RMU Students at Children's Museum

This fall RMU teacher education candidates taking ECED3100 (Integrating Arts & the Developing Child) worked in pairs to create activities that would engage young children at the Children's Museum of Pgh. Each of the activities was linked to a children's book that highlighted creativity, making, building, textiles, etc. RMU School of Education pre-service teachers presented their activities to RMU faculty & museum staff for feedback before taking their materials & ideas to different areas of the museum. Patrons of the museum and children from the Pgh. public preK classroom, housed in the museum, participated in the activitues. Some of the activities included working in a small group to build cities, skyscrapers, etc. with boxes, using material & paper to create textile patterns, building and testing houses for the 3 Little Pigs to see which materials were strongest, working with oobleck, and creating individual projects out of boxes & other recyclables (like Adalade's robot).

Working with young children at the museum is part of a unique year long project tied to the Maker Movement. In the spring, this same group of RMU students will take ECED3060 (Family & Community Partnerships). They will continue to collaborate with staff at the Children's Museum and also faculty, staff, parents & children at Avonworth School District's primary center by assisting in the running of Avonworth Primary School's "Makeshop Madness" event. An all day event which also highlights critical thinking, problem solving, and creativity by participating in a variety of hands-on activities.