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At the orlando science center, our theme for the trading center was
"learn to earn". Visitors could bring in any natural object, except for
feathers, nests, etc (we had a brochure for the trading center that
listed what we would not take) If the visitor just brought it in to
trade, they earned a certain amount of points, starting with 5 points
for very common objects such as seashells, rocks, pine cones, etc, up to
1000 points for rare or unusual ones--animal skulls they found, for
instance. However, if the visitor did some research on their object, we
gave them more points. Our trading center only took up about 150 sq
ft-objects for trade were arranged in bins on shelves. The bins were
labeled as to how many points each item in the bin was worth. A staffer
manned a small computer station at which visitors could set up an
'account' based on points they earned. When awarded points, they could
immediately trade for something else, or bank their points towards an
object they wanted. We kept a small library of Audubon field guides for
visitors to use to research their object.
The objects we kept on hand to trade were any object found in nature -
rocks, minerals, seeds, bones, turtle shells, seashells, Spanish moss,
pinecones, animal teeth, etc. We found that children can be very good
little negotiaters for points, and also were pleasantly surprised by the
amount of information kids would come in with about their objects.
Seashells, for instance, were often carefully glued into box tops to
make simple displays. I recall one little fellow who brought in Spanish
moss-a very common item in florida, but he presented quite a report on
what it was and how settlers used it to stuff mattresses, etc.
The center is not time or staff intensive to maintain-we kept it open
during normal business hours. You may find, though, that visitors will
want to come in just to 'do business' in the trading center without
visiting the rest of your museum.
I hope this helps
Kim Hunter
VP, Programs
Science Center of Iowa
-----Original Message-----
From: Informal Science Education Network
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Linda Coulombe
Sent: Wednesday, May 25, 2005 8:57 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Details on Trader's Center Exhibits
ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology
Centers
Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
institutions.
************************************************************************
*****
.We are considering including a Trader's Center exhibit for the new
musuem. In the Trader's Center, children collect natural history
objects, research them, and bring them into the museum. A staff person
reviews the object, supports further research using the Trader's Center
resources, and grants points for the object that can be then be traded.
Does anyone have any information regarding to the details of such an
exhibit, specifically, recommendations on the kinds of objects accepted,
the hours of the Trader's Center, what kind of training staff would
need, space requirements for such an exhibit, how extensive the musuem
collections need to be, and the challenges of curating such a
collection.
Any help that anyone could provide would be greatly appreciated. Feel
free to contact me via the listserve or by email.
Linda H Coulombe
Manager of Science Programs
National Children's Museum
955 L'Enfant Plaza SW, Suite 5100
Washington, DC 20024
202 675-4148
[log in to unmask]
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