Contribute
The Northwoods Children’s Museum is a non-profit organization that supports families through play while businesses and individuals do what they can, when they can, to help financially. Donations from caring people make it possible to provide a quality children’s museum for families year round. The museum’s very existence is a daily tribute to people who care enough about children to share their time and money.
Play is so important to child development that it has been recognized by the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights as a right of every child.¹ Virtually every nation in the world has endorsed these findings.
However, many children in the world don’t have a chance to play…and many children in the world will NEVER have a chance to play. Children today spend 6.5 hours a day with electronic media, which means that sitting in front of a screen has replaced active play and playing with others. We also know that there is a direct line between limited play and some disturbing public health and social trends²:
• Tragic statistics for childhood obesity…
• Classroom behavior problems involving violence…
• Inability to interact well with peers…
• Increase in childhood depression...
Just an hour a day of vigorous play addresses virtually all of these health and social trends. And, we know that active kids perform better academically in the long term.
As a community resource it is important for the Northwoods Children’s Museum to help ALL of our kids learn and grow.