History Outdoes Itself

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1 new-york historical society lipman children's history library Ladies and gentleman, may I introduce the Barbara K Lipman Children’s History Library? This gorgeous gem is adjacent to the stunning DiMenna Children’s History Museum, which in turn is located inside the amazing New-York Historical Society, Central Park West.

While the New-York Historical Society was established in 1804, the Children’s Museum is a more recent edition, springing to life in 2011. The museum and the library have a packed programming schedule, from historical book clubs to living history days. They’ve also recently introduced a new initiative, History Detective Briefcases. It’s incredibly clever. I’ll circle back to it at the end of this post. But for now…on to the children’s library!

I always head straight for the books, and these shelves do not disappoint. To the left as you enter the library are multiple stories of bookshelves filled with historical fiction and non-fiction picture books and chapter books. The curved benches not only serve as handy reading desks, they also act as risers for school group visits.

2 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryNotice the colorful books on the uppermost shelves? Those are old books that have been painted! So the easily-reachable lower shelves contain the books for kids to browse. But the painted books fill out the upper shelves, looking beautiful and colorful.

3 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryThe history library doesn’t just contain books, however. Multiple exhibit cases are built into the shelves and tables in unique ways. For example, see the “Amazing Atlas” case below?

4 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryThere’s another case hidden behind it, displaying a curved panorama of period ships!

5 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryAnother exhibit clever case? Check out the library ladder in the photo below.

1 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryThe ladder holds 4 cases, each displaying artifacts related to reading and writing. By the way, the case next to ladder contains the original mold for the famous Alice in Wonderland statue in Central Park.

6 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryAlso, did you notice the NYC skyline soaring above the shelves in the library? That’s the actual north-south-east-west skyline you see from the roof of the New-York Historical Society building. A photographer shot the views from the roof, and then the exhibit fabricators transported them to the library walls.

7 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryAnd now, my favorite exhibit case, which is masquerading as a card catalog:

8 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryPull open the drawers to view multiple exhibit cases. Notice the exhibit label you can just see in the lower right hand corner? Yup, it’s modeled after an old catalog card. I love it!

9 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryThe cases are marvelous, but I also want to give a big nod to the artifacts in the cases. Book-making tools, period paper dolls, detailed model ships, colorful illustrated books – these are actual collections items carefully selected and displayed for the youngest patrons.

10 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryIn the beginning of the post, I mentioned the New-York Historical Society’s new History Detective Briefcases. So very, very cool. They’re currently part of a new educational initiative on the building’s 4th floor.

11 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryThese handsome little cases are filled with activity cards, tools, and art supplies. There are several types to choose from. Here’s just one of them:

12 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryTucked across the very back of each briefcase are activity cards matching the 4th floor exhibits. Grab a case, read the cards, and use the contents of the case to explore and learn more about the exhibits. HOW FANTASTIC IS THIS???

13 new-york historical society lipman children's history libraryIf you haven’t been to the New-York Historical Society, please head there posthaste. It’s beautiful, and the exhibits are fantastic. Additionally (and for me, most importantly) kids are warmly welcomed to learn from, and engage with, the exhibits. History, for everyone!

Thank you to Alice Stevenson, Director of the DiMenna Children’s History Museum, for allowing us to visit your amazing space!

Monster Class

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monster class photo

Even monsters need to learn their ABCs! These easy monster mask / hat combination costumes made it easy for terrifying young scholars to brainstorm ideas for their very own spooky alphabet books.

We read My Creature Teacher, written by Laura Leuck, and illustrated by Scott Nash (South China Printing Company, 2004). It’s your typical day at school…monster school that is! Hang up your spider sack, raise your paw in class, spell spooky words, and take the fire-breathing class pet out for a little fresh air. Teachers, no matter where they are, or how big their fangs are, all deserve our respect and gratitude.

You’ll need:

  • 1 plastic hat
  • Poster board
  • Mask decorating supplies (more on this below)
  • Scissors and tape for construction
  • Markers for decorating

The thing I like best about these masks is that they’re attached to a hat. This makes it easier to avoid the dreaded “mask sag.”  And let’s face it, hats are awesome, especially on werewolves!

werewolf maskWe offered 3 different types of hats, all purchased from Oriental Trading Company:

  1. Top hat ($7 a dozen, item #13743494)
  2. Fedora ($10 a dozen, item #31/243)
  3. Derby ($7.50 a dozen, item #25/562)

Cut a mask from poster board, then curl it a little and tape it to the inside front of a plastic hat. In the below image, you can see where we attached the Creature from the Black Lagoon mask to the plastic fedora:

creature from the black lagoon maskHowever! It’s best to decorate the mask before you attach it to the hat. Just make sure you leave some empty space at the top of the mask so it rests flat on the inside of the hat.

