So after an fairly uneventful flight (I say fairly because a passenger passed out and had to have medical attention--he was okay and walking around like normal by the time we landed), we checked in to our hotel, scarfed a quick bagel sandwich and headed to the Pecha Kucha (which, I learned is pronounced pu-CHA ka-CHA). Turns out it has a Japanese origin, and I'd thought it was some sort of Tex-Mex thing. The event was very poorly organized, with no signage or staff directing anyone where to go or announcing when things would start. Quite a mess.

Overall, I'd say it was a bit of a disappointment, but there were a couple of good ideas (both practical and philosophical) brought up by a couple of speakers. One practical idea I liked, from a speaker from the Houston museum involved using electronic technology to enhance museum experiences. They use iPads, and find apps that relate to their nuts-and-bolts physical exhibits. Some children (and parents) work better starting out with playing on the iPad as an introduction, get the concept and then move more easily into interacting confidently with the physical exhibit. Even better, many of their exhibits have QR codes (I think that's what they're called. . .), those scannable barcodes for cell phone cameras. For museum visitors who want to learn more about the science or other concepts behind an exhibit, they have a number of choices--they can scan one code to read more, one to hear more, one to see a video, etc. Thus they're able to tailor their content to different types of learners, whether they be visual, auditory, etc. I think this is a really great way to cater to different learning styles without having to design entire exhibits. Producing all the extra content might be expensive, though.

One philosophical concept I found interesting, mentioned by two speakers, was the need to emphasize the experience provided by the museum rather than what it looks like. Both speakers faulted many children's museums for focusing on the "bling" and creating exhibits that look really great but don't engage children for long periods of time. They emphasized starting with the activity rather and making sure it is creative, open-ended, enriching and engrossing rather than starting with the "box" the activity will be put in ("this will look like a circus tent," for example.) One speaker offered the example of building toy areas that children will happily play in for hours and, after showing the cool exhibit they were housed in, said something like "this doesn't really matter. This is just for the parents." I think this is mostly right, and I think it will force me to look at any children's museums I visit through a different lens. However, it does ignore a couple of important points. First, it's the parents who are going to bring the child to the museum, and they'll be more likely to come back more often if they're impressed by the look and feel of the place. Second, the really cool, flashy exhibits will be more likely to attract big donors. Still, these are children's museums, so it's an appropriate reminder that the ultimate focus needs to be on the child's experience. I also think the PALs are a pretty good example of offering this kind of experience on a small scale. I also think that's why maybe Make it Move was not a success. I tried to be big, flashy, and impressive and didn't leave much for the kids to do. I guess this whole idea can be summed up with the old adage that "form follows function."

There were a couple of other good moments at the Pecha, mostly swimming in a sea of boredom, irrelevance and unpreparedness. Two presenters teamed up to highlight the similarities and differences between American and International Football (aka soccer) and we were exchanging baffled glances. But I've already gone on too long. I'll stop now.