Discovery Museum

The Discovery Museums will create the "Brain Building Zone,' an early learning gallery to guide parents in developing turn-taking skills, including observing, responding to, and initiating nonverbal and verbal communication with their infants. The gallery will feature exhibit components based upon current research on early childhood learning and brain development to provide caregivers with opportunities to expose their children to novel experiences, interpret and respond to verbal and nonverbal cues from their child, and initiate dialogue and emotional connection with their infants. Through this project the museum will better support caregivers of young children, promote an understanding of current early neurobiology and development, support early literacy skills, and advance the field of small and midsized children's museums through development and dissemination of adaptable, research-based exhibit design and evaluation tools.