The year 2020 will be known for many things, but one of them certainly will be innovation. All of us have had to flex in ways we never expected. Individuals, businesses, and organizations of all sorts have had to find new ways of operating. It should not be surprising that The Henry Ford Museum, home of Innovation Nation, should be at the forefront, coming up with innovative ways to provide educational materials on innovation!
The Innovation Learning Series contains a huge variety of daily online learning materials, good for home and school—and the home/school combination that has become daily life in 2020. They are built around The Henry Ford’s collection themes of: Mobility, Design & Making, Social Transformation, Agriculture & the Environment, Communications & Information Technology and Power & Energy. Programs are available on social media, as well as via Zoom webinars.
There are Monday STEAM stories with activities, for preK-grade 2. Tuesdays feature favorite moments from The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation with Mo Rocca, and Wednesdays are focused on Innovation Journeys with live broadcasts and activities from various areas of the museum. Thursdays are live broadcasts with museum curators, with opportunities for questions, and Fridays share kid inventors from Invention Convention Worldwide. You can register for any of the (free) activities here. As much as I miss being able to visit the museum in person, as I write this on a rainy spring day in Michigan, it is nice to be able to visit from wherever I am.
The Henry Ford website is full of curricula, online exhibits, and other materials to inspire innovation. Take a look. I feel more innovative already!