Online Educational Programming Launched by the Children's Museum and Theatre of Maine
In order to continue to serve as a resource for parents, families, and the community during a period of time marked by public health curfews and quarantines, the Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine launched a series of free, online educational programs today. The Museum & Theatre is temporarily closed during this public health emergency (full statement here), but its mission continues.
Museum educators are livestreaming daily via the Museum & Theatre’s facebook page www.facebook.com/kitetails. Past programs and upcoming schedule are below.
The online series of programs – called “At Home Together” – is designed to support parents with easy prompts for hands-on experiential learning, imagination, and discovery through play. The online series is organized by themes: Makerspace and Wild Life are the initial two.
In addition, the Theatre program has launched the Maine Youth Playwriting Challenge Online. Theatre has the power and capacity to bring people together for a shared experience. The human experience is to tell stories and create empathy. While our theatre itself is dark, and while our schools are not in session, we are launching a playwriting challenge, inspiring children all over the state of Maine to write.
Lastly, the Theatre program has created an Onstage and Off: Theatre Together (Online) Series.
Please find additional information below. This page will be updated as more programs become available.
“At Home Together”
Online Educational Program Series
“Wild Life” Programs in the “At Home Together” Online Series
The Museum & Theatre may be closed, but it’s still wild in here. If you have ever wondered what the animals at the Museum & Theatre do when the lights go out, now is your chance to find out. Tune in with your family to get tips on tide pool scavenger hunts, watch how frogs are fed, learn how to do turtle yoga (what?), and watch our yellow-bellied-slider turtles get out and explore our exhibits.
Our museum educators will provide you with simple discovery tips for morning or afternoon learning through play activities to do with your family. See our facebook page for these events in the Wild Life series.
Makerspace | Theatre | Music
“MakerSpace” Programs in the “At Home Together” Online Series
We may be closed, but don’t let that stop the budding engineer in your house from making! Tune in for quick and easy engineering-themed activities. Our educators will share ideas for identifying home-sourced building material and ready-to-go challenges to keep kids engaged with learning through play.
All program livestreaming occurs on our facebook page.
Onstage and Off: Theatre Together Online Series
Onstage and Off theatre programs are livestreamed on our facebook page.
Maine Youth Playwriting Challenge Online
Maine Youth Playwriting Challenge a at the Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine empowers families to:
*Write stories
*Document our world and the time we’re living in
*Join in community
*Celebrate the imagination of Maine Youth
The Maine Youth Playwriting Challenge is an online group for young playwrights in Maine, to challenge and support each to write a play during this unique time of social distancing. These plays may take many forms, from realistic family dramas to utter absurdity. This challenge will take place while school is not in session and challenge young playwrights to write short plays, focusing on: inspiration, setting, character, and structure.