Zing in the New Year - 2017!

December 31, 2016

Dear Amazeum Friends and Families-

What an amazing year it has been!  As the Amazeum gets ready to ring in 2017, we find it so satisfying to look back on the past year and a half.  Since opening 18 months ago, the museum has been able to explore, investigate, discover, and play with over 420,000 kids and families.  Chocolates became tools for scientific observation, we've encouraged countless people to paint on glass, and took apart TWO cars down to the frame at Tinkerfest 3. A new microscope allows you to zoom in and see things too small to see with your own eyes.   A new cow joined us in the Homestead Cabin.  And we have scooped many a scoop of ice cream in the Market.

Scout troops have earned patches, birthdays have been celebrated, and many, many teachers have been able to extend their classrooms into the Amazeum on an Unfield trip.  For adults, we set aside a few nights dedicated for our OWN time to play throughout the museum with Amazeum on the Rocks.  With members, we had a full YEAR of play, including an awesome premiere of a Bentonville Film Festival movie under the stars to close out the summer.

And oh the sound of ooooohs, ahhhhhhs, and hahahaha's, every...day...

Even as we prepare to ring out 2016, I have to say that we are even more excited about what lies ahead.  A new traveling exhibition developed by the Ontario Science Centre called Imaginate will be arriving later this spring, and it will be AMAZING!  We are working with a national consortium of partners and six local schools to help create maker spaces in the school setting.  The next season of camps and workshops at the Amazeum have ME excited and wishing I were a kid again!  Our creative work never stops, and you will see even more experiences come out into the museum gallery over the coming months.

Most importantly, I have had the privilege of working with one of the most fantastic cadres of Amazeum team and community partners in the world.  The secret sauce of the Amazeum lies in all of the hard work they, and you, do to make us better and more interesting each and every day.

As we hit 18 months, I am excited, too, to begin to share more of our work, and the work of our great partners, via our blog.  We'll get a snappier name later.  For right now, we'll look to use it as a vehicle to present things we're finding interesting in the world of creativity, learning, education, and families. Hold me accountable, NWA.  (shhhhh - this is MY resolution between us friends)

Best wishes for 2017, and thank you all for what you add to make the Scott Family Amazeum and Northwest Arkansas such a phenomenal place to work....and play!

Sam and the Scott Family Amazeum team

PS - For a start, check this out!  A nice short read.  "Why we need children's museums", by Richard Rende.  Although it's about children's museums, it's really about free-choice learning opportunities in kids' lives, and chances to play alongside their parents and peers.