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Location & Directions

Strong National Museum of Play

Strong National Museum of Play®
One Manhattan Square
Rochester, NY 14607
Phone: 585-263-2700

Professional Development Workshops for Teachers

The following teacher workshops are offered by advance registration only. Payments must be received one week prior to the workshop. Registrations not paid one week prior to the workshop are subject to cancellation. All workshops include exploration time in the galleries. To register, please call 585-263-2700.
(Workshops with fewer than 10 registrants are subject to cancellation.) Registration fees are only refunded if workshop is canceled.

NEW! Facilitating Expressive Puppet Play in Education through Interactive Puppetry Techniques

Puppetry activities foster class cohesiveness, creativity, language development, communication skills, socialization, self-esteem, cultural and diversity awareness, and problem-solving skills. Puppetry can also have therapeutic value, even when the intent of the activity is educational. It can serve as an outlet for emotions and impulses that might otherwise find their way into non-productive or disruptive behaviors. Using important research in the field, this interactive workshop will explore how the educator can facilitate puppet play to enhance personality development, social and emotional growth, and academic achievement.
Instructor: Matthew Bernier, MCAT, ATR-BC, registered, board-certified art therapist
Saturday, October 4, 2008, 9:15 a.m.–12:15 p.m.
Cost: $35 per registrant

Teaching with Music in Mind

Sing math! Chant history! Create a sonata for science! This workshop provides new and innovative strategies for you to infuse music into your curriculum. Enhance your students’ understanding in any subject area with these simple and highly effective techniques. A background in music is not needed. This workshop is designed for, but not limited to, Pre-K through third-grade teachers.
Instructors: Sarah Peters, musician and music educator
Saturday, November 15, 2008, 9:15 a.m.–12:15 p.m.
Cost: $35 per registrant

A Writer’s Trek for Teachers: Teaching Quality Writing through Experience

Explore the 6+1 Traits of Writing firsthand in this unique writing workshop. Bring your notebook, a sharp pencil, and an open mind and together we’ll develop a repertoire of experiences that will help bring writing alive. Come prepared to play with the skills that we teach students to use at school and for a lifetime.
Instructor: Sara Boettrich, Museum Educator for School Programs
Thursday, December 11, 2008, 4:00–7:00 p.m.
Cost: $35 per registrant

Math in Action for Teachers: Bringing Real World Math to Life in the Classroom

Put math in action! Using the museum’s exhibits as inspiration, discover math principles at work. Learn how any environment reveals the math behind the scenes. Work with colleagues to generate strategies and ideas for your very own math in action plan for use in your classroom. (This workshop is ideal preparation for bringing your students to our Math in Action Theme Day.)
Instructor: Sara Boettrich, Museum Educator for School Programs
Wednesday, January 14, 2009, 4:00–7:00 p.m.
Cost: $35 per registrant

Differentiating Assessment

How do you know if your students really understand something? Learn evaluation strategies that are meaningful, adaptable, and fun! In this hands-on workshop, learn the strategies of Tic Tac Toe, RAFTing, and Multiple Intelligence Prompts (MIPS) that you can use with any grade level and any content. Practice by applying these strategies to a learning center within the museum. Be prepared to think outside the box, to move, and to interact.
Instructor: Dr. Ellen Arnold, who works nationally to provide training and materials that support students and educators in learning more about their brains’ efficiency and effectiveness
Wednesday, February 4, 2009, 4:00–7:00 p.m.
Cost: $35 per registrant

Play in the Classroom: Using Play to Enhance Your K–6 Curriculum

Play is essential for children. Research shows that without time for play in many forms, children suffer deficits later in life. Yet new academic and societal pressures on children and families have led to a dramatic decrease in the amount of time children spend playing. Hear the latest research on play in the school setting and learn strategies for harnessing its power to help your students learn.
Instructors: Museum education staff
Wednesday, February 26, 2009, 4:00–7:00 p.m.
Cost: $35 per registrant

Children’s Literature Across the Curriculum

Enjoy exclusive access to the amazing Reading Adventureland exhibit where you will expand your knowledge of children’s literature and imagine new possibilities for including it in your curriculum. Participants work together to develop an idea bank to take back to the classroom. Comfortable clothing and a playful spirit are encouraged. Instructors: Museum education staff
Wednesday, March 11, 2009, 5:00–7:00 p.m.
Cost: $25 per registrant

Identifying Student Learning Preferences: How to Do a Strength-Based Interview with Your Students

Learn to ask questions that lead you and your students to a better understanding of their natural cognitive strengths. Learn how to analyze their responses and design strategies that match their learning strengths. Learn the language of “mirror talk” to connect faster and easier with students. This interview process is being used as a pre-referral strategy in many schools across New York State. Hear how this process has helped many learners, and participate in the interview yourself.
Instructor: Dr. Ellen Arnold, who works nationally to provide training and materials that support students and educators in learning more about their brains’ efficiency and effectiveness.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009, 4:00p.m.–7:00 p.m.
Cost: $35 per registrant

 

Special Offering for Colleges and Universities

An Educator’s Curriculum Guide to Play: Activities for Students
Strong National Museum of Play® makes it easy for college-level students to learn about the power and importance of play in the lives of children. Designed specifically to complement education and psychology courses, these self-guided activities will turn college students into active researchers at Strong—the only museum in the world dedicated to the study of play. Using the museum as their lab, students may choose from (or can be assigned) different interactive experiences that engage them in observation and analysis of important play concepts. Strong’s curriculum guide includes ten activities (brief descriptions follow).

  1. The Whole Child. Observation and explanation activities to build understanding of the cognitive, physical, social, and affective domains of children.
  2. Boy-Girl. Observation, recording, and discussion activities about ways play may differ by gender.
  3. Elements of Play. Observation, charting, viewing, and writing activities around the museum’s theory of the Elements of Play.
  4. Parent-Child Interaction. Observation, recording, and writing activities about the role of parents in child play.
  5. Why Children Play. Observation and discussion activities about why children play and what they learn through play.
  6. Literacy. Investigation, hypothesizing, and discussion activities about how language deepens the complexity of play and how play enriches literacy.
  7. I Spy Multiple Intelligences (MI). Exploration, survey, and writing activities about multiple learning preferences as observed through children’s play.
  8. Let’s Pretend. Role-playing and discussion activities about make-believe or fantasy play and its relationship to learning.
  9. Numbers. Observation, play, discussion, and writing about the role of play in developing math skills and understanding.
  10. What Can I Learn? Observation, discussion, and writing activities around Piaget’s theory of intellectual development, exploring functional play, symbolic play, and games with rules.

Please share information about this new offering with any colleagues who may be interested. Or to learn more, call 585-263-2700.