

Children like boundaries; they feel safe and secure knowing what they can and can’t do. Parents or carers with children similarly like boundaries – very little is as exhausted at constantly hissing at your preschooler “come back...I don’t know if we’re allowed in there!” Removing the uncertainty makes for a much more relaxing atmosphere. However, museums, if we are doing something naughty, like letting our toddler take a photo of something, please let us know politely. Telling us off gets our backs up, decreases the likelihood of spending in the gift shop and also, no toddler is able to frame a picture well enough to endanger copyright (although I do understand it’s frustrating if the flash can damage the object).

3. Play the generation game...Conversations between generations should be at the heart of what you do.

Chatting with your preschooler has been a strong feature in my previous posts. When museums can encourage this, either through set activities or ensuring the displays are visible to the smallest visitor, the visit is always far more entertaining and educational for you both. Also, please do leave feedback with the museum on how you found their provisions for preschoolers – only with an open conversation between carers, parents and staff can museums improve. The Natural History Museum and the Foundling Museum stand out as being particularly good at inviting and reacting to feedback.

4. Invite teenagers into your gang. Provide a place for them to hang out. Set up youth panels. Ask them how they want to be involved. Museums can lead the way in letting people know the contribution teenagers make.

Well, admittedly, this is one I don’t have any firsthand experience of, since being a teenager myself; but I do feel preschoolers and teenagers are sometimes viewed in the same bracket as being the more difficult non adult audience to cater for. A museum which is working well and providing for teenagers is likely to be a very friendly and open place, and willing to help provide a lovely day out for your preschooler. The Science Museum, the V and A and the Natural History Museum are all well versed at providing for a large range of visitors.

5.  Be flexible in your activities, events and family tickets. Families come in all shapes and sizes. Design your pricing and programmes with all sorts of families in mind.

Again, the big museums in South Kensington are particularly good at ensuring a range of activities and events, including those for toddlers and preschoolers. Others, such as The British Museum, whilst providing a number of activities during the school holidays, fail to look to the under 5s audience, which made Yiannis very sad. Furthermore, when we visited in February half term, to find a huge range of fascinating make-and-do events all around the central hall, we were told Yiannis was not allowed to take part, as he was only 2. This was almost the most unhelpful thing I have ever experienced in a museum (apart from that man in the National Gallery). Museums – just let the under 5s have a go! You don’t have to display their handiwork, but for goodness sake, just let them have a go at drawing!

Next week, I will look at the next 5 rules, and I may well tell the tale of the man in the National Gallery...

The Foundling Museum and Coram's Fields

Museum: The Foundling Museum and Coram's Fields

Address: 40 Brunswick Square, London WC1N 1AZ and 93 Guildford Street, London, WC1N 1DN

Telephone: +44 (0)20 7841 3600 (The Foundling Museum)

Opening Hours: 10:00 – 17:00 Tuesdays – Saturdays, 11:00 – 17:00 Sundays for the Foundling Museum, 9am till dusk for Coram’s Fields.

Cost: £7.50 for adults, children under 16 go free to The Foundling Museum; free entry to Coram’s Fields, although no adult can enter without a child!

Website: http://www.foundlingmuseum.org.uk/ and http://www.coramsfields.org/

Pushchair Friendly Routes: King’s Cross is the closest pushchair friendly tube station, and is only a short walk from the museum and the play area. Of course, in this weather a few minutes can seem like an eternity, especially if there is a small, cold toddler involved! Russell Sq. is your closest tube stop, and isn’t too step heavy, although it will still provide a problem with a pram.

Away from the more obvious tourist destination museums of South Kensington, lie two lovely, undeservingly unknown places, which are wonderful for a half day trip with a preschooler. The history of the Museum and the Fields also seem well suited to a trip with a small, loved child; there was something very touching about exploring the same colonnade that those tiny foundlings would have played along nearly 300 years ago. For a parent or carer, it brings the history of the place to life very vividly, and the atmosphere stays with you long after your visit, as well it should. It is entirely up to you (and the weather) whether you visit the Museum or the Fields first – visiting the Museum first provides an excellent context to see the Fields; heading to the Fields first allows you to imagine the Museum’s contents in their original location.

