The Not-So-Secret Garden

the not so secret garden

You had a sneak peek here…today we’ll be sharing the sunshine-filled details of our Secret Garden event, which took place on the gorgeous grounds of Morven Museum & Garden!

Morven Museum & Garden is a historical landmark located in Princeton, New Jersey. It is the former Governor’s Mansion and, for more than 250 years, has been the home of five New Jersey governors and Richard Stockton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Morven’s house, outbuildings, grounds, and new Stockton Education Center are absolutely beautiful. So when they offered their gardens for a collaboration, we jumped at the chance.

Redbud-and-Tulip-poplar-(rt)-Morven_photo by Richard Speedy

Image courtesy of Morven Museum & Garden. Photo by Richard Speedy

Katie and I have been wanting to do a Secret Garden event for ages, and we especially wanted to focus on the novel’s themes of discovery, exploration, playfulness, and interaction with the the natural world. And Morven’s gardens are so beautiful…

exploring the gardenIn the Secret Garden, the 3 children build a private world within their walled garden, and we wanted to replicate that feeling. We found these terrific 39.5″ x 39.5″ x 43.5″ canvas play tents on Amazon (a bit pricey at $65 a pop, but they will be used for other events, so win!):

play tentsThe tents were a HUGE hit, and were in constant use all day long. They were light enough for kids to move around, so there were a number of interesting configurations throughout the day (my favorite being a long tent tunnel). Not far from the tents were wood slice stepping stones, which Princeton University’s Grounds & Maintenance was kind enough to donate…

stepping slicesWe pulled aside 2 of the larger wood slices to make tic tac toe boards. Use a permanent marker or paint to draw the board, and 2 different color rocks for the pieces.

wood slice tic tac toeIn addition to tic tac toe, we had a natural wood ring toss for the younger kids, and this cool Finnish game called Mölkky for older kids…

molkkyYou will find a full description of Mölkky here. But basically, it’s a game that involves some semi-skilled tossing and a little basic math. It’s super chill, super fun, and perfect for families. It also won Green Toy of the Year Award in 2015! A set costs $50 on Amazon, but again, we now have it for future events.

Meanwhile, on the slate patio near Morven’s garden fountain, there was natural paint brush painting:

natural paintbrushesThe brushes are 10″ sticks (thanks again Princeton Grounds & Maintenance!) with various flowers and foliage attached to the ends with rubber bands. Kids dipped the brushes into bowls of water and experimented with the different patterns the brushes created on the slate patio.

If you do this activity at your event, however, have big buckets of water handy, not just bowls. We quickly learned that kids like to carry and move the bowls with them, which inevitably tip over. I had to do a lot of monitoring and refiling to keep the project going.

We also had a very, very popular bubble wand station! We bought three, 15 piece bubble sets with giant wands on Amazon for $8. Plus two, 64oz bottles of solution for $9. We should have bought more solution folks, because we ran out halfway through the event! We recommend one 64oz bottle of solution per hour, minimum.

floating bubble We ran 5 hands-on craft tables at the event as well: nature print bookmarks, paperclip robins, bean mosaics, racing caterpillars, and butterfly feeders.


1: NATURE PRINT PAPER

Nature print paper (sometimes also called sun print paper) is a staple of science classes everywhere. We bought our 5″ x 7″ sheets on Amazon (a pack of 40 sheets cost $11), but to stretch the budget, we cut each sheet into 1.5″ x 7″ strips that would later serve as  bookmarks. All you need are some garden clippings, tubs of water, and paper plates for carrying your creation while it fully dries. Helming the table was Hope, our teen tester, who also volunteers at Morven!

hope and the nature print tableThis photo was taken right before the event officially started. Hope was pretty much mobbed the rest of the day. TOTAL TROOPER.


2: PAPERCLIP ROBINS

paperclip robbinsA robin plays an integral part of introducing Mary to the secret garden, so we borrowed this craft from Family Fun magazine. All you need are a pair of paperclips, heavy weight paper, scissors, tape, and a hole punch. Voilà! Personal robin!


3: BEAN MOSAICS

For a longer, more focused event project, we offered bean mosaics similar to the one pictured above. We provided kids with 3″x3″ squares of poster board. Baby wipes are a good idea for cleaning up hands and work areas, and paper plates are also good for carrying around your creation as it’s drying.


