March of the Museums goes virtual — in April

The Kingston Association of Museums, Art Galleries and Historic Sites (KAM) have announced their March of the Museum event will take place this year, though with some significant changes.

Due to the pandemic, and the change to the regular school March Break, the event will happen in April, and has been reimagined as a “museum at home” event. Taking place the week of April 12 through 16, 2021, March of the Museums will include family-friendly crafts and behind-the-scenes videos.

“We are pleased and excited to offer the return of March of the Museums in 2021 with a virtual twist!  March of the Museums is a collaborative event, intended to foster curiosity and co-learning, as well as to support engagement with and access to local cultural heritage sites,” said Jamie McKenzie-Naish, Managing Director, Kingston Association of Museums, Art Galleries and Historic Sites. “Using play-based approaches, families can engage with museums, free of charge, through crafting activities and online videos from home. And with support from our sponsoring partner, Tourism Kingston, we have been able to expand this event to include the ever-amazing Improbable Escapes Kingston and a #KingstonLovesMuseums scavenger hunt. March of the Museums 2021 is a fabulous, and appropriate, way to re-engage and explore your cultural heritage community.”

The scavenger hunt by Improbable Escapes will take place ahead of the week-long event. Families or individuals can participate in person or online.

On the weekend of March 27-28, those local to Kingston can take part in the city-wide scavenger hunt, and enter to win prizes. Participants from out of town are not eligible for prizes (which need to be picked up in person) but can still enjoy the fun of the hunt. Virtual participants will still be answering riddles and solving mysteries, but the challenges will be different from the in-person version.

March of the Museums was created by KAM’s Programming and Community Engagement Committee (PaCE) to help engage local audiences – in particular families – with local museums during the March Break and to have some fun. The event started in 2018 and originally took place at the Military Communications and Electronics Museum – with multiple local museums onsite, leading crafts and other activities.  Since the beginning, March of the Museums has been free of charge to ensure maximum accessibility to local residents.

The free activity kits can be reserved through Eventbrite, and picked up at Kingston Frontenac Public Library (KFPL) branches and the Lennox and Addington Museum and Archives in Napanee. Pick up dates at the KFPL branches are Apr. 8 and 9, and Apr. 12 and 13, 2021 between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

In the activity kits, you will find fun activities to complete with your family:

• The Military Communications and Electronics Museum is excited to offer the craft activity: make your very own custom Morse Code bracelet! (supplies and instructions provided) 
• Murney Tower Museum craft activity, entitled: “Murney Town Rocks!” (supplies and instructions provided)
• The Beyond Classrooms Kingston activity is: Sketch a Shoe (Picture options are provided by the Museum of Health Care, the Military C and E Museum and Frontenac County Schools Museum)
• The Marine Museum activity is entitled: “Lighting the Way with the Marine Museum!” (Lighthouse Craft supplies and instructions provided)
• Frontenac County Schools Museum craft activity is: Handkerchief Dolls (supplies and instructions provided)
• Museum of Health Care at Kingston activity is entitled: “Do you have what it takes?” Medical Obstacle Course! (supplies and instructions provided)
• RMC Museum activity is: Popsicle stick catapult (supplies and instructions provided)
• Lennox and Addington is providing 3 different activities: a nature scavenger hunt (outdoor fun); colouring pages; and a popsicle stick craft (supplies and instructions provided)

To register for the scavenger hunt, visit Improbable Escape’s registration page. For more details on the March of the Museums 2021 event, visit the KAM website.