Founded in 1816, the Fitzwilliam museum is the principal art museum of the University of Cambridge. For more than 15 years, we have been developing activities and resources to help young children make connections with the artworks in our collection. A cornerstone of our early years offer is the Creative Families course. This is marketed via practitioners at local child and family centres. We want to reach out to families who might not have been to the museum before. With this in mind, we cover all transport costs and run a ‘getting to know you’ session at the child and family centre so participants can meet the museum staff in a familiar setting.
We want families to have the opportunity to make happy memories together through taking part in creative shared experiences at the museum. The galleries offer everyone the opportunity to be curious and to learn something new, and the facilitated activities invite parents and children to relax, play and create together.
We use stories, music, sensory play and exploration with materials to support children to engage with the artworks on display, as the paintings, sculptures and historical artefacts can't be touched. We aim for children to develop connections with the artworks, and a feeling of belonging to the cultural community. Our sessions include time in the gallery spaces so that the children learn that this is somewhere they have a right to access.
ACTIVITIES
The Creative Families course takes place over four weeks. Here is an example schedule:
Getting to Know You
We set to work creating a ‘Museum in a Shoe Box’. Using simple craft materials, families work together to create a little museum for small-world toys to visit. This offers an opportunity to talk about any previous experiences of museums and to introduce some of the things we might encounter together – big staircases, paintings in frames, sculptures on plinths.
Visit 1
Our first visit takes place in the armoury. We sing action rhymes such as Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes and look for armour for different parts of the body. We build in plenty of time for open-ended play as an opportunity for us to get to know the children, and for them to feel a sense of agency. Baskets of sensory resources allow the children to explore the materials, shapes and patterns on display in the armoury, and create related artwork in the studio.
Visit 2
Next, we visit the French impressionist gallery. Using movement and sound play, we imagine that we are in the snowy landscapes, beach scenes or springtime orchards of the paintings. In the studio, children and adults are all invited to create their own landscapes with artist-grade watercolour materials.
Visit 3
Finally, we share the story of The Tiger Who Came to Tea in the ceramics gallery, searching for teapots, milk jugs, teacups and cake plates fit for a tiger. With its large glass cases and low-level shelves, the ceramics gallery is often a favourite with little ones who spot all kinds of fascinating creatures and objects that the adults haven't noticed. To extend this, we explore clay together.
AFTER THE COURSE
We know that what really makes the difference is a loving, stimulating and responsive home learning environment. We give take-home gifts of art materials, toys and picture books. We also print out lots of photos and offer each family a sketchbook so that they can document the experience to look back on later. We make sure the families know how to join in with our public programme, and continue to advertise events via our community partners.
FITZWILLIAM MUSEUM, CAMBRIDGE
Number of visitors: 300,000 per year
Collection: principal art museum of the University of Cambridge with half a million works of art. Includes ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman antiquities and the arts of the 21st century, including masterpiece paintings, ancient music and outstanding collections of applied arts (aesthetically pleasing everyday objects).
Early years offer: includes playtime, storytelling and creative activities for one- to three- and two- to five-year-olds, and a sensory play and relaxation session for under-ones and their adults