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The Littlest Historians: Early Years Programming in History Museums

2016; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 41; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/10598650.2016.1198132

2051-6169

Mariruth Leftwich, Clare Haywood,

Art Education and Development

Working with children under five years old and the adults that accompany them is a rapidly growing area within the museum and wider cultural sector, with important emphasis being placed on early learning in both the United Kingdom and United States. For history museums in particular, early learning offers a unique set of questions and challenges, as these youngest visitors barely have a concept of time to begin understanding the content and context of our museums. This article explores the early learning provision at the Museum of London and how it acted as a model for a preschool program at the Senator John Heinz History Center. These programs represent an investment in new audiences in an effort to ensure that they are relevant to an emerging generation, by engaging them in the earliest and most formative years of their lives and contributing their social and cognitive development.