Eighteenth International Conference on the Arts in Society

Abstract

The Natural Science Museum of Barcelona has engaged for several years now in an outreach project that is proving to successfully overcome the physical boundaries of the museum. The Museu Ambulant is a portable natural science museum designed to reach penitentiary centres and bring natural heritage to those who cannot come to the Museum. It contains real pieces from our zoological collections that the students from penitentiary schools can directly manipulate. The materials are accompanied by complete educational guides that allow development of multiple activities in a totally autonomous way. The next steps for us at the Museum are to reach nursery schools (for small children whose lack of mobility makes it difficult to do excursions out of the crèche) and children hospitals with long-term stay units. Here we are facing new challenges, like the preparation of natural heritage material compatible with hospital sanitary restrictions and children/patients’ needs.