The Funhouse has received a significant grant from the Washington State Department of Early Learning (DEL) to improve its services to children ages 1-5 in our community.
“We are very excited,” said Funhouse director Pete Moe. “For some time we’ve been looking for ways to improve our service to the toddler set, and this grant gives us the opportunity to do some cool things.”
The grant provides for the following:
• Free Regular Group Admission/Memberships for all Early Learning Facilities;
• Staffed hours during the day time for group visits;
• Development of new exhibits for young children;
• Development of a new section of our library focused on Early Learning and with a bi-lingual focus
But there is some flexibility in the grant, too.
“Right off the bat we are going to be able to offer a ‘Music Together’ class targeted at low-income and Spanish-speaking families,” says Moe. “The Funhouse will now be able to underwrite the cost of the program for families that qualify.”
Similar to the famous “Suzuki” music programs of the 70s, Music Together is an extremely popular music program for parents and little kids.
The Funhouse is going to be working closely with the principals at all Orcas preschools, parents, and anyone else who is interested in developing important, sustainable programming for children age 1-5 years.
On Wednesday, April 23, The Funhouse sponsored a meeting with the principals from all of Orcas’ preschools and daycares to brainstorm ways to best serve the 1-5 population.
“They came up with some great ideas,” said Moe. “We’ve got concepts for new age-appropriate interior and exterior installations. We are also going to look at regular science, music and movement classes for these kids during hours that we are currently not open to the public.”
The Funhouse is one of 13 children’s museums around the state to receive $20,000 grants from the DEL to help open the doors to more children and their parents or caregivers.
The grants were announced as the DEL announce that it is forming a partnership with Washington’s children’s museums to support healthy child development.
The Washington State Department of Early Learning was created in 2006 to help ensure all children in our state realize their full potential, and to support parents as children’s first and most important teachers.
“We are absolutely grateful to DEL for recognizing us, and understanding that places like the Funhouse are such a great resource for the growth and development our children,” said Moe.
