How Rewarding is Risk? Play, Risk-Taking, and Challenges in Museums

  • Friday, October 6, 2023
  • 11:15 am – 12:30 pm
  • Hilton Pasadena, Monterey Ballroom

Presenter(s): 

Putter Bert, President/CEO, KidsQuest Children's Museum
Sunny Spicer, Executive Director, Oregon Center for Creative Learning/ The Children's Museum of Southern Oregon
Amanda Wilkening, Visitor Engagement Assistant Director, Hands On Children's Museum

Moderator: 

Alissa Rupp, Principal Museum Designer, FRAME | Integrative Design Strategies

Track: 

  • Community Engagement, Visitor Experience

Learning Format: Active Learning

How important is risk-taking in learning, developing skills, and building emotional intelligence? Can museums encourage visitors to assess and take risks responsibly? Many exhibits help visitors consider their decisions, and the risks they are willing to take. Whether the challenge is physical, creative, intellectual, social or emotional, exhibits and programs present safe spaces for new ideas and skills. This session will feature environments where visitors feel safe while encountering challenges and evaluating their risk.