What is it about water that makes a kid lose all sense of time, place and inhibition?
He was maneuvering toys along the museum exhibit’s winding river and didn’t even notice his shirt and shorts getting soaked.
“I should have brought a change of clothes,” my daughter said with a laugh. But my 3½-year-old grandson was lost in ideas and undeterred by our efforts to move him along.
That is the beauty of play. Often what an adult sees as discomfort, inconvenience or mess is inviting, fun and engrossing in the eyes of a child. And it is essential.
Play is “the foundation for everything children need later in life,” said Kimberly Stull, executive vice president of playful learning at DuPage Children’s Museum in Naperville.
It has been called a child’s work because it is vital to their development of problem solving skills, creativity and imagination, she said.
In the busyness of adult life, it can be easy to forget or dismiss the importance of stacking blocks, collecting sticks or rearranging whole environments to meet a childish vision. But we shouldn’t.
Stull offers tips on how parents can customize a visit to the museum and mimic its many objectives at home.
“We take play really seriously,” she said. “I don’t think our visitors understand how much goes into creating an exhibit space. We really think them through, study them and make sure that when we set out at the beginning, we have a goal of what learning outcomes or goals we want to meet. Then we measure those outcomes.”
Of course, not all exhibits will appeal to all children, at least not on the same day, but all children are encouraged to find their space and amend it to their needs, she said. With supplies and parental assistance, they can do the same at home.
It’s all about developing critical thinking skills, she said, which we need for everything we do in life.
Having space that’s all about you, where you’re encouraged to question things is a critical part of learning how to think, she said.
“How do I build a ramp and make a ball go from here to there?” Stull said. “You look at a toy that is fun, and you’re deeply engaged with that toy, and you start solving the problems that you’ve created.”
The first floor of the museum has spaces where children can explore water, light, nature, technology and building materials.
Make It Move, which features ramps and rollers, was the museum’s original exhibit. It is now the center of the museum.
“We used to put it in a station wagon and drive around the county, providing kids an opportunity for open-ended learning experiences,” she said. “It’s just as valid now as it was almost 40 years ago.”
Two years ago, the museum opened the Wonder Room, a quiet space with tactile experiences for parents and children who need calm-down time.
“We’re all overstimulated with screens and TV today,” she said. “Sometimes, you just need a quiet space to sit and chill.”
Upstairs, the Questioneers exhibit focuses on Andrea Beaty’s second-grade book series, focusing on the concepts of science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) as well as the important emotional aspects of whimsy, passion, perseverance and leadership.
The museum offers play experiences for infants to adolescents but that doesn’t mean parents should feel pressured to overmanage a child’s time, she said.
“A visit to the museum should be about the child, and letting that child spend as much time as he needs wherever he needs it,” she said.
“It’s OK to only play with one thing or in one area. Because you’re going to play with that one thing in a different way every single time you play with it,” Stull said.
Membership, she added, can take the pressure off by enabling a family to return again and again for a minimal investment.
Sometimes a child has a half hour in them, and they’re done, Stull said.
Sometimes, she added, it’s about the parent.
“Parents today are going through tough stuff. Sometimes they need to bring their child to a place where they don’t have to be the play partner,” she said.
One thing Stull advises parents not to do is read too deeply into a child’s interests.
“Don’t project or place labels on your kids. Don’t call them future artists. Don’t pigeonhole them,” she said.
“One thing that has gotten lost in our society is a liberal arts education, where we expose our kids to all concepts and let them find their passion,” she said. “We’re trying to give children lots of concepts and let them figure it out. A child interested in art now may end up becoming an engineer and applying those artistic tendencies.”
Too many of us are told somewhere along the line by an adult that “you are or are not the creative one,” she said.
“But the truth is, we’re all creative,” she said. “We’re all makers.”
It’s important, she said, for parents to engage with their children by asking them about their play or ideas.
“It reinforces learning and gives them the opportunity to explain their thoughts or work through the stresses of their day,” she said.
“Joyful, quality early learning experiences help children feel confident in their ability to learn. When children own their choices about where and how they play and are able to follow their interests in a quality play space, it lays that foundation for creating flexible learners,” she said.
“The best thing adults can do,” she said, “is help children become flexible, creative thinkers who are up for solving the unknown challenges of tomorrow through joyful, interesting, intentional play experiences today.”
Donna Vickroy is an award-winning reporter, editor and columnist who worked for the Daily Southtown for 38 years. She can be reached at donnavickroy4@gmail.com.