In 1742, the first stone of what would become London’s Foundling Museum was laid in Bloomsbury. Now, the original building is gone, but in Coram’s Fields stands the covered walkways in which the little children would have sheltered and played, as well as the original gates. Now though, those walkways are home to a variety of animals, from chickens to rabbits to sheep. The rest of the Fields is made up of an excellent seven acre play area, with a lovely range of play equipment. Yiannis and I had a wonderful time here; there is something very refreshing about such a large area of central London focused entirely on children, as well as making friends with cockerels whilst going down slides! It is such a hidden treasure that it is never busy, which is a shame as it is a brilliant space for children, but excellent for parents who do find it as it means you don’t have to queue for hours or worry about your toddler being knocked down by all the other big kids!

Once you’ve had a lovely play in Coram Fields, a two minute walk across Brunswick Park, which is tiny and glorious at the moment in its autumn colours takes you across to the Foundling Museum, a 1930s building whose original purpose was to hold the Coram charity’s papers, but which now houses the staircase, rooms and artwork of the original Foundling Hospital. The staff is friendly and kind, and will happily allow you to park your buggy and use the free cloakroom so you can explore the museum without being weighed down by coats. There is also a lovely, although not cheap, café and excellent changing facilities. The Museum has a good range of activity backpacks and trails, which are more focused for the older child, but the backpacks in particular provide a good starting point to the theme of the museum. Upstairs, there are also a lovely selection of picture books which explore adoption, fostering and different family set ups, which provide a further stepping stone to introducing your preschooler to some of these difficult topics.

The Foundling Hospital was built to provide a home for babies whose mothers were unable to care for them, usually as the baby had been born out of wedlock. The desperate plight of these mothers is of course very difficult to explain to a preschooler, and I decided to explain the purpose of the museum and the stories behind much of the artwork and artifacts in simplistic terms; telling Yiannis that the boys and girls who lived here didn’t have a mummy and daddy, rather than get into the details of unwanted children. The museum can be enjoyed without having to explore the more difficult themes with your child, but be warned that as a parent or carer, some of the exhibits are incredibly emotional. Yiannis found himself being hugged very tightly when we came across a case full of tiny tokens distraught mothers left with their babies. Many of these women were so poor, but so determined that their baby should have something to remember them by, that they ripped strips of fabrics from their dresses.

There is a very beautiful and emotional atmosphere to the museum; it is a very different space to the large South Kensington museums, and Yiannis responded well to this. He chose to spend a long time in each room, considering everything much longer than he did at the Science Museum, for example. Whether this was due to the lesser number of objects in each room, well, perhaps, but I believe it was because he felt safe, comfortable and far less distracted in this museum. He was very content and busy pottering between the rooms and up and down the grand staircase, asking and chatting about the pictures and statues. At the top of the Museum are four armchairs which play Handel’s music, which Yiannis absolutely loved, to my surprise!

The Foundling Museum and Coram’s Fields may not come immediately to mind when choosing a day trip to a museum with a toddler, but they should. Coram’s Fields is excellent and I cannot recommend anywhere in London higher as a place to spend half an hour outside. The Foundling Museum is an important part of London’s childcare history, and a beautiful space. The artwork in particular is so full of narrative, and although parents and carers may get more than your child about the history of the museum, the educational benefit of the music, pictures and unique space for children is impressive. Yiannis loved his visit, and although I think more could be done to engage with preschoolers, we decided to compromise and give the Museum and Fields 3 dinosaurs out of 5.

The Victoria and Albert Museum

Museum: The Victoria and Albert Museum

Address: Cromwell Road, South Kensington, SW7 2RL

Telephone: (0)20 7942 2000

Opening Hours: 10:00 – 17:45 daily. 10:00 – 22:00 Fridays. Closed 24^th – 26^th December.

Website: http://www.vam.ac.uk

Pushchair Friendly Routes: Unfortunately, no easy one! Taking the Circle or District Line to South Kensington does cuts down on the number of stairs you have to tackle. However, after the tube you still have to tackle several stairs. Take the underground walkway from South Kensington station if you want to recover from the platform stairs before the next few. Or head up out the station to get all the stairs out the way, and reward yourself with the gorgeous five minute walk above ground. Parking the pushchair in the museum is a further performance, but well worth it – trying to navigate around marble statues is not fun with a buggy!

