Staten Island Children's Museum Announces New AT HOME WITH SICM Program for Families

Staten Island Children's Museum announced the creation of At Home with SICM: a program offering FREE online resources for parents, teachers and other caregivers to use at home during this time of social distancing. These resources provide enriching and fun activities on an array of topics for families with children ages 2 and up. They can be found at the webpage: https://sichildrensmuseum.org/at-home-with-sicm/

The resources include original visual arts and science videos which can be done with materials easily sourced at home. Also included are videos about the museum's exhibits and animal collection, stories read aloud by our educators, fun fitness instructions and live streaming dance and play circles. Each week, a different exhibit-based activity sheet such as "Great Explorations - Oceans" with engaging activities related to "Do, Act, Create, etc." are available as PDFs for downloading.

"Once we closed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, our Education and Exhibits teams quickly pivoted to developing videos and print-at-home activity sheets that would bring the Children's Museum to the families we serve since they could no longer come to us" explained Dina Rosenthal, Executive Director. "Our staff is eager to be supportive to the community and hopes that by providing easy access to cultural activities, we can help children and families through this isolating and uncertain time."

On Saturday, May 16 at 1pm, At Home with SICM will introduce a live-stream event: Guidance on Parenting During a Pandemic with Dolores Reig. She will share tips on how you can continue to instill creativity and calm at home during the COVID-19 pandemic despite all of the changes and new demands on your family. This will be followed by a group discussion for caregivers to connect and share ideas with one another and with the staff. Access to the live stream is available through a link on the home page of the Children's Museum at www.sichildrensmuseum.org. Ms. Reig has worked in Early Childhood for over 30 years, founding a Montessori Preschool, conducting workshops and mentoring parenting groups, developing curriculums, and teaching Child Development at CSI. She is currently an Educator at the Staten Island Children's Museum and an Adjunct Professor at Wagner College. She maintains a private practice as an Early Childhood Consultant and Motivational Parent Coach.

Additionally, The Children's Museum's Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages are posting ideas, activities, and videos that can help families during this time when schools and childcare facilities are closed.