Our Community

"No section of the community is more rooted to where it lives than the young." — Iona and Peter Opie

Boston Children’s Museum is a meeting ground. As the only Boston museum defined by its audience—children and families—our spaces connect the stories of parents and teachers, grandparents and teens, policymakers and innovators. We believe that playful learning can change the world, but change starts at home: in all the places kids go in our own fantastic, diverse city. Our community is a collection of the people and the stories that define it.

Families

Some of the best learning happens on the walk to school, in the park, or even waiting for the bus. Boston Children's Museum understands that. That's one of the reasons we bring community programs to families in the places they live, work and play. Whether it's by facilitating a series of healthy family dinners in an apartment complex or creating a Pop–Up Museum in a Roxbury park, we work with community partners to create spaces that make family life on the block just a little more playful.

Teens

Teens exist in a special in–between place: they're on the brink of adulthood, but still tied to the excitement and wonder of childhood. Who could be better at creating innovative programs for Boston kids?

Since 1996, Boston Children's Museum has employed six Boston public high school students each year for a unique museum apprenticeship. Sponsored by BNY Mellon through the generosity of the Arthur F. Blanchard Trust, these Teen Ambassadors engage in this apprenticeship for two to three years, and contribute significantly to the work of the Museum. They interview community members and academics each year to prepare for the Museum's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and then they design and run this event. They work with youth from other community organizations to create workshops and programs.  They share learning and social experiences with youth from other BNY Mellon CityACCESS sites such as Boston Nature Center, Malden YMCA and South Boston Neighborhood House. And on Friday nights our Teen Ambassadors host Kids Jam, Boston's only all–ages dance party. The experience of finding their passions in the workplace and truly learning in context can be life–changing for these teens, and the perspective of these ambassadors is transformational for the thinking and work of the Museum as well.  Learn more about our Teen Ambassadors' stories in the column on the right side of this page to get a sense of the impact their work with Boston Children's Museum has on them, on the Museum and on our community.

School and Afterschool

It is estimated that children spend 15–20% of their time in school and afterschool environments, and the impact of this time on children's lives is immense. Schools are a centerpiece of most children's lives, and afterschool programs are vibrant, active spaces that give children the opportunity to learn in a social context unlike what they experience in school or at home.  Both school and afterschool programs are central to their community, and serve as important resources to the families they serve. Boston Children's Museum reaches out to these core community institutions through the creation of special resources and cutting–edge professional development for teachers and program leaders.

Boston Children's Museum has been working with the afterschool community for over 50 years through outreach, workshops and kit development.  But recently, the field has undergone considerable change. Since 2000 the afterschool field has seen significant growth, and with that growth an increasing need for resources like enrichment curriculum and professional development for staff.  In recognition of these changing needs, the Museum has developed an intensive series of professional development workshops for afterschool educators that is recognized around the country as some of the best training in existence, and Boston Children's Museum has conducted hundreds of these workshops, reaching tens of thousands of educators in New England and across the United States.

At the center of these trainings is BCM's "Beyond the Chalkboard" website (www.BeyondTheChalkboard.com).  Beyond the Chalkboard is the world's first free, online curriculum created specifically for afterschool educators, and it is currently used in every state in the United States and in over 100 countries around the world.  

Boston Children's Museum also reaches hundreds of in–school educators each year through customized professional development workshops that marry state and national standards with our unique, playful approach to learning. Those hundreds of teachers, in turn, reach thousands of kids. Visit our Learning Resources section to find out more about our professional development trainings for classroom teachers, afterschool educators and to find out more about our Beyond the Chalkboard curriculum.

Community Partners

The Museum's deep connection and partnership with the business community, schools, teachers, neighborhood groups, and health, science, and academic researchers is the engine that drives its vibrant presence in Greater Boston. We are most grateful for the support of our partners that allows us to provide joyful play and learning experiences for children.

  • 21st CCLC After School Collaborative for Educational Service (ACES)
  • ABCD Head Start
  • American Chemical Society (New England Chapter)
  • American Psychological Society
  • Arts Emerson
  • Associated Early Care and Education
  • Berklee College of Music
  • Big Apple Circus
  • Boston After School & Beyond
  • Boston Ballet
  • Boston Centers for Youth and Families
  • Boston Children's Chorus
  • Boston Children's Hospital: Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Boston College: Lynch School of Education Thinking and Learning Lab; Department of Psychology, Arts and Mind Lab; Emotion Development Lab; Infant and Child Cognition Center
  • Boston Community Partnerships for Children
  • Boston Globe
  • Boston Harbor Association
  • Boston Local Food Festival
  • Boston Nature Center
  • Boston Public Health Commission
  • Boston Symphony Orchestra
  • Boston Public Library
  • Boston Public Schools
  • Boston Public Schools Department of Extended Learning Time, Afterschool & Services (DELTAS)
  • Boys and Girls Club of Woburn
  • Brookline Extended Day
  • Brookline Public Schools
  • Cambridge Department of Human Service Programs
  • Cambridge Public Schools
  • CAYL Institute
  • Chicago Children's Museum
  • Chelsea Reach
  • City of Kyoto, Japan
  • Consulate General of Italy
  • Consulate General of Japan
  • Countdown to Kindergarten
  • Cradles to Crayons
  • Discover Roxbury
  • Doshisha Elementary School
  • Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative
  • Education Development Center
  • First Night
  • For Kids Only Afterschool Programs
  • Friends of Fort Point Channel
  • Gyeonggi Children's Museum, South Korea
  • Handel and Haydn Society
  • Harvard University Asia Center
  • Harvard University, Laboratory for Developmental Studies
  • Harvard University, Making Learning Visible; Project Zero
  • Hasbro Summer Learning Initiative
  • Haverhill Public Schools
  • Japanese Association of Greater Boston
  • Japan Society of Boston
  • JazzBoston
  • Jumpstart
  • Kyoto City Hall
  • Kyoto City International Foundation
  • Lesley University
  • Little Sprouts
  • Longy School of Music
  • Malden YMCA
  • Massachusetts Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics
  • Massachusetts Family Literacy Coalition
  • Massachusetts Afterschool Partnership
  • Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care
  • Massachusetts Department of Elementary
  • and Secondary Education
  • MIT Early Childhood Cognition Lab
  • MIT Japanese Association
  • MIT Media Lab
  • Mujeres Unidas Avanzando
  • Museum Institute for Teaching Science
  • Museum of Science
  • Nazareth Child Care Center
  • National Institute on Out-of-School Time
  • National Museum of the American Indian
  • New England Aquarium
  • New Hampshire Department of Education
  • Orchard House
  • Paige Academy
  • Parent University, Boston Public Schools
  • Primary Source
  • Project Hope
  • Rose Kennedy Greenway
  • Save the Harbor Save the Bay
  • Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
  • Society of Women Engineers (MIT and West Point Chapters)
  • South Boston Community Health Center
  • South Boston Neighborhood House
  • South Shore Stars
  • Strategies for Children
  • The City School
  • The Community Group, Lawrence
  • The Encyclopedia of Life Project
  • The Theater Offensive
  • Thrive in Five
  • Triton Regional School District
  • United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley
  • WGBH
  • Wheelock College
  • Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning through the Arts