The V and A is often thought of as a more “grown up” museum, with exhibitions on fashion and design. However,  it is a treasure trove for pre-schoolers, as long as you are willing to be a very active part of their museum experience. It’s not a museum where engagements for pre-schoolers are handed to you, but it can be utterly magical with a bit of thought and imagination between you and your little one! Also, the Natural History Museum and Science Museum are absolutely packed during half term week, so this slightly less obvious choice is the ideal way to escape the stress of the crowds. 

Although the V and A is not as well known for children’s activities as it’s South Kensington neighbours, it does host a range of interesting, themed children’s workshops and days. Most of these are aimed at those five years old and above;  however for the littler visitors they do offer an Agent Animal bag. It is a lovely rucksack, just the right size for your toddler (although inevitably you’ll be the one who carries it), with a selection of activities inside based around the various representations of animals in the museum. It’s a wonderful idea, and perhaps for a more patient, or shyer, toddler it would be ideal. For my little museum companion, Yiannis, the V and A is filled to the brim of fascinating, bizarre and utterly unique objects, all of which must be seen. This means tackling the museum’s corridors in a rather excited fashion, and the time it took me to open the rucksack and try to explain the activities inside was time Yiannis much preferred to spend zipping round, actually seeing things. If you or your little person prefer a bit more structure to the visit, the Agent Animal bag is brilliant; however if you are willing to go a bit rogue and explore the museum together at your own pace, I would recommend that.

I had been a little hesitant to try the V and A with a toddler, and after the abject failure of the Agent Animal bag in Yiannis’ eyes, I was slightly concerned this was going to be a visit not to repeat. However, as we stepped into the beautiful entrance hall, our eyes were caught by the fabulous Rotunda chandelier. Yiannis asked me what it was. I had to admit that I had no idea, although I thought it was very lovely. Yiannis looked at me, and informed me “well, it’s an octopus.”  

This set the tone for the visit, and provided hours of fun, as well as an excellent starting point for discussion about the art. As we discovered the museum, our route lead by Yiannis, I would ask him “which is the saddest statue? Why do you think he is sad?”, “Which key is the biggest?”, “Which picture would you like to live in? Why that one?”. Hearing his thoughts, and unique take, on these masterpieces was fascinating and gave us a great deal to chat about, think about, and laugh about.  This game was further enhanced by the fact very little in the V and A is in display cases, and those which are tend to be in cases where the glass reaches from the floor to the ceiling. This meant there wasn’t anything Yiannis couldn’t see, and the accessibility of the displays heightened his engagement with and enjoyment of the space.

One of the aspects of museum life which the Kids In Museums manifesto emphasises is for staff not to “shhhh” children. I believe in this completely. Museums are huge and daunting, as well as being fantastic. They are places for discovery, and this can only be done when a child feels comfortable and secure in a place; being persistently hissed at is not at all helpful in creating this atmosphere. The staff at the V and A are wonderful at letting children have this freedom to explore, without allowing the sound level to become too mad. They joined in with our game, asking Yiannis questions about his choices, and making him feel, quite rightly, that his take on the art was as valid, important and interesting as the next person’s.

The V and A doesn’t give away it's secrets in it's name, but the building itself, it’s layout, and it’s diverse content is what make this museum a wonderful destination for pre-schoolers. The V and A is Narnia; it is through the looking glass; it is a magical stately mansion for you and your under fives, with huge rooms, marbled floors, high ceilings and glorious art. It is a treasure trove of different objects, from jewellery to armour, so each child can go on a treasure hunt with you, and find brilliant things around their own interests. Yiannis and I spent the afternoon hunting for pirate treasure and were not disappointed in the variety of treasures we found we were sure could have been bought here by pirates. All of this is fascinating for adults; imagine, for example, the corridor of marble statues – then imagine how it must look for someone a third of your height! No wonder Yiannis had too much to see and do without the rucksack! Oh, and there is a huge (thankfully shallow) pond in the courtyard garden in the centre of the museum, if you needed one more reason to take your little one this half term. You’ll chat and interact so much more than at some of the other, more pre-school focused, museums; and I can’t think of many other nicer ways to spend half term!

