If you are not sensitive to sound or light, then you could visit the Connecticut Science Center on a Sensory Friendly Day and not notice any change. For those of us who feel easily distracted or put on edge by what we interpret as chaotic noise, the difference is obvious and wonderful.
Calm. That’s what I felt when walking into Science Alley on a recent Sensory Friendly Day, an event sponsored by Miracle League of Connecticut. There were plenty of other visitors. The Science Center was nowhere near silent. It simply felt like the volume had been dialed down a few notches, like how you need the world to operate before that first cup of coffee.
Another notable difference was that outside of each gallery, signs were posted depicting the rooms’ contents, helping visitors understand what they would encounter. I watched several teens look these over before confirming that they wanted to go inside.
Not everything was modified. The Forces in Motion and Sight and Sound galleries were as active as ever, but it was announced that these areas would continue to have flashing lights and loud sounds.
Creating a sensory-friendly experience does not have to be an all or nothing venture. Simply providing extra information about what to expect and making adjustments to exhibits when it makes sense can be what opens the doors for families who otherwise would not have been able to attend.
The Connecticut Science Center is in good company.
The Smithsonian Museums offer “Morning at the Museum,” an opportunity on select days for children on the spectrum (and their families) to visit before public hours. In addition to having sensory-friendly days when exhibits are modified, the Franklin Institute of Philadelphia offers sensory alert maps every day, along with backpacks containing tools that can help visitors, like noise-reducing headphones and sunglasses. Visitors who need to leave within their first thirty minutes are offered vouchers, letting them return on another day. In New York, the Met provides a “social narrative” for parents to talk over with children before visiting; this tells visitors what to expect, from which entrance may be less crowded to the presence of security guards who are there to help in case someone gets lost.
The New York Transit Museum created an after-school Subway Sleuths program for kids on the spectrum. The museum explains that this “uses a shared interest in trains among kids on the autism spectrum as a means to encourage peer-to-peer interaction and develop social skills and confidence through goal-oriented sessions. Using a strength-based approach, participants explore the Transit Museum’s decommissioned subway station home, solving transit mysteries, becoming transit experts and sharing that enthusiasm with others.” How cool is that?!
Across the ocean, the V&A Museum of Childhood in London provides “what to expect” information on its website, letting visitors know where a distressed child may find a quiet place to take a break in the facility, as well as what days and times are typically the quietest.
Closer to home, several museums in Connecticut are modifying how they operate. Accessibility for All, a collaboration of eleven Fairfield County museums and attractions, has created a calendar that describes which upcoming events are dedicated to visitors with special needs and which might be challenging. An example of a challenging event? Earthplace notes that its Birds of Prey Feeding “is held outside, may include loud noises due to our birds, and some individuals may not be comfortable watching the birds rip apart their food.” That kind of warning can be useful to everyone.
Others have found ways to welcome potential visitors by removing barriers. A message on the Children’s Museum of Southeastern CT website indicates no documentation of diagnosis is required for youth to participate in sensory-friendly events.
As Autism Speaks explains, “Sounds, flashing lights and crowded and unfamiliar spaces can be extremely challenging to a child or an adult with autism.” This is why you’ll find the lights dimmed, along with more predictability added to sensory-friendly events. As museum professionals, we already know what could use tinkering. When you walk through the lobby, do you typically notice overwhelming smells? Eliminate those on sensory-friendly day: for one day each week or month, ask the cafeteria to take tuna off the menu.
Museums do not need to independently remake the wheel, so to speak, when thinking about how they can be more inviting. Museum Education Roundtable (MER), Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC), and American Alliance of Museums (AAM) are among those that have given guidance that can be adopted by cultural attractions.
On a basic level, how can institutions be more inclusive of visitors on the autism spectrum? One of the simplest steps is to place details about accessibility on the museum’s website. This removes one of the barriers to visitation. What should be included on that page? The Philadelphia Museum of Art is one model for how to create an “Accessibility” and “Getting Here” page, as both show consideration of the range of people who may be interested in visiting, and that they are not all arriving by the same mode of transportation. A side effect of a more robust website is that it benefits many other potential visitors, including those living outside the region and folks who may be anxious about having new experiences.
Expanding access is an ongoing process. As Sandra Bonnici — a diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion consultant — explains, “one of the most significant questions” that museum professionals “must keep asking ourselves is ‘for whom do we exist?’ By reflecting on the layered impact of these barriers, questioning policies, engaging in community listening, and centering the voices of our communities (especially those who are marginalized and minoritized) we can begin to dismantle them with asset-based collaborative solutions. By doing so, we can make our institutions relevant, thriving places of connection, learning, and dialogue.”
The next Sensory Friendly Day at the Connecticut Science Center is Wednesday, March 4, 2020. Tickets can be purchased in advance; admission is free for 1:1 aides. Attendance is not limited to those with ASD or other sensory challenges
Kerri Provost is a Communications Research Associate at the Connecticut Science Center who is outdoors whenever possible and is currently attempting to walk every block of Hartford. She is the co-producer of Going/Steady, a podcast about exploring in the Land of Steady Habits and beyond.
