History now! The Museum of Childhood Ireland meets history head-on with our Memory Boxes, aiming to offer a glimpse into how we here in Ireland navigated the Pandemic for future generations.
We began to collect ‘Covid-19 Pandemic time’ related artefact suggestions from Irish children from March 12th 2020 onwards when our government announced the closure of all schools, childcare facilities, collages, and cultural institutions.
There have been some interesting suggestions so far: TikTok dances, cardboard boxes, a router!, dinosaurs, Netflix, T.V., markers, fairy doors, quite a few book suggestions! Bikes, paints, toilet roll cylinders / tubes, board games, chalk, audio-books, daily walks, skateboards, gardening tools, seeds, Zoom and a copy of the Children’s Times.
We had children’s cotton cartoon print masks made locally which we donated to local children and to Enable Ireland, children’s services, but we’ll add one to the box too.
Thank you to all the wonderful children who’ve sent in their ideas. We haven’t stopped collecting yet, so keep your suggestions coming! We’d especially welcome school copy books from the days just prior to lockdown, or from teachers, parents, and children, examples of school work given online to children to complete.
Send us your submissions/ submission ideas to: info@museumofchildhood.ie with Memory Box as the subject line.
RTE on the Museum of Childhood Ireland
https://www.rte.ie/learn/2020/0619/1148397-explore-the-museum-of-childhood-ireland/
We now have a Boscai / Boxes Exhibition and drop off point at the Robert Emmet CDP in Dublin 8!
Majella McAllister, and Brigid Timmons.
Contact: info@museumofchildhood.ie