Last fall my son's first grade class was doing a unit on writing and the teacher was hoping to find an author to speak to the class. She wanted someone to be able to share with them what it was really like to go through the process of creating and putting a story to paper before fianlly turning it into a book for all to be able to read. Time was short, so she reached out to me for help brainstorming a solution and that is when I discovered a gem of a museum right on the Magnificent Mile, close to the center of Chicago.
The American Writer's Museum was new to me - actually it was new to Chicago as well, having just opened it's doors only six months before our class visit. How I came about it was that I was searching for author visits in the Chicago area and the AWM was hosting a visit from local children's author, Patricia Toht. The museum was great to work with in planning the field trip and they details were worked out quickly.
I can't lie though, the teacher and I were a little apprehensive. Who knew what to expect from a museuem that is the first of it's kind? Would it be enough to entertain twenty-eight first graders and a handful of parent chaperones? We walked in to the building, headed up to the 2nd floor and were immediately mesmerized by all there was to see. Instantly 56 little hands were itching to touch everything they saw, but thankfully we were greeted by museuem staff, who helped us stash coats away and get settled in the children's gallery right off the main entrance.
The Negaunee Foundation Children's Literacy Gallery is one of the museum's permanent exhibits. It is a soothing space built specifically for snuggling up to hear a favorite childhood story. Three of the walls are adorned in beautiful images from classic tales like "Charlotte's Web", "Where the Wild Things Are" and "Make Way for Ducklings" and the fourth wall is covered in a mural created by illustrator & writer Paul O. Zelinsky (I LOVED the pictures in Ralph S. Mouse as a kid and also a native of the area!). The mural shows a tree full of squirrels immersed in reading some childhood classics and it creates the perfect backdrop for story time!
We had time to explore some of the other exhibits of the museum before author Patricia Toht met with the class. A big favorite of all of us, kids and adults, was the Surprise Bookshelf in the "A Nation of Writers" exhibit and those magical typewriters in "The Mind of a Writer" exhibit. One student did ask me about the "funny, old time computers" and when I shared that they were actually typewriters and were what I had to use to type papers as a student his poor little jaw almost hit the floor. Once he realized he was allowed to actually get hands-on with one of the typewriters he stopped feeling sorry for me and just enjoyed getting to type a short letter to his teacher.
Our time with the author was open to the public, but we were in the Reading Hall so there was plenty of space for the kids to listen to a story, ask questions and then even do a craft which was completely planned and provided by Ms. Toht! It was a great experience and everyone was disappointed when the time came to put on our coats and file back onto the bus. My son asked me no less than 20 times when we could go back the American Writer's Museum, so we did that very weekend and this time we took the whole family and really enjoyed exploring more of what the museum has to offer - which is a lot! Since then we have returned a few times, often with family and visitors, who all express the same sentiments about the museum. It is definitely worth a visit!
I would like to stress that this review was NOT a sponsored post and I was in no way compensated for this article. These are my personal feelings about the American Writer's Museum. It may be smaller, and newer, than some of the other museums in Chicago, but it definitely delivers! I recommend it for all ages, with or without kids. They host many special events at the musem too, which can be found on their website, or check my Events Calendar for the latest child friendly events at AWM!
The American Writer's Museum is located 180 N Michigan Avenue, 2nd Floor, Chicago IL 60601
