Outdoor Play and Activity are Key Components at Award-Winning Children's Museums

- Long Island Children's Museum Receives 10th Annual MetLife Foundation and Association of Children's Museums Promising Practice Award 2008 -

WASHINGTON, May 8 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- "Go outside and play, and don't come in until I call you!" These words, so commonly repeated by parents and caregivers to their children decades ago, are spoken seldom these days. And the fallout of less active, outdoor play, its correlation to childhood obesity and adverse developmental behavior has been well-documented by researchers and journalists. Children's museums, champions of informal learning through play, are making strides in connecting children to the outdoors as well as promoting fitness and healthy eating. In recognition of these promising efforts, MetLife Foundation and Association of Children's Museums (ACM) presented the 2008 Promising Practice Awards to the Long Island Children's Museum on Friday, April 25, at ACM's international conference held in Denver. Kidspace Children's Museum (Pasadena, CA) and The Children's Museum of Brownsville (TX) also received unrestricted Promising Practices grants.

"The outdoor play opportunities that these children's museums are offering strike a positive emotional chord with kids," said Sibyl Jacobson, President of MetLife Foundation. "Research indicates that children playing outdoors are more motivated to interact, to learn and to be active"

"Informal and free play encounters found inside children's museums are expanding to green spaces. This is important because outdoor experiences in natural settings reduce stress, produce a general feeling of well-being and encourage healthy, vigorous play in children and adults alike," said Janet Rice Elman, ACM Executive Director.

Long Island Children's Museum (Garden City, NY) received a $7,500 Promising Practice Award for its Our Backyard exhibit and programming. The museum transformed an unsightly alley adjacent to its doors into an innovative green space, Our Backyard, as a means to extend the museum's indoor exhibitions featuring the familiar ecosystems of Long Island to the outdoors. Our Backyard helps children to develop a sense of wonder and appreciation for the natural world and an interest in observing their surroundings. Exhibit components and outdoor programming teach children about solar heating; birding; the identification and role of insects; the "what" and "how to" of composting; as well as a touch, smell and taste garden; weather information stations; and areas for playing with and manipulating dirt, sand and water.

Notable during the prototyping of Our Backyard, the museum learned that some parents didn't encourage outdoor play due to fears of disease, animals or unhealthy sun exposure. Preliminary evaluation indicates that Our Backyard is changing those perceptions that playing in natural environments is less risk-filled and indeed necessary for children. LICM is expanding its outdoor activities further this year with the addition of a water play area, exploring water's properties and the water cycle.

"Developing innovative programs that inspire community engagement and deepen our reach and impact is an institutional priority at Long Island Children's Museum," said Executive Director Suzanne LeBlanc. "Earning a Promising Practices Award, which rewards programs and management practices that serve to inspire others in our field, is validation of our efforts. We applaud MetLife Foundation's dedication to supporting pioneering activities that establish standards for the museum field."

Also receiving 2008 unrestricted grants were:

-- Kidspace Children's Museum received a $7,500 Promising Practice Award
for its 2.2 acre "Outdoor Learning Environment."

-- The Children's Museum of Brownsville (TX) received a Promising
Practice Award for $5,000 for its Circus Extravaganza Fitness
Program.

The MetLife Foundation and Association of Children's Museums Promising Practice Award was established in 1999, and provides recognition and inspiration for children's museums to develop programs that are inclusive, meet community needs, encourage community partnerships and promote lifelong learning. A 10-year commemorative summary of all Promising Practice Award recipients is posted on the ACM Web site, www.ChildrensMuseums.org.

MetLife Foundation was established by MetLife to continue the company's long tradition of corporate contributions and community involvement. The Foundation supports programs that improve education, promote health, encourage parental involvement and family engagement, help revitalize neighborhoods and stress accessibility and inclusion. The Foundation supports museums across the country because of the important role they play in educating people of all ages and the valuable resources they provide for schools and communities.

ACM is a professional service organization for children's museums around the world. ACM's mission is to build the capacity of children's museums to serve as town squares for children and families where play inspires creativity and lifelong learning. There are approximately 350 children's museums internationally. The museums complement efforts in schools, childcare centers and homes, enriching the lives and education of children. Children's museums reach more than 30 million annually. Visit www.ChildrensMuseums.org for links to ACM's international list of museums and tips on making the most of the children's museum experience.

Photo Caption: (l-r) Janet Rice Elman, Executive Director, ACM, Suzanne LeBlanc, Executive Director, LICM, and Rohit Burman, Program Manager, MetLife Foundation

http://www.licm.org/eblast/press/2008%20Promising%20Practices%20Awards%20P resentation.jpg

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact:

Source: Long Island Children's Museum

CONTACT: Maureen P. Mangan of Long Island Children's Museum,
+1-516-224-5828

Web Site: http://www.childrensmuseum.org/
http://www.licm.org/

2008-05-08 19:31:35 0357305 PRNEWSWIRE