A few practical notes – the cafe is well stocked but always busy; head there before your little one or you starts to become unreasonable from hunger, as there is nothing worse than being stuck in a queue once hungry/in desperate need of coffee. If the weather is fine, you can eat a small picnic in the courtyard garden. Avoid the toilets nearest the entrance, as these are always horribly busy. The toilets aren’t too sparse but sometimes quite tucked away – it’s best to notice a few as you go so you can make a dash if needs be!

So, with all things considered, Yiannis and I have given The Victoria and Albert Museum 3 dinosaurs! Have a lovely half term!

The Garden, The Science Museum

Exhibition: The Garden

Museum: The Science Museum

Address: Exhibition Road, South Kensington, SW7 2DD

Telephone: 020 7942 4000

Opening Hours: 10:00 to 18:00 (last entry 17:15). Open every day except 24^th December to 26^th December.

Website: http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/

Pushchair Friendly Routes: Unfortunately, no easy one! Taking the Circle or District Line to South Kensington does cuts down on the number of stairs you have to tackle.

“The Garden is an interactive gallery created especially for our very youngest visitors” is how the Science Museum’s website describes this area for toddlers; however this doesn’t begin to cover the brilliance of this Basement area, a space which is as close to perfection for toddlers in museums that Yiannis and I have found so far!

The Garden is wonderfully located, almost in isolation, in the Basement, which means only small children find their way there and removes the anxiety of trying to ensure your toddler isn’t trampled by the giant six year olds. The Basement is reached by a huge lift, which has plenty of room for pushchairs, as well as coats and bags. Downstairs are excellent toilets, albeit with a small changing area. There is also a pushchair park (and it is always such a joy to finally be rid of the pushchair!), the picnic area for schools and (most importantly) a small cafe which sells snacks perfectly sized for toddlers and really good coffee. The only downside here is the cafe is the opposite end of the floor to the toilet – if you’re in the middle of toilet training, be prepared to sprint quite a way to make it on time.

The Garden itself is an utter joy. It is usually very busy, but equally well staffed by friendly folk who are wonderful at explaining the science behind the array of activities. There is a huge waterway, where children can place little sail boats at the top and watch their progress down rivers and waterfalls, which they themselves create. The waterflow can be turned up or down and there are a plethora of buttons and levers to push, pull and play with. Most brilliantly of all, waterproof overalls are provided; although Yiannis and I found it safest to bring a spare top just in case too! Little ones can easily spend the whole visit here, so if you are have a time restraint you may have to steer your child away after a while!

Once your little scientist has had their fill of splashing about, there are construction areas with small climbing frames and wheel barrows to play with, noodles hanging from the ceiling to run though, noisy, textured walls to discover and some brilliant instruments to have a go on. Yiannis and I mastered the drums, but there is a voice distorting one we’ve yet to be able to get to work – I’ve seen other kids using it with ease though, so it can’t be that hard!

One of the added benefits to The Garden is it gives your child a chance to interact with their peers, and you can glean a great deal of information as to which parts of the museum have made an impression listening to these enthusiastic conversations! Plus, once Yiannis had teamed up with one or two other children, it gave him a chance to run around and me a chance to stand still; which I think we both hugely appreciated. The space itself is much smaller than the majority of the museum’s galleries and so has a safe, comforting feel to it – Yiannis was much quicker to run off and explore than in the bigger rooms, and I was very happy to give him that independence here.

The number of different ways for children to learn in The Garden is impressive. The practical learning aspects are wonderfully complimented by easy to explain signs and the brilliant staff on hand. 

The hands on, noise making approach is delightful, and ideal for most toddlers. The only downsides to consider are the possibility of getting a little bit wet, and that once you have your child in The Garden, there will almost certainly be tears when it is time to leave! But those, I think, are excellent signs of a happy time had, and so not really downsides at all!

Yiannis and I gave The Garden a rating of 4 out of 5 dinosaurs (we decided stars were too boring!)