For decorating supplies, we offered curling ribbon, paper crinkle, crepe paper streamers, tissue paper, pipe cleaners, sparkle stems, craft ties, mesh tubing, iridescent cello, patterned paper, foam beads, pom-poms, dot stickers, goose quills, cone water cups, fabric flowers, and self-adhesive foam. And the Bling Bin of course.

The crepe paper streamers were INCREDIBLY popular for making braids down the sides of the masks. The more streamers, the thicker the braids. We secured the braid to the hat with tape, but we secured the bottom with staples.

skeleton maskOnce the transformation to monster students was complete, we gathered in the “classroom” to learn the monster alphabet. Basically, I created a template with space for illustrations (see mine below). I had the class recited the monster alphabet with me (even though it was hard not to giggle).

monster alphabetWe also printed and stapled together a set of alphabet letters for kids to take home a illustrate themselves. And yes, Z is for ZOMBIE!

z is for zombie

The Artistic Journalist

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the artistic journalist_artwork by megan whisner-quinlanWords of wisdom, explosions of color, gorgeous layers, and playful images. You will find all of these in the work of art journalist Megan Whisner-Quinlan. What is art journaling? Basically, it’s a more formalized version of a sketchbook. The goal is to express yourself with small, complete works of art within the bound pages of a journal.

A self-taught artist, Megan recently completed an Instagram-hosted project called #the100dayproject. I asked her to share her work, and answer a few questions about her process!

1_artwork by megan whisner-quinlan2_artwork by megan whisner-quinlanWhen did you first learn about art journaling?
I learned of art journaling about 16 years ago, right around the same time I discovered book binding, as they often go hand in hand.

How long have you been doing it?
I did art journaling for about 3 years until I had children and then stopped because I was so overwhelmed with the early years of motherhood. I came back to it about 3 years ago. Initially, I was just journaling during a difficult time, but then I added some nice designs on the pages and before I knew it the art took over.

Do you lean more towards the art…or the journaling?

Right now I lean towards the art. It really depends on where I am in my life. Art journaling is considered an art, but a therapeutic form of art. Sometimes, I will add more writing if I want to focus on certain elements of my life. Many art journalers use a lot of positive affirmations when journaling.

What are some of your favorite go-to supplies?

I use Ranger Ink’s Dylusions journals, paints and inks. They are specifically designed by art journalers for art journaling. I also love watercolors, watercolor pencils. and gel pens to add detail and background to my pages. I do a lot of collage as well, so used magazines are my favorite source for supplies as well.

Are there any parameters to art journaling? Or is it whatever you can imagine – text, images, sketches, color washes…?

There really are no parameters to art journaling, which is why it is so great and accessible for anyone.

Is it difficult coming up with a concept every day?

I almost never have any plan anytime I sit down to journal. Usually I will generate a direction from an image that is interesting and go from there. More recently I have been prepping many pages at once and just go back and forth between them each day.

How has your journaling changed since you first started posting it on Instagram?

I have only been posting on Instagram since January so It hasn’t actually been too long. But as an artist, you tend to try different techniques and phases all the time. I still feel like I’m “learning” and maybe I always will, so I guess right now at least I don’t feel like I have found my niche yet.

What are your top 3 favorite entries and why?
This is a tough one. I have some favorites, but more interesting to me is when you put it out into the world. You don’t know what will resonate with others. To this day I have always noticed, at least on Instagram, my favorites are often the posts that get the lowest “likes.” I love that. It is actually a comfort, because I know that I am still pleasing myself regardless of others opinions.

You finished your 100 day project, what are you up to next?

Right now I am in an “absorption” phase and am doing a lot of workshops online. I looked up one of the more known art journalers, Teesha Moore, and have been watching her videos. I recently just learned she suffered a stroke in March and is still rehabilitating. It is remarkable to see her progress, and even though she is struggling to regain control of her right hand (and speech) the art she is doing just for her recovery, is beautiful. She is such an inspiration to me, so right now, I am trying to learn as much as I can from watching her and grow even more as an artist.

19_artwork by megan whisner-quinlan

Click here to see this journal entry flutter!