Another, really cool project that I got the chance to work on during this internship was a Museum Classroom. The Education Department at the Museum partnered with an elementary school in Lansing to design and construct a museum in the school. One of the reasons that we worked on this project was as a form of outreach. We know that it’s difficult to get to the museum sometimes and bringing the museum to the students would make it far more accessible. Plus it would give the students and faculty at the school a chance to see how museums operate and what we do on a day-to-day basis.
This was a pilot program, that no museum had attempted before, at least as far as we could see, after doing some research. Part of the reason behind this experiment is to help students learn outside of the traditional classroom space and without the constant stress of planning and going on field trips.
We worked to clean up and design the classroom. We even got to pick out a temporary exhibit from the MSU Museum to put up as an example for the students of what a exhibit looks like. We were hoping that the students would see the exhibit and the extra educational materials that we created and it would inspire them to create their own exhibits within the space.
However, as exciting of an opportunity that this was, it was difficult. Working with multiple schedules and trying to communicate between the museum and the school was hard. Plus, making sure that everyone that was needed was able to actually be there was difficult too, because some days it just didn’t work out. Unfortunately, this project wasn’t finished by the time my internship ended and the Education Department is still trying to figure it out. Hopefully it all works out and a great partnership develops.
For me, it was definitely a learning experience. I had never participated in a project like this before. I didn’t know how to create a museum space from the ground up, and though I have experience working in school and in museum environments, this was totally new ground. I did learn how developing new projects actually happens. It’s not linear, it’s messy and difficult and sometimes deadlines get pushed back. Or, even, sometimes you arrive to do some decorating and instead all of your furniture is gone and you have to move a bunch of tables and chairs out of a narrow door that can barely fit anything! But it was a good learning experience nonetheless.
I hope that this project gets finished soon and I get to see some pictures because I really want to know what the students think of for their exhibits!
Museum Musings 