The Chicago Architecture Center has joined the many museum and cultural institutions that are putting their offerings online, including family- and youth-oriented programs that help fill the void caused by school closures and stay-at-home orders.
“Schools may be out of session and museums are closed, but the CAC is working to keep children, parents and teachers learning about architecture and design, including the buildings around them, while practicing spatial distancing at home in their own neighborhoods,” said CAC Vice President of Education and Audience Engagement Nicole Kowrach.
The CAC's programs include the educational online activities "Storytime with the CAC," "CAC for the Family: Architecture Essentials" and "Neighborhood Strollers." They're detailed in the CAC@home newsletter, a free publication that arrives weekly on Thursdays via email to subscribers. CAC For the Family draws from the center's curricula designed to support teachers and STEM education in the classroom.
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“Families are currently challenged by working from home, supporting their kids’ learning and keeping everyone occupied,” Kowrach said. “The CAC Education team has moved quickly to support them, offering ways for parents and other caregivers or educators — and not just in Chicago — to educate and inspire. We value the power of place-based learning in our programs for schools, and that learning is just as powerful in your own neighborhood and home.”
"Storytime with the CAC," during which CAC staff read a children's book focused on architecture and design, is posted at 12:30 p.m. Fridays, and is available afterward via the CAC@home newsletter and on the center's YouTube channel.
On May 1, the series features the book “Mighty, Mighty Construction Site" by Sherri Duskey Rinker with illustrations by Tom Lichtenheld. The program continues May 8 with “Katy and the Big Snow” by Virginia Lee Burton; May 15 with “The Three Little Pigs: An Architectural Tale” by Steven Guarnaccia, a quirky, design-centered retelling of “The Three Little Pigs” in which the pigs and their homes are nods to famous architects Frank Gehry, Philip Johnson and Frank Lloyd Wright; May 22 with “Islandborn” and “Lola” by Pulitzer Prize−winning Dominican-American author Junot Díaz; and May 29 with “Maybe Something Beautiful” and “Quizás Algo Hermoso” by F. Isabel Campoy and Theresa Howell, with illustrations by Rafael López. Each “Storytime with the CAC” reading comes paired with a recommended activity related to the story.
The "Architecture Essentials" programs include design challenges utilizing basic materials. Each edition premieres online Thursday in conjunction with the CAC@Home newsletter. The program "expands design know-how and problem-solving skills through activities and interactive challenges for ages 7 to 12," according to CAC.
Neighborhood Strollers also premieres with the weekly newsletter, and includes staff members, with their children, exploring architecture in their neighborhoods. May topics include Victorian Housing, Shapes in Architecture, Georgian Revival and Mixed-Use High Rises.
Visit architecture.org/caclive to view upcoming events, including the CAC for Family schedule through June, and visit architecture.org/athome to access the free CAC@Home archive.