My parents were neither middle class nor wealthy yet I have a lifelong love of art and history thanks to them taking me to free museums. They are only boring and dull to children if they are not engaged by engaged adults.
I remember taking my class of seven year olds to the art museum. We got on the elevator and when the doors opened, one girl gasped. She had never heard of elevators and had no idea what had just happened.
The whole concept of museums being too posh for most kids really annoys me. In effect it's saying that working class kids should know their place, stick to things like sports, and have no desire to expand their interests into things that are reserved for their social betters. /1
As you have recounted, your interest in ancient history began with an rainy day encounter with an Ancient Egyptian loaf. Why are they prejudging that the opportunity for such inspiration should not span all in society?
It's, almost a form of inverse snobbery, being displayed.
Damn! Just reread that and there's the possibility @wmarybeard.bsky.social might take it as a dig at her, rather than citing her experience as an example of how museums can inspire children, and present them with new paths to follow, that might never have occurred to them otherwise.
Beauty, culture, and civilization need practice. I cannot understand the reasoning behind the professor suggesting cuts to school visits to museums and theaters in favor of sports fields. Of course, kids need more sports, but not at the cost of their cultural education.
*Museums and archaeological sites become much more exciting when there is a guide who presents the exhibits in an engaging way, especially for children. In Greece, we are fortunate to have excellent guides, but we fall short when it comes to technological support (headsets etc)
Having worked on the museum industry for 7 years I can definitely say most kids love a trip out and yes often bring their family back to see what they discovered. Keep museums free
I've worked in museums my whole career. Museums are for everyone, although for many there are barriers to coming in - so we go to them, or invite them along. School visits are not only vital to children, they are also vital to museums for income and getting repeat visits.
I gained an appreciation for history/art etc. as the one treat my (often skint) working class parents could always afford was a trip to a museum/gallery - all it required was bus fare & a packed lunch. To deny the same opportunity to kids today actually seems counterproductive for social mobility.
Thinking back - way, way back - to the school visits I went on, yes there were museums and galleries but there was also tours of local government, battlefields, Castles and on one occasion a whisky distillery.
By all means go and tour a football stadium, they are cultural history after all.
Why not both. School visits to places I would not normally go to were the best. I went to plenty of places with family, including musea, but school would always add something, like a proper guide. Plus, as long as you're not in class, that's a bonus 😄
I don't think I'd have loved history do much if I hadn't been in a school visit to Hampton Court. My Dad took us to museums because they were free. I've taken my kids to a few. They are all inclusive.
Spent my childhood being “dragged” round ancient buildings, paying it forward to my young nephews. Their favourite place on hols in France is the medieval ruins at Domfront, the chateau at Falaise & Mont St Michel. Hope they one day do the same 🏰
my kids are getting the full on museum experience whether they like it or not! Fortunately they mostly do! You never quite know what will catch their eye and inspire them so just need to approach each visit without preconceptions.
This is exactly why they should be taken on visits, in order to eliminate this idea of elitism. I've worked in a gallery for 10 years and seen so many adults who tentatively ask if they can come in, because they don't know anything about art. It breaks my bloody heart.
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It's, almost a form of inverse snobbery, being displayed.
By all means go and tour a football stadium, they are cultural history after all.
Nothing less than brilliant. 💗