From the outside, it looks like an ordinary day at Boston Children’s Museum. Families and local working folks are having lunch, kids are chasing the pigeons, people are texting friends to make plans for tonight. Inside the museum, kids and families enjoy the exhibits—blowing bubbles, exploring the Japanese House, creating art. But if you were to take a peek behind the secret doors, you’d spy a very different scene. Boston Mini Maker Faire 2017 is just a few days away, and everyone on Boston Children’s Museum staff is getting ready.
In one room, the Production Team looks over the site plan. They’re putting the finishing touches on the map and figuring out exactly where each Maker is going to go. Some Makers need to be inside and some need to be outside; some need a lot of space; some need electricity; some need access to a water faucet. The team is also working on placement of food trucks, water fountains, dining tables and Port-a-Potties. It’s a lot to manage.
In another room, staff are stringing together lanyards. Every Maker will get one. Nearby, other staff are sorting out the materials needed for the Museum’s own booth at the Faire: the Nerdy Derby, the Human Paint Roller, and Scribblebots. Upstairs, people are sorting the materials that have been gathered for the Take Something booth, where visitors will be able to pick up all kind of materials and gadgets to take home for their own maker projects! In other places, ticket sales are coming in, emails are being sent, phone calls are being made.
The staff managers are figuring out a schedule for Sunday. Staff will need to cover the Admissions table and the Information Tent (and the Info Desk inside), as well as assist Makers pack in and out, help visitors find their way around, reunite families who have gotten disconnected from each other, check tickets, as well as staff usual Museum exhibits. In addition, the staff will be joined by about 40 volunteers. Scheduling all those people into all those locations is a gargantuan task. The staff managers are sure to drink a lot of coffee while they work it all out.
The Facilities Team is making sure we have all the tents, tables, chairs, signs, stanchions and everything else we’ll need on site on Sunday. With nearly 100 Makers coming, it’s important that we make sure they all have what they need to have a successful day. There’s a Plan B in case of bad weather. We’ve been monitoring the forecast closely for the last week, fingers crossed. As of right now, it’s looking pretty good.
Behind the scenes at Boston Children’s Museum is abuzz with all kinds of activity to make sure this Sunday’s Maker Faire will be a grand success. It will all be worth it when the crowds arrive on Sunday morning discover the joy of creating, innovating, inventing and….Making! You can still buy tickets here! We can’t wait to see you!
The Power of Play 