4: RACING CATERPILLARS

 

Honestly, you have to see these things in action to really appreciate them. A bit of folding, a drinking straw, and this little caterpillar really races! We had 2 table top race tracks at the event, and the competition was fierce (but there was plenty of laughter too). If you’d like some folding instructions to display on your event tabletop, you’ll find those here.

caterpillar races


5: BUTTERFLY FEEDERS

champagne-glass-butterfly-feeder_croppedThis project was previously featured in a sneak peek post (which you will find here). But there’s an extra special event connection…Morven’s Head Horticulturist, Louise Senior, was tagging butterflies that day!

butterfly tanksLouise brought out a trio of tanks and monarchs in their various forms to lecture about life cycles and butterfly science. Then she tagged and released monarchs to the skies!

monarch caterpillarpupaehatched butterflies


AND FINALLY…

We did have ONE MORE event activity that day. In the book, Mary unearths the garden key that was buried by a grieving Archibald Craven. In the spirit of her life-changing discovery, we designed a key hunt. We hot glued 6 vintage keys to craft sticks and staked them throughout the garden grounds.

hidden keyEach key was assigned a rainbow color so kids would know when they found all 6. Once they reported their success at key hunt HQ, they were rewarded with a vintage mini key of their choice (and yes, we are STILL reusing those mini keys we bought bulk for this Sherlock Holmes escape room!). We had string handy, in case kids wanted to wear their keys home as necklaces.

The hidden key activity was not only related to the book, it was a great way to simple get out and explore the gardens, high and low, near and far…

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It was a glorious day, and we would like to sincerely thank Morven Museum & Gardens for opening their home to us. Their staff and volunteers were absolutely wonderful. A very special thanks to Curator of Education and Public Programs, Debra Lampert-Rudman, for being so enthusiastic, accommodating, and full of joy.

History Outdoes Itself

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!

Muggle Studies 101

muggle studies 101

Deluxe Chicken Grooming Kit [c.2011]

Witches and wizards, it is with great pleasure that I introduce this most illustrious exhibition of Muggle artifacts for your edification and enjoyment. The 45 items were originally displayed at Wand Works, our Harry Potter event. An interview with the Curator, Téa Wimer, can be found at the end of the post.

Click on the images below to enlarge both the image and the caption.



MEET TÉA WIMER, CURATOR OF MUGGLE ARTIFACTS

muggle artifacts curator, tea wimer

Téa Wimer is a sophomore at Princeton University who intends to pursue Anthropology as her major, as well as creative writing. She’s also a massive Harry Potter fan, which made her the perfect Curator of Muggle Artifacts. With boundless energy, Téa sailed through everything with us – acquisitions, brain-storming, writing, edits, and installation – with creativity and confidence. The labels are a hoot (I couldn’t resist the fun of writing some too), but I particularly like object number 45. Stumped for an explanation, Téa decided to turn it over to the kids for feedback. You can see some of their responses at the end of the post.

The day of the event, Téa donned her Curator’s uniform (thank you Lewis Center for the Arts Costume Shop!) and strolled the exhibit floor, answering questions, doing demonstrations, and chatting about her findings. All with a tremendous sense of humor and a twinkle in her eye.

How would you describe your relationship with the Harry Potter books?

I was (and still am!) absolutely crazy about the Harry Potter series! I read whatever was released in the series up to that point early in elementary school in a short amount of time, and then my grandmother got me the last two books through pre-order. It’s hard to imagine that the series was still being written and released when I was growing up, because now it’s blown up to be a cultural phenomenon!

My dad is a huge fan of the movies, too, so every weekend spent at his house was spent re-watching at least one of them. Now, I definitely look back on Harry Potter with nostalgia. I keep meaning to re-read them because I’ve forgotten little things, but college and ever-increasing adult responsibilities make it to where I can’t spend as much time as I would like. So now I watch the movies a lot and spend more time on Pottermore than I probably should.

What skills did you bring to the table as Curator of Muggle Artifacts?

