The impact of early math literacy is crucial for supporting children’s development and setting them up for a bright future. By starting early, making math fun, and meaningfully involving parents/caregivers—all areas in which children’s museums excel—we can create a world where everyone feels confidence in their abilities to do math.

ACM is excited to announce a new partnership with the Simons Foundation, Nurturing Numeracy Skills & Math Literacy in Children’s Museums, to engage and support a cohort of smaller children’s museums (annual operating budgets of less than $1 million) to develop ideas, strategies, activities, and resources. This program is funded by Simons Foundation International and administered by the Simons Foundation’s Science, Society & Culture division.

“For many people, math can be a difficult subject to engage with,” Ivvet Modinou, senior vice president of Science, Society & Culture, said. “Our goal is to support museums and caregivers to work together to find inventive, accessible ways of engaging and supporting children in their math literacy journeys.”

ACM, the foundation and participating museums will work together to create experiences—programs, activities, events, exhibit components, etc.—which will advance numeracy skills, and math literacy and confidence in children.

“ACM is thrilled to be a strategic thought partner to the Foundation and to the participating museums, working to enable the museums as they convene and co-create,” Arthur G. Affleck, III, executive director of ACM said. “The innovation and unique perspectives of small children’s museums serve as inclusive models for building experiences and building relationships to the communities we serve.”

More information about the initiative and the application process will be available on or around September 20.