Humane Education

American Humane plans to spread humane values like compassion and responsibility toward animals through a traveling museum exhibit designed for children ages 4 to 11. Scheduled for completion in fall 2010, the exhibit will be highly interactive -- a hands-on space where children and their families can explore the virtues of caring for pets and being kind to animals.

The exhibit will represent a fictional town called "Critterville," located in "Kindness County." It will consist of six main areas scaled to the size of children:

Pet Adoption Center

With millions of homeless animals euthanized every year in this country, the importance of adopting from animal shelters cannot be overstated. In this area of the exhibit, children will learn how the adoption process works through interactive touch screens and other features that promote the use of identification tags and microchipping, proper grooming and more. Pretend pet cages will contain plush toys representing animals for "adoption," and will display cage cards with information about the pets inside.

Veterinary Clinic

In this area, children will be able to try on lab coats and pretend to be veterinarians while learning what it means to provide regular medical care to their pets. Features will include an interactive "Ask the Vet" panel and an "Alive Like Me!" display, which will teach animal physiology. When children see how animals have muscles, bones and circulatory functions just like them, their understanding of the connection between all living creatures and their empathy for animals will increase.

School

Here children will learn about pets and pet care while pretending to be students or teachers. Features will include a "What Do I See" module -- in which children can step inside a fish tank and see the world from a fish's perspective -- science and reading corners, and flip-up panels with trivia questions about animals.

Movie Theatre

An entertaining and informative film about being caring and responsible toward family pets will run every 10 minutes in this appealing space. The theater will be decorated with posters from major movies that have been awarded American Humane's famous "No Animals Were Harmed”® end-credit disclaimer and that also highlight the history of animals in film and television.

Pet Supply Store

The pet store will teach children a critical lesson about petsí needs and the cost of having a pet. There will be miniature shopping baskets, shelves and bins of pet supplies, as well as a check-out counter and cash register. Kids will learn how to choose the right supplies for different pet species and the annual cost of owning various types of pets.

The Natural World

A tree display with a forest backdrop and the illusion of blowing leaves will represent the wild -- a place where people and pets should not interfere. The tree area will present messages about protecting pets from wildlife and vice versa, and activities will include identifying various species based on the sounds they make and the way they look.

If you think an animal shelter or humane society in your area might be interested in partnering with your local children's museum to bring American Humane's exhibit to your community, please contact Jane Greco Deming, director of American Humane's Humane Education Department, at humaneed@americanhumane.org.