Amgueddfa Cymru has partnered with Tŷ Hafan as part of our Family and Early Years Learning Program.Within this partnership, we also work with Tŷ Hafan’s SuperSibs group, created for the siblings of children with life limiting illnesses and families who have been bereaved. In our sessions, we engage the children in collection-based craft, play and games themed around an area in our museum collection, such as ‘Dino Discovery Day’, ‘Under the Sea’ and ‘Minibeasts’.
Some sessions take place at the Hospice itself, where the grounds are beautifully created to provide a space to relax, play and explore for the families at Tŷ Hafan, situated by the beach. Other sessions are held virtually from the museum, delivering a digital, accessible version of the planned activities that can be done from home. Our sessions often center around social, group-orientated activities that offer the children a chance to play and spend time with each other, all while making use of our wonderful museum handling objects. The informal activities promote conversation, trust and sharing, which can be beneficial and important for children who may share similar life experiences.
Working with the incredible staff at Tŷ Hafan, we are able to contribute to this positive, engaging and friendly environment by sharing our own resources and developing a trustworthy relationship with the lovely families at Tŷ Hafan!
Megan Naish, Learning Facilitator, 7 February 2024
Amgueddfa Cymru has worked alongside Flying Start to invite families with young children to explore our collection through themed play, craft, and sensory activities as part of our Family and Early Years Learning Program.
For many families, there can be anxiety and hesitance around bringing their young children to museum spaces, and so our Saturday sessions are designed to relieve that concern by providing our younger visitors with safe, supervised spaces and interactive resources that encourage their curiosity, inquisitiveness, and learning.
Occurring monthly, each weekend invites a different theme that relates back to an area in our museum collection, such as ‘Dino Discovery Day’, ‘Under the Sea’, ‘Minibeasts in the Garden’, and ‘Ice Age’. We use our Clore Discovery Centre as the base for our Family Saturday sessions, and families can freely drop in throughout the day and have the opportunity to explore our vast handling objects collection.
We aim to give our families a safe and welcoming environment to spend time together, make memories and to experience the museum in a unique way that supports the needs of our young visitors and their families.
If you are visiting St. Fagans this month you will notice an army of gardeners and volunteers marching around the gardens with wheelbarrows full of organic matter to condition the soil of our beautiful gardens. As winter comes to an end, spring arrives with a promise of growth. This is a crucial moment in the gardening calendar to prepare for the warmer months ahead.
Because of the over-emittance of greenhouse gases, the Earth’s surface temperature is increasing rapidly. We are noticing summer months that are hotter and drier than ever, only last year we witnessed temperatures around 40°C in some areas of the UK. The excessive heat and prolonged drought have devastating effects on our local flora and fauna.
One of the most important tasks for this month is to mulch the soil by adding a layer of organic matter to the soil surface. Mulching brings numerous benefits to plants including moisture retention in periods of drought, weed suppression, improvement of soil structure and fertility, reducing the need for artificial fertilisers, prevention of soil erosion, and encouragement of beneficial organisms such as earthworms, soil bacteria and fungi. Additionally, it attracts wildlife to our gardens, one of my favourite memories is of being followed by Robins as we mulch the garden in spring. They patiently wait for a feast of earthworms, while gifting us with their beautiful bird song announcing the arrival of spring.
There are many different types of mulching materials and each with their own benefits and uses. Most of our gardens are mulched with well-rotted farmyard manure sourced from Llwyn-yr-eos farm in St. Fagans and from a local farmer. The manure is gradually incorporated into the soil by the activity of earthworms and other microorganisms, which improves the soil structure and supplies the plants with nutrients. This nitrogen rich material is ideal to be used on herbaceous borders, vegetable beds, roses and newly planted trees and shrubs.
However not all plants like nutrient rich mulches, plants that are adapted to growing in hot and dry conditions often do not cope well with excessive moisture and high fertility. For example, in the Herb Garden where we have Mediterranean plants such as lavender, rosemary, sage and thyme we have opted for mulching the beds with gravel. This is an inorganic material that does not break down; therefore it does not release nutrients to the soil. In addition, gravel is great at promoting good drainage, suppressing weeds, and adding aesthetic value to the garden.
