CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Design a Museum Exhibit | CMSMatHome

  Good morning frm #CMSMatHome!   Have you ever designed an exhibit? Let’s make one together! Gather some materials, such as paper, cardboard, recycled items, markers, crayons, scissors, tape, ribbon…   Think about exhibits you have seen and explored. What are your interests? What would you like to make? Who is it for, what materials

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Interesting Times: An Update on the Museum Closure Childrens Museum of Southern Minnesota
CMSM Blog
Louise

Interesting Times: An Update on the Museum Closure

“May you live in interesting times!” keeps coming to mind during this coronavirus pandemic. This certainly is an interesting time for museums and other cultural jewels. To help ensure the safety of staff and its visitors, the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota (CMSM) made a hard—but necessary—decision to temporarily close its doors before the direction came

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Water Play | CMSMatHome
CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Water Play | CMSMatHome

  It’s time for Toddler Wednesday with @CMSMatHome!   Today, we’ll play with water. Prepare some bins, large and small, containers, colander, measuring cups, spoons, rocks, and building blocks that can get wet. Fill the large bins with water or sit in the bathtub.   Experiment with a variety of cups, spoons, containers, and the

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Build a Board Game | CMSMatHome
CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Build a Board Game | CMSMatHome

  Good morning from #CMSMatHome!   We’re sure you’ve played board games, but have you ever made one? Let’s work on that today!   Gather some paper, scissors, cardboard if you’d like, ruler, pencils and markers, dice, and small toys to use as game pieces. We can start out with a simple game, and you

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Melting Ice | CMSMatHome
CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Melting Ice | CMSMatHome

  Let’s melt ice today with @CMSMatHome!   First, prepare by freezing clear water or water with some food coloring in ice cube trays or a variety of containers. Get a plastic bin, some utensils, and some cups and scoops.   Add some water into your plastic bin, then dump ice into the water and

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Colorful Leaf Prints | CMSMatHome
CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Colorful Leaf Prints | CMSMatHome

  Good morning from #CMSMatHome! Let’s make some colorful leaf prints today. Get some paper, preferably white, and some felt-tip markers. Gather freshly-picked leaves, but look for sturdy ones with strong vein structure. Color the back side of the leaf (where the veins are) with your marker, then press the colored side onto the white

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CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Make a Rain Gauge | CMSMatHome

  Good morning from #CMSMatHome! This is our 60th daily post in this series, and we’ll consider this a small reason to celebrate! 🙃 Today, we’ll construct a rain gauge. You’ll need a clear plastic bottle, ruler, marker, and some rocks. Cut the top section off a clear bottle with the help of an adult.

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CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Make a Sundial | CMSMatHome

  Good morning from #CMSMatHome!   Let’s put together a sundial today! Get a marker, paper plate, pencil, scissors, and a piece of paper. Draw a clock face on the paper with equally spaced numbers from 1 to 12. Cut out your clock face and glue it to the back of the paper plate. Punch

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CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Follow the Sun | CMSMatHome

  Let’s follow the sun with #CMSMatHome! Have you noticed how the sun changes its location in the sky throughout the day? Do you know how much it moves, and when? Let’s try to observe and record its movement. You’ll need a pencil, some paper, string, and a clock. Find a window in your home

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CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Obstacle Course | CMSMatHome

  It’s time for a Toddler Wednesday with #CMSMatHome!   Today, we’ll build an obstacle course and, through crawling and jumping, work on our gross motor skills.   Gather some chairs, stools, scarves, streamers, tape, pillows, cushions… and anything else that resembles good building material. Find a good spot and start creating your obstacle course.

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CMSM at Home
Courtney Malone

Experimental Seed Starting | CMSMatHome

  Let’s see what we can grow from foods we eat at home, such as avocado, grapefruit or lemon, or tomato. Sprouting can take 7 – 14 days.   Cut a grapefruit or lemon in half, then scoop out flesh to eat or use in recipes. Collect seeds, add some potting soil or dirt to

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CMSM Blog
Courtney Malone

Check Out (Quite Literally!) One of These Cool Backpacks!

By now, most parents and caregivers have likely exhausted a long list of ideas to keep children–young and old–occupied and content. Here is something that may help with that! Besides CMSMatHome, a daily prompt for play and hands-on learning, the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota now has one more exciting project to offer: Prairie’s Edge

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