As the summer unfolds for children, so does the loss of the critical math and reading skills they learned in the school. What can parents and caregivers do about this? Theanswer: Take your child to a children?s museum.
Author, child psychologist and “Today” show contributor Dr. Ruth Peters explained the staggering fact that on average, students lose approximately 2.6 months of grade-level equivalency in mathematical computation skills during the summer months.
Families throughout the mid-Atlantic have regular access to one of the nation?s leading educational resources ? Port Discovery, the Children?s Museum in Baltimore.
Dr. Roberta Golinkoff, of the University of Delaware, and Dr. Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, of Temple University, conducted an in-depth study “Active Bodies, Active Minds: Learning Opportunities in Children?s Museums,” in an effort to reveal the importance of informal learning through play, which is the philosophy of the children?s museum.
Port Discovery was the site for this special research study by Golinkoff and Hirsh-Pasek because of its reputation as one of the leading children?s museums in the nation, its impact on the Baltimore community and intensive educational activities designed for children.
“Informal learning through play is one way to stimulate lifelong learning,” Hirsh-Pasek said.
“Port Discovery is a wonderful place for children to learn all sorts of things and in the most fun way imaginable. That?s why Port Discovery is so important to the community; it provides a site where children can play and learn at the same time,” Golinkoff added.
The study was conducted after parents exited from two of Port Discovery?s permanent exhibits: Adventure Expeditions and The Diner. Parents and education experts were asked to rank on a scale of 1 to 7, whether or not they saw educational value in the exhibits. While parents did see the value for children?s informal learning, the experts who rated the exhibits saw even more opportunities for children to gain important information from the exhibits.
Ron Fairchild, executive director of the Center for Summer Learning at Johns Hopkins University and board member on Port Discovery?s Education Advisory Council, said, “All young people are at risk of experiencing summer learning loss when they don?t engage in constructive learning activities.”
Port Discovery is an innovator in informal learning and has become a leader in the field of financial literacy. “The Money Game,” created in cooperation with Citigroup, is designed to improve mathematical skills, among children. “The Money Game” has been scheduled to run frequently this summer.
Port Discovery?s special exhibitions also provide traditional and nontraditional learning. “Mr. Rogers? Neighborhood: A Hands-On Exhibit,” which runs through Labor Day, and accompanying educational programs, are designed to evoke the central themes of the “Mr. Rogers? Neighborhood” program.
Port Discovery?s permanent exhibits improve reading and comprehension skills with interactive story times in “The Oasis,” a room filled with hundreds of children?s story books; improves research and critical thinking skills in “Miss Perceptions Mystery House and Adventure Expeditions,” an exhibit that transports you back to 1920s Egypt to find a pharaoh?s lost tomb by deciphering hieroglyphics and finding the hidden signs of the pharaoh; improves interpersonal skills in “KidWorks,” a three-story urban tree house; and encourages the development of sensory perception in “Sensation Station,” a room designed specifically for newborns and infants that features a ball pit, puzzles, books, a sensory tower and a mini-version of “KidWorks.”
Nora Moynihan is director of Education and Community Enrichment at Port Discovery, the Children?s Museum in Baltimore, www.portdiscovery.org/.
