Kids As Curators

Annex Gallery
February 8, 2008 – March 7, 2008

Now in its fourth year, Kids as Curators returns with a new crop of students and their fresh ideas about stuff. “Middle school kids love collecting,” states Museum Education Director Kelly Armor. “Who doesn’t know
a 13-year-old whose bedroom is a stockpile of relics? This project allows kids to really think about their collections and formally share them with the public.
It has become one of our most popular exhibits,
not only with families but with local artists.”

Each year the Museum teams up with three schools representing rural, urban, and suburban populations. After an extensive training at the Museum, the teachers are charged with helping their students create an exhibit drawing from their collections. “Although we give plenty of support, we don’t tell teachers or students what their exhibit should be like. That way we get different ideas each year. Some schools collect data and make a science exhibit, others have a community focus, and others have created sculptural pieces out of junk drawer donations.”

Since this fall, students from the Perseus House Maritime Charter School, Corry’s Columbus Elementary, and the Erie Day School have worked with their teachers and learned how to apply the museum process to the basic concepts of their curriculum. Their distinctive youthful playfulness spills out in their selection, evaluation, interpretation, and presentation of their objects of interest. Armor notes, “Kids don’t like it when a museum is just about looking, they want interaction. As a result, this exhibit has plenty of great hands-on activities.”

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