This year we are trying new methods of mulching as a sustainable way to utilise the maximum of our local resources. We have started using raw wool provided by the Llwyn-yr-Eos farm to mulch the vines in the greenhouse. This will help with water conservation and prevention of weeds. Besides the wool fleece degrades slowly releasing nutrients into the soil and feeding the vines. Another advantage is that wool can help retain heat during colder months, keeping the root of the vines warm in winter.
In March we cut back the ornamental grasses and perennials of the Dutch garden and a large amount of material usually ends up in the compost heap. This year we decided to skip this process and instead we added the dried grass clippings directly to the surface of the pumpkin patch. We have sprinkled a fine layer of manure on top to weigh down the grasses and prevent them from blowing in the wind. This will also aid the process of decomposition by introducing nitrogen to this carbon rich material. While the farmers make hay for a rainy day, the gardeners mulch with hay for a hotter day.
When choosing mulches or growing mediums for your garden, prefer materials from sustainable and local sources in order reduce the carbon footprint from transportation. It is also important to avoid peat-based composts at all costs. The extraction of peat has a negative impact in the environment, it destroys the natural habitat of many species that live in peatlands, besides it releases tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere contributing to the greenhouse effect. For the home gardener the most sustainable and cost-effective option is to mulch using homemade compost or leaf mould. Why not try making your own compost using kitchen and garden waste? You will be surprised at the benefits you can reap from your compost heap.
Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales has been recognised for its fun family activities during lockdown in the Family Friendly Museum Award From Home.
The museum was one of five museums awarded top prizes today in an online awards ceremony hosted by TV personalities, Philip Mould and Professor Kate Williams.
Charity Kids in Museums has held its annual Family Friendly Museum Award for the past 15 years, recognising the most family friendly heritage sites in the UK. This year the charity created a special award to celebrate the extraordinary effort museums made to adapt to lockdown and support families. They asked families and museums to share their favourite lockdown activities – whether it was a film, quiz, game, craft or something else!
Over 400 nominations for the award were sent in from all over the world. In July, an expert panel whittled down these nominations to a shortlist of 26 museums.
Over the summer, families tested out the activities and their feedback, along with an expert panel, decided the winners of each category.
Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales won the award for the Best Social Media Activity for the Minecraft Your Museum Competition.
"We are delighted that this work was recognised! The work the children created by taking part was phenomenal! The effort they put into creating their own Museums was clearly evident and they had used so many skills to make them. More importantly all children said how much they enjoyed making their Museums and all of our judges enjoyed visiting them!" Danielle Cowell - Lead for Digital Learning at AC-NMW.
Whilst the Minecraft Your Museum competition has finished you can still take part by creating your own Museum in Minecraft.
Philip Mould, art dealer, broadcaster and Kids in Museums President, said: “It is a pleasure to today celebrate how museums and heritage sites have sprung into action and brought culture to families during this challenging time. What all our winners have in common is that they have managed to bring the best of museums to families at home. These projects not only helped them with home schooling, but also supported their wellbeing and helped them have fun together. Many congratulations to all our worthy winners.”
Here is the full list of families’ favourite lockdown activities:
Best Social Media Activity
Highly Commended
· Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft – Virtual Museum Club
Winner
· National Museum Wales – Minecraft your Museum
Best Film
Highly Commended
· University Museum of Zoology, Cambridge - Zoology Live! Online Festival
Winner
· Cooper Gallery, Barnsley - Wow Wednesdays
Best Website Activity
Highly Commended
· National Galleries Scotland – Home is Where the Art is
Winner
· National Videogame Museum, Sheffield – Create Your Own Pixel Art Character
Best International Digital Activity
Highly Commended
· Andy Warhol Museum, USA – Warhol Making It Videos
Winner
· The Glucksman, Republic of Ireland – Creativity at Home
Going the Extra Mile
Highly Commended
· Colchester and Ipswich Museums – Museum From Home Activity Packs
· Seven Stories: The National Centre for Children’s Books, Newcastle Upon Tyne – Something to Smile About: Supporting Families in East Newcastle