I think one of the coolest things about this process was that my developing skills as an ethnographer and anthropologist met with my creative side. I’ve always been looking for ways that those two (seemingly separate) parts of my interests can intersect, and even if this seems a bit “silly,” I really enjoyed taking a previously known object and regarding it as an anthropologist might look at an unknown cultural rite or artifact and creatively thinking up a way that a Muggle might use the given object.

I also had to think of myself as a different character sometimes too, as a wizard who is genuinely baffled by Muggles and their weird ways. I think that my child-like curiosity and imagination has never really left me, and that was also a huge plus as the Curator of Muggle Artifacts.

muggle cookie slicer

Where did you get the artifacts?

Dana, Katie, and I took a day and went to a nearby thrift store. We sifted through every inch of the store and picked out the most bizarre and random objects, and then convened at the end and I chose what I thought would be best to use. [Note: Objects 2 and 12 are from the private collection of Katie Zondlo].

How did you decide between the different artifacts?

There wasn’t really a set system for deciding between the different things we all amassed. I tend to be pretty impulsive, so sometimes it was just simply knowing that the object had to be in my collection because it was so weird – such as the Slimnastics language guide or the fuzzy pink Muggle trophy. You just can’t pass it up! Of course, sometimes I had to be practical, so if I felt like an object wasn’t giving me ideas, we would put it to the side. As we drew nearer to the event, some of the objects still weren’t prepared, so they were scratched and used as props or conjoined with other items in the collection.

muggle artifacts on displayHow did you decide to approach your exhibit labels?

Dana and I set up a lot of deadlines. I had to have a certain amount of labels done by a certain date, which was intimidating because we had nearly fifty objects and only so much imagination (plus it was really my first project with a real deadline that mattered, outside of school of course). But I just ended up doing the ones that I could think of very quickly first, and then the ones that needed a bit more time and consideration, I went to Dana and Katie for inspiration.

Which was the hardest object to write a label for?

There wasn’t any one particular object that was the hardest, but rather a bunch of the items gave me a hard time. It tended to be objects that had very straightforward uses, such as the World Checker (globe) or the Muggle wand (remote). I also noticed that it tended to be more modern items that gave me trouble, for obvious reasons. It was hard to be imaginative about things that I use on a daily basis, but a lot easier to imagine what a rusty old saxophone could be used for!

Which object is your favorite?

My favorite object is the Wave-Cooker, which is part of the Squib Assimilation Kit. It gave me so many cool ideas about what it must be like in J.K. Rowling’s world, as a magical family member who has no actual magic. What would that look like historically? What if there were social justice movements to make magical witches and wizards more accepting of their magically mute friends, relatives, and neighbors? What if some of the geniuses we know in history were actually Squibs who just knew more about the universe due to their upbringing in the magic world? It’s so interesting to me.

Another favorite few objects are the ones used by rich Muggles, like the curtain hooks (fancy bookmarks) and the custom engagement rings (beautiful glass napkin holders with giant flowers) because I think that working class people like my family really have no clue or can even grasp what a more well-off person can do with their time and money, so I think the imaginative process was close to the real thing (being a wizard and thinking about Muggles academically).

discussion of muggle artifactsHow did the event attendees react to your exhibit?

Overall, I think a lot of people loved it. Some parents were quick to explain what the objects actually were, and a couple of kids even came up to tell me that I had no clue what I was talking about – my favorite being when one of the children said I should be fired from my job at Hogwarts. Everyone seemed to really enjoy it, parents more than kids sometimes, and I’m very grateful that I got to share it with everyone at the event!


* Suggested uses for unknown object number 45 include, but are not limited to: hairbrush, spoon, sled, back scratcher (both human and cat), scalp scratcher, glove cleaner, jewelry hanger, shower scrub, mermaid’s display hanger, lost DAB, hat holder, fish’s home, hand of glory decoration, something that makes things smell good, telepathic device, skin exfoliating loofa, plant that makes you inconspicuous, very flammable device, future-predicting crystal, torch (both Muggle and ever-burning), booger holder, part of an underwater volcano, teleportation device (specifically, to the bathroom), space artifact, petrification device, monster that will grab you, exploding popcorn butter that’s frozen in time, and weirdly…coral.

** I’ve got the Deluxe Chicken Grooming Kit in my office if anyone needs to borrow it.