In Episode 92, I'm chatting to Heather Thomas, the Head of Learning and Engagement at the Lightbox Museum and Gallery in Woking, UK. Heather talks about how their Art and Wellbeing programme of creative and therapeutic workshops provides opportunities for those that would otherwise not be able to access arts and heritage services.We discuss the guiding principles behind the Lightbox Museum and Gallery's work in learning and engagement, which has always included helping people with mental health issues or those who are isolated.We also discuss what the Open Mind project is and how it provides a safe space for individuals to come and learn something new, chat with others and engage with art.We talk about how Open Mind tours prioritise connection over content and are wholly participant-led, open conversations that take their cues directly from the participants, not the facilitator. Finally, we talk about the positive outcomes of the programme and the Lightbox's plans for the future.LinksLightbox website: www.thelightbox.org.uk  Museums Journal (Museums Association UK) article: https://www.museumsassociation.org/museums-journal/analysis/2022/11/its-time-for-museums-to-address-mental-health/Baring report: https://baringfoundation.org.uk/resource/creatively-minded-at-the-museum/Mind: https://www.mind.org.uk/Catalyst: https://www.catalystsupport.org.uk/If you are struggling, please contact Samaritans https://www.samaritans.org/Young Minds website for children and young people: https://www.youngminds.org.uk/

Are you tired of using the same old thinking routines in your museum and gallery programmes? Maybe it's time to try something new? In this week’s episode, I'm sharing three exciting thinking routines that you can add to your repertoire.These routines will help you engage your audience and encourage them to think creatively about art and objects. Start with the basics: building a repertoire of thinking routines. Experiment and try new thinking routines to stay curious and inspired. Three new thinking routines to try out: Imagine If, Take Note, and Creating Space for LearningImagine If: a thinking routine for looking closely, finding opportunity, and pursuing new ideas. Take Note: a thinking routine for distilling ideas in response to a piece of art or an object. Creating Space for Learning: a thinking routine that is essentially a grounding exercise that helps us to prepare for any programme, class or task.Three new thinking routines for you to try out. I hope you find them helpful in engaging your audience with art and objects in a new and exciting way. LinksEPISODE WEB PAGE Episode 6 - 6 Essential Thinking Routines You Need in your RepertoireEpisode 16 - How to use See Think Wonder in your Art DiscussionsEpisode 57 - How to End WellEpisode 59 - 9 Thinking Routines to Improve your Powers of ObservationDownload the Ultimate Thinking Routine ListSupport the ShowJoin the Slow Looking Club Community on FacebookDownload the NEW resource - how to look at art (slowly)Curated newsletter by Claire Bown

Today I’m exploring the concept of creating intellectual comfort in your museum and gallery programmes. In my (forthcoming) book Slow Looking at Art: The Visible Thinking in the Museum Approach I have a chapter dedicated to creating a collaborative culture in your museum and gallery programmes. As part of this chapter, I talk about how important it is to make participants feel not only psychologically safe, but also intellectually safe. Museums can be intimidating spaces. And this is particularly prevalent in art museums and around art in general. So many people feel that museums are not places for them, that there is a prerequisite amount of information required before you can enjoy being in a museum. Your job as a facilitator is to ensure that everyone feels confident and able to participate fully in your programme, whatever their motivation or knowledge level upon arriving. This is what it means to create intellectual comfort on a museum or gallery programme. In today's episode, I'm exploring what intellectual comfort is, why it's important and 8 ways you can foster it in your programmes. LinksEPISODE WEB PAGE Episode 74 - How to Enjoy Art (without knowing anything about it) Episode 44 - The 4 elements of a great introductionEpisode 48 - 10 types of questions you should never askDownload the Ultimate Thinking Routine ListSupport the ShowJoin the Slow Looking Club Community on FacebookDownload the NEW resource - how to look at art (slowly)Curated newsletter by Claire BownArticles quoted on Intellectual Safety:Critical Communities: Intellectual Safety and the Power of Disagreement - Ashby Butnorhttps://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1005647.pdfThe Importance of Intellectually Safe Classrooms for Our Keiki - Trevor Baba https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1237572.pdf

