Planning for #MuseumWeek 2015
On 11th March 2015, Amy Cotterill (Essex Museum Development Officer, @EssexMDO), led a training course for the SHARE region which introduced us to #MuseumWeek, and explored how museums can make the most of it. Emily Shepperson (Curatorial Assistant, The British Schools Museum) gives us her thoughts on the day and some ideas for planning for #MuseumWeek.
With only one week to go many museums across the region are busy planning
to take part in #MuseumWeek 2015. The week of tweeting runs from Monday 23rd March to Sunday 29th and encourages museums worldwide to tweet about their fantastic organisation around seven different daily themes. Last year over 300 museums took part, and this year 1100 organisations have already signed up.
Having recently joined the British Schools Museums as Curatorial Assistant I was keen to set up a Twitter account in time for #MuseumWeek. I was really pleased to see the Twitter training session with SHARE as I was unsure of what to talk about for several of the daily themes.
Essex MDO Amy Cotterill ran an excellent afternoon at The National Horse Racing Museum, working through new and interactive ideas for each of the daily themes. Ideas ranged from ‘A dog’s day at the museum’ to getting visitors to vote for their favourite object. It was great to be able to share ideas with museums of different sizes. Amy also talked through the logistics of running #MuseumWeek and how to incorporate different platforms such as Storify.
At the British Schools Museum I have been gathering input from colleagues and volunteers to develop a varied and exciting plan for the week. Following Amy’s excellent advice we are putting out a press release and posters to promote the museums involvement in the initiative, and boost local awareness of our social media.
I am looking forward to getting more volunteers involved in #MuseumWeek, and responding to the conversations which so much twitter activity will generate.
There is still time to get involved with #MuseumWeek, register your organisation here and start tweeting!
Emily Shepperson, Curatorial Assistant, British Schools Museum
@B_S_Museum / britishschoolsmuseum.co.uk
Below are some of the ideas the group came up with for each day of #MuseumWeek, courtesy of Amy Cotterill. Click photos to enlarge.
- Monday’s theme is #SecretsMW – “Museums and cultural establishments from all over the globe welcome you to their everyday world and introduce you to work behind the scenes… and perhaps a few well-kept secrets!”
- Tuesday’s theme is #SouvenirsMW – “Share your souvenirs and memories of visits: photos, mugs, books, postcards, encounters and special moments!”
- Wednesday’s theme is #ArchitechtureMW – “Explore the history, architectural heritage, gardens and surroundings of museums.”
- Thursday’s theme is #InspirationMW – “Now it’s your turn to create and share for posterity! Art, science, history and ethnography are all around us. To your smartphones!”
- Friday’s theme is #FamilyMW – “With the weekend almost here, prepare family visits or upcoming school trips with advice and tips from the museums themselves.”
- Saturday’s theme is #FavMW – “Now the weekend has begun, share your special favourites (works, conferences, locations, etc.) in 140-character messages, videos, photos or Vines.”
- Sunday’s theme is #PoseMW – “This last day of #MuseumWeek 2015 is all about creativity! Poses, memes or selfies… it’s up to you!”
