Gammelgården - Scandia, MN

Gammelgården's Future -- Children's Programs

Gammelgården Museum, Scandia, Minnesota, is devoted to "Preserving, Presenting and Promoting Swedish Immigrant Heritage" using our 11 acres that host five historic buildings containing thousands of artifacts from the Swedish immigrant era. Our major audience is folks with Swedish immigrant connections and memories. We recognize that the immediacy of the immigrant heritage is diminishing, so we are focusing on sharing the life stories and daily activities of the immigrants with school-age children. We have developed two programs that engage children with immigrant life in two ways.

Play in the Woods is for those who wish to be immersed in the Swedish culture and language of today. The children march through the year celebrating holidays, doing the appropriate crafts, tasting foods, learning songs, listening to stories, and playing games.

Comin' to Amerika is designed for those children who do not necessarily relate to the Swedish heritage but understand pioneer heritage. This program involves imagination and play-acting. Activities include going to school, family time with chores, and story time.

To enhance the experience, we developed a study guide. This is a downloadable part of our Web site www.gammelgardenmuseum.org under "Tours." Visiting children are given a companion timeline sheet, covering the years 1776-2008, and are asked to fill in specific dates that relate to their family.

The future audience and supporters for Gammelgården are in elementary school now and we are grateful for the opportunity to reach them.

This article was submitted by Museum Director, Lynne Blomstrand Moratzka, and edited by Kerstin Trowbridge.

July 2008