I have a guest for you today on the show. I’m really happy to be talking to Hannah Cushion about her work as an artist and educator. Hannah is an artist and museum educator working in London and Oxfordshire in the UK. Her work is interested in themes around archiving and preservation. She’s interested in why we keep the things we keep and who we're keeping them for. Since receiving a creative practice grant from Arts Council England in 2021, Hannah has been looking at ways to directly connect her museum practice with her art practice. This has led to the development of the Memory Bank Project, a collection of stories and memories connected to everyday objects. In our chat today, Hannah and I discuss how inclusivity, curiosity, and the opportunity to collaborate with people and to create meaningful connections with objects and between people are really important values in her practice.Museum labels tell us one story but what if the objects themselves could talk? How do we encourage people to include their own stories and experiences when we talk about objects? As this project develops Hannah is exploring how she can adapt her skills as a facilitator to her role as a story collector.We talk about what the Memory Bank Project is, how it works and how Hannah encourages participants to share their personal connections, stories, experiences and memories around an object. And we tell you how you can take part too!So here it is, enjoy!LinksEpisode Web Pagehttps://www.hannahcushion.com/the-memory-bankInstagram: @hannahcushionartist @thememorybankprojectDownload the NEW resource - how to look at art (slowly)Download the Ultimate Thinking Routine ListSupport the ShowJoin the Slow Looking Club Community on FacebookCurated newsletter by Claire Bown

Today I’m exploring play in museum education practice. How can we create and lead playful museum programmes? How can we bring more opportunities for play into our guided tours and educational programmes?I was inspired for today's post by our new theme in the Slow Looking Club. Every two weeks we have a new theme and right now we’re exploring play as the focus for our slow looking. We’re looking for depictions of play and playful approaches in art, but also how we can adopt a playful attitude to slow looking when we’re out and about. This led me to thinking about how we can be more playful in our programmes when we are with visitors (of all ages, not just children) and incorporate more meaningful opportunities for play? Today I'm sharing 9 ways that you can incorporate play into your guided tours and programmes.LinksEpisode Web PageDownload the NEW resource - how to look at art (slowly)Episode 56 Learning to Love ‘Boring’ Objects through slow looking Episode 45 - What we can learn from improv with Samantha BoffinEpisode 59 - 9 Thinking Routines to Improve your Powers of ObservationEpisode 72 - Reacting to art with our bodies with Rachel RopeikEpisode 25 - 3 Thinking Routines for Slow Looking and DrawingEpisode 61 - How mindfulness and drawing can help us to connect with art with Karly AllenDownload the Ultimate Thinking Routine ListSupport the ShowJoin the Slow Looking Club Community on FacebookCurated newsletter by Claire Bown

Today I’m returning to one of my favourite subjects - questions.  I’m going to explore open-ended questions in detail - not just what they are, but why they are important and when you can use them for the best engagement. Plus, how can you get better at asking open ended questions and ask more of them in your programmes? How can you make sure that you don’t default to closed questions or recall questions? I'm sharing 4 ideas that will help you to ask more open-ended questions & keep the conversation flowing in an open and engaging way.LinksEPISODE WEB PAGE The Art of Questioning Class with Claire BownDownload the 2023 Ultimate Thinking Routine ListSupport the ShowJoin the Slow Looking Club Community on FacebookDownload my free guide - how to look at art (slowly)Curated newsletter by Claire Bown

I often get asked about neutrality as a 'stance' for museum facilitators of discussions around art and objects. So today I'm addressing the question: How neutral do we need to be as a facilitator in the museum?  Facilitation is a key part of creating engaging and interactive discussions around art and museum objects.As a facilitator, you are guiding the process, creating participation and activating the learning and engagement. But do you have to be neutral too? If you look at the general definition of a generic facilitator you will often see the word ‘neutral’ or ‘impartial’ used. What do these words actually mean? And what should we be neutral about? Is it even possible to be neutral as a museum facilitator?Neutrality is a tricky concept and this subject is always quite a thorny one in my classes and trainings. Listen to today's new episode to find out what I recommend. LinksEPISODE WEB PAGE Download the Ultimate Thinking Routine ListSupport the ShowJoin the Slow Looking Club Community on FacebookCurated newsletter by Claire BownEpisode 5 - The Art of FacilitationEpisode 44 - The 4 Elements of a Great IntroductionEpisode 84 - Why Inclusive Language Matters with Margaret Middleton

