Polar Bears crashing into Macon Museum

Babysitting any little bears? Take them to the museum for a morning of reading, crafts and fun exhibits.
The Macon Museum of Arts and Sciences hosted the Polar Bear Den, a reading and crafts event for children from age two to five, on Sept. 4.
The Polar Bear Den occurs the first week of every month and includes fun activities for young children to enjoy.
This month, the children read a book about fall in the Polar Bear’s Den, a room of the museum dedicated to a stuffed polar bear.
Afterward, they moved to the art room and parents helped their children make stained glass leaves out of tissue paper and contact paper.
Every month, museum coordinator Amanda DePriest picks an appropriate book and finds a simple craft that the children can enjoy with a little help from the adult who brings them to the museum.
DePriest recently revived this event as a means of reaching younger children.
DePriest coordinates programs involving nature and the natural sciences for the museum.
The Polar Bear Den was a regular event many years ago, but because of changes in the museum the event phased out of the scheduled events.
DePriest decided to revive the Polar Bear Den so that the museum would offer something for the young age group.
“It is often hard to get this age group involved in a museum. Dinosaurs are easy for toddlers, but things like art exhibits are a lot harder,” DePriest said.
Though the event had not been put on for several years, DePriest revived the Polar Bear Den in February of this year and has held one the first week of every month since.
It is her hope that the Polar Bear Den offers experiences that includes this young age group.
Many of the parents admitted it was their first trip to the Polar Bear Den. Sara Wilson, mother of two-year-old Yates, heard about the event in the previous week.
“It would be something fun for just the two of us while his sister is at school,” Wilson stated.
Though initially shy and fascinated by the adult scissors that he was not old enough to use, Yates grew attentive to adult discussion and excited at the mention of the exhibits in the museum, especially the exhibit containing dinosaurs.
Though Wilson and her son had already visited the exhibits of the museum before the beginning of the Polar Bear Den, they planned on revisiting some of their favorites on the way out as well.
Other families agreed that they enjoyed being able to visit the museum and see the exhibits, even if not all of them engaged the children.
Megan Burnam, mother of four-year-old Aubrey, thought the Polar Bear Den would be something fun to do with her daughter and their friend’s son Robby. They enjoy the opportunity to try out new things around Macon.
The Macon Museum of Arts and Sciences offers many opportunities for all age groups, including those as young as two years old.