MCM Hits the Streets—and the Sidewalks

We’d planned to launch the MCM Roadshow this summer to celebrate our 40th anniversary, coming this fall. The pandemic has forced Madison Children’s Museum to revise those original plans, which involved bringing hands-on exhibits and shoulder-to-shoulder play to neighborhoods across the area.

The need for active, outdoor play hasn’t diminished, even if the opportunities have. It is more important than ever for the museum to support public health as families struggle to navigate online learning, social isolation, financial stress, limited access to outdoor play, and mental health challenges.

So we’ve reimagined the MCM Roadshow, and the first project under the new plan, Sidewalk Surprises, rolls out at the end of May on streets and sidewalks all over town and beyond.

Culturally diverse and artistic temporary hopscotch courses, mazes, and labyrinths will encourage active play while reinforcing early math concepts. Strategically placed, sidewalk solo-games will encourage walking and fluid movement through space—rather than gathering—and will reinforce social distancing while creating joy.

This is especially important, since children’s most beloved places in the community are currently closed—the museum, playgrounds, the zoo, and parks.

Based on the book Hopscotch Around the World (Mary Lankford), these hopscotch challenges will be infused with math concepts, supporting math learning standards for children (grades 4k to 2nd grade), while also helping children develop spatial awareness, small and gross motor skills, and dexterity. The challenges will be spread across the city, with a special focus on economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.

We’ll create over thirty different kinds of sidewalk games, including multicultural games, games for disabled community members, and games for younger children. Each game will be accompanied by educational content or stories about the origins of the game, as well as expanded learning opportunities to explore hopscotch and game-inspired math concepts. Materials will be available on the museum’s website and in local neighborhood centers.

MCM is partnering with the City of Madison (Arts Commission, Police Department, Mayor’s Office, Pedestrian & Bike Safety Program, and other departments), and collaborating with surrounding municipalities, neighborhood centers, neighborhood associations, and local artists.

Museum staff will work within the City of Madison’s social distancing guidelines to place sidewalk games within their own neighborhoods. Games will not be placed on already crowded bike paths or gathering places, but on less heavily used sidewalks or walking corridors. Madison Arts Commission will help MCM secure all necessary city permits, and find and hire additional artists from underserved neighborhoods to create games near where the artists live. MCM staff will contact neighborhood centers and neighborhood associations to let them know of the activities and hear feedback to make sure our work is welcome.

The project will use water-based chalks, both spray and paint-on—all temporary and approved by city ordinances. Every neighborhood will include one secret hopscotch game, which will only emerge when it rains, encouraging walking in all kinds of weather to find the secret game. MCM will provide clues to each neighborhood to help find their secret hopscotch course.

Each neighborhood/neighborhood center will also receive a large collection of sidewalk chalk, stories, and sidewalk game examples, to encourage children to create their own sidewalk games. During the school year, chalk will be distributed in conjunction with MMSD and the Healthy Kids Collaborative lunch pick up locations, and to other community partners.

And lastly, MCM will host an online gallery where everyone will be encouraged to share their sidewalk art creations. These artful challenges, spread throughout the city, show what the museum does best—creating joyful, active, play-based learning experiences for our community’s children that reinforce critical educational concepts.

Watch for the next phase of MCM Roadshow starting this June: We’ll be distributing Discovery Packs to help facilitate creative learning at home.

Sidewalk Surprises is a Madison Children’s Museum ROADSHOW PROJECT, a temporary public art project presented in collaboration with the City of Madison. These surprises are joyfully made possible by support from Madison Community Foundation, Alliant Energy Foundation, American Family Insurance Dreams Foundation, Endres Mfg. Co. Foundation, and US Bank Foundation. This project was also supported by Dane Arts, with additional funding from American Transmission Company, Madison Arts Commission, Madison South Rotary, and Veridian Homes.

Madison Children's Museum

MCM Hits the Streets—and the Sidewalks