I know thinking routines are a huge crowd pleaser. I’m their biggest fan too - they have fundamentally changed the way I lead discussions around art and objects. Used in combination with the other 7  practices of the VTM approach such as  good questions, a range of facilitation skills, slow looking  and more, you can create wonderfully engaging discussions in the museum about art and objects. Used as part of a holistic approach, thinking routines will transform the way you work with objects and with audiences in the museum.Thinking routines have wonderful benefits for the participants in your guided tours and educational programmes. But I also believe thinking routines are incredibly useful and beneficial tools for you too - as a museum educator, guide, docent or teacher.  And so today I’m going to focus on you - and I’m going to share some 6 key  benefits you’ll get  from working with these magical structures with art and objects. I going to talk about why routines are beneficial, the importance of structure, the flexibility of routines, how they help you to master sharing information and improve your questioning technique. And finally I’m ending with probably the biggest benefit of all - so stay tuned for that one! LinksEpisode Web PageDownload The Ultimate Thinking Routine ListSupport the ShowJoin the Slow Looking Club Community on FacebookDownload my free guide - how to look at art (slowly)Curated newsletter by Claire BownEpisode 3 - The Magic of Thinking RoutinesEpisode 62 - 7 Ways to be creative with thinking routinesEpisode 12 - 6 Best Practices for Sharing InformationEpisode 36 - Quick Ways to Improve your Questioning TechniqueUsing Thinking Routines To Formulate Better Questions

I’m talking to Margaret Middleton today about what inclusive language is and why it matters. Margaret Middleton is an American independent exhibit designer and museum consultant currently based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. With a degree in industrial design from the Rhode Island School of Design and over 15 years of experience in the museum field, they work at the intersection of design and social justice.We know museums aim to be welcoming places for everyone, but the ways museums communicate can unintentionally exclude and alienate visitors.Likewise, when we’re working as museum teachers, guides and educators the words we choose when we communicate can hide unconscious biases and assumptions, especially about subjects like “family.”10 years ago, Margaret created a tool called the Family Inclusive Language chart which helps us to choose words that avoid labelling and making assumptions about the identities and relationships between museum visitors. We discuss:the ways you might use the Family Inclusive Language chart in the museumhow certain words, phrases and tenses can have a positive or negative effect on a group.why choosing the right words is just as important as avoiding the wrong ones.how we can be more intentional about the language we use and can train ourselves to not automatically default to words that may not be inclusive. This chat will make you more aware of the language and the words you use when you’re with visitors in the museum. And you’ll gain useful insight into how thoughtful word choices have the power to create connections and include everyone. LinksSupport the ShowJoin the Slow Looking Club Community on FacebookDownload the NEW resource - how to look at art (slowly)Curated newsletter by Claire BownEpisode webpage (+ transcript)margaretmiddleton.com for Family Inclusive Language chart, helpful articles, and other free resourcesMargaret Middleton on TwitterWelcoming Young Children into the Museum: A Practical Guide - Sarah Erdman, Nhi Nguyen, Margaret Middleton

What words come to mind when you hear the word ‘teenager’? Or the word ‘adolescence’?Do you love working with teens or feel a little apprehensive? I’ve recently been facilitating some team trainings in museums about how to engage with teenagers and so I’ve been thinking a lot about the best ways to work with teens. It's also a subject I get asked about a lot. Here are some tips and ideas for better ways to engage with teenagers in the museum on your guided tours and programmes.I'm exploring:Why our thoughts shape our attitude towards teensSeeing teenage behaviour through a developmental lensPositive reasons for working with teensCreating an inclusive, warm and friendly atmosphereThe importance of shared ownershipThe role of open-ended questions and careful listeningReading the group and avoiding false cluesWhy less is moreAnd why teens like to discuss themes of global significanceLinksSupport the ShowJoin the Slow Looking Club Community on FacebookDownload the NEW resource - how to look at art (slowly)Curated newsletter by Claire Bown5 harmful myths and 5 inspiring truths about teenagers - Big ThinkEpisode 44 - The 4 elements of a great introduction