Interpretation: Education, Programs, and Exhibits

Small Museum Toolkit #5

by Cinnamon Catlin-Legutko (Editor), Stacy Klingler (Editor)

Programs, tours and exhibits are the meat-and-potatoes of what most museums do to meet their missions to educate the public. Interpretation helps make small museums compelling so that the public understands that they are more than a repository of dusty objects. This book considers researching and designing exhibits and best practices for sharing the stories with your audiences. It explores how to orient your organization to be effective interpreters of what you collect, including how to tell engaging stories and how to address difficult issues you may have ignored in the past, like slavery, prejudice and privilege. For the non-historian, it also offers a step-by-step primer on good historical research.

Genres: Museology

156 pages, Paperback

First published November 16, 2011

About the author

Cinnamon Catlin-Legutko is President and CEO of the Abbe Museum.