Storytime: Back to the Drawing Board

What are your ideas for the New Year? What do you do with an idea? Join us for a New Year’s celebration. Together, we’ll explore the installation Jessica Diamond: Wheel Of Life and read What Do You Do with an Idea by Kobi Yamada. Following the story, we’ll get creative by making works inspired by our own wonderful ideas.

Meet in the Museum Lobby.


Do this at home! Create a “wish tree” for the New Year to share with your family, friends, and neighbors. Instructions here

A boy attaches a wish to a paper tree attached to his window.


ABOUT STORYTIME

Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. If there are access services or accommodations that can make your experience more inclusive (e.g., ASL interpretation, live captioning, etc.), please contact hmsgeducation@si.edu. 1-2 week’s advance notice is recommended but not required. For a group of ten or more, please contact mcgettigant@si.edu to reserve a program in advance.

Storytime: Rosie Revere, Engineer

Everyone can do it! Put on your red bandana and join us for a special Storytime. We’ll look at the installation Belief+Doubt by artist Barbara Kruger, participate in a lively read-aloud of Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty, and engineer our own works of art.

Meet in the Museum Lobby.

Storytime is taking a holiday pause after December 20. Please join us again Wednesday, January 10, for Storytime: Back to the Drawing Board. 


Do this at home! Transform a box into a unique space inspired by Siah Armajani. Instructions here. 

Half of a medium sized cardboard box has been laid lengthwise displaying a scene within.


ABOUT STORYTIME

Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. If there are access services or accommodations that can make your experience more inclusive (e.g., ASL interpretation, live captioning, etc.), please contact hmsgeducation@si.edu. 1-2 week’s advance notice is recommended but not required. For a group of ten or more, please contact mcgettigant@si.edu to reserve a program in advance.

Storytime: Think Outside the Crayon Box

What materials do you use to make art? Contemporary artists often experiment with unusual materials. Join us for a close look at artist Mark Bradford’s Pickett’s Charge and a read-aloud of A Day With No Crayons by Elizabeth Rusch, then create some unusual art of your own!

Meet in the Museum Lobby.


Do this at home! Meet the tinker tray. Much more than a vessel of materials, tinker trays encourage loosely structured, open-ended play while developing fine motor skills, creativity, and imagination. Instructions here.

A wooden box full of art supplies sits on a black surface


ABOUT STORYTIME

Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind Storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. If there are access services or accommodations that can make your experience more inclusive (e.g., ASL interpretation, live captioning, etc.), please contact hmsgeducation@si.edu. 1-2 week’s advance notice is recommended but not required. For a group of ten or more, please contact mcgettigant@si.edu to reserve a program in advance.

Storytime: Totally You!

Let’s dive into the world of Simone Leigh and celebrate all the things that make us who we are! We’ll explore Overburdened with Significance (2011) by Simone Leigh and listen to a read-aloud of The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson (illustrated by Rafael López). At the end, your little artists can create wearable art pieces inspired by the ceramic rosettes featured in Simone Leigh, and share the joy of expressing what makes them special!

Meet in the Museum Lobby.


Do this at home! Make your own abstract sculpture inspired by Barbara Hepworth. Instructions here

A grey, organic sculpture made of clay and resembling a pelvis sits on a flat brown surface, a white background behind it.


ABOUT STORYTIME

Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind Storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. If there are access services or accommodations that can make your experience more inclusive (e.g., ASL interpretation, live captioning, etc.), please contact hmsgeducation@si.edu. 1-2 week’s advance notice is recommended but not required. For a group of ten or more, please contact mcgettigant@si.edu to reserve a program in advance.

Storytime: A Trip to the Hirshhorn

Ignite your child’s imagination with a trip to the Hirshhorn. We will read the story Matthew’s Dream by Leo Lionni, a book about a young mouse who visits a museum and realizes that art can change the way we see the world. Following the story, participants will create their own visual stories.

Meet in the Museum Lobby.


Do this at home! Use water to transform a plain coffee filter into your own sculptural work of art bursting with color. Instructions here.

A twisted coffee filter is stapled to a white sheet of paper, the artists signature in the lower right corner.


ABOUT STORYTIME

Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind Storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. An ASL Interpreter may be requested for this program; two weeks advance notice is appreciated. For a group of ten or more, please contact mcgettigant@si.edu to reserve a program in advance.

Storytime: Circle of Care

Who do you care about? Join us to explore our relationships and build an even bigger circle of care. We’ll look closely at A Circle Thing by artist Jessica Diamond, and read The Circles All Around Us by Brad Montague.

Meet in the Museum Lobby.


Do this at home! What makes you who you are? Collage a self-portrait and explore identity! All you need is some paper, a handful of small objects, and scissors. Instructions here.

Three black and white photos printed onto regular printer paper sit fanned out on a wooden surface.


ABOUT STORYTIME

Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. An ASL Interpreter may be requested for this program; two weeks advance notice is appreciated. For a group of ten or more, please contact mcgettigant@si.edu to reserve a program in advance.

Storytime: Express Yourself

Join us for an exploration of how we express who we are. We will look closely at Your Oceanic Feeling by Olafur Eliasson, read Julián Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love, and participate in our own playful art-making.

Meet in the Museum Lobby.


Do this at home! Create a complementary colors suncatcher inspired by Pat Steir: Color Wheel. Instructions here.

A wet, just finished water color sits on top of a piece of newspaper.


ABOUT STORYTIME

Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. An ASL Interpreter may be requested for this program; two weeks advance notice is appreciated. For a group of ten or more, please contact mcgettigant@si.edu to reserve a program in advance.

Storytime: My First Word

What was your little one’s first word? What was yours? Join us to explore the words of childhood through a close look at the artwork Untitled (O Small Small Head) by artist Jessica Diamond, and a read aloud of The Word Collector by Peter H. Reynolds. Following the story, young artists can play with words and make their own works of art!  

Meet in the Museum Lobby.


Do this at home! Repurpose old comics into works of art inspired by artist Tony Lewis. Instructions here.

Four comic strips of various sizes overlap, all of the details have been covered with various materials.


ABOUT STORYTIME

Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind Storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. An ASL Interpreter may be requested for this program; two weeks advance notice is appreciated. For a group of ten or more, please contact mcgettigant@si.edu to reserve a program in advance.

Storytime: Boos, Books and Blankets

Celebrate Halloween at the Hirshhorn at this week’s Storytime. Join us in your best creative costume, or come as you are to explore mysterious artworks at the Museum. Young artists will look closely at sculptures on the Plaza, cozy up for a read-aloud of Itsy Bitsy Spider by Emily Bannister, and design their own scary sculptures. 

Meet in the Museum Lobby.


Do this at home! Create your own pinch pot inspired by artist Yayoi Kusama. Instructions here.

A small, two-leafed plant grows out of a orange pumpkin-shaped pot featuring vertical patterns of polka dots.


ABOUT STORYTIME

Join Hirshhorn Kids on Wednesdays for a one-of-a-kind Storytime experience! Each week offers a fun and fresh theme for our youngest artists and their adults. Get a fun and hands-on introduction to a new artwork each week, and participate in a joyful read-aloud filled with music, stories, and movement. Then, stay and play while your little artist creates. No reservations or tickets required. Nursing caregivers are welcome. Stroller parking is available in the Hirshhorn Lobby. An ASL Interpreter may be requested for this program; two weeks advance notice is appreciated. For a group of ten or more, please contact mcgettigant@si.edu to reserve a program in advance.