Submitted by
Georgann Carlton
CEO, Explorations V Children’s Museum
Hats off to Reading is one of our early literacy programs. We developed the program several years ago after it became known in the community that our third-graders were not passing our state standard exams in literacy. There was a tremendous need, and we knew that with an interactive children’s museum, there was no better place to spark their imaginations and to make reading fun. We wanted to reach underserved pre-k children with a free, fun, interactive literacy program and museum visit.
Hats off to Reading was designed around the award-winning book “Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey Business” by Esphyr Slobodkina. It’s a delightful, whimsical story, and we begin the program with an oversized book and animated story-telling.
 | And the children become part of the story—they act out simple characters, they stack hats on their heads. So we have a large trunk full of all different kinds of hats, all different styles, shapes and colors that represent a variety of time periods and functions. It’s a tremendous joy to preschoolers. |
We got started by connecting with the early childhood specialist in our county school system and inviting her to notify the schools with special needs students and migrant children. The schools started calling quickly to reserve their dates. In the 2006-2007 school year, we had 204 children and 92 adults. The most recent program was funded by Community Foundation of Greater Lakeland, and we pulled together a match with Success by Six, which is an initiative of our United Way. Success by Six provided take-home packets for each family to reinforce the learning in the home. And then the Children’s Museum provided a return pass for each family to reinforce the learning experience and the fun museum experience. The museum normally costs $5 per person.
We survey the teachers following the program. More than 75 percent reported that students were attentive, 79 percent observed or experienced a new or different idea for reading enrichment activities or child engagement, and 93 percent said students were engaged.
All in all, the program is good for the kids—it brings experiential learning into their life, they act out some of the story characters, they become part of the story. It’s good for the families because it encourages children and families to connect in a museum environment. It’s good for the school because it reinforces their educational objectives. It’s good for the donor because we promote their name on all their materials.
Beyond that, once you take the materials into the home, you provide a service to the parents. Now you’re serving the whole family unit.
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