Do you want to go sailing with me
13.05.2018 to 01.07.2018
Sailing is a fascinating interaction between humans, nature, technology and sometimes it is also an adventure. We invite families with children from 8 years on to learn sailing with Jakob the Optimist.
The enthusiasm for sailing has long been part of our museum and has manifested itself in various ways in our scientific work. Original objects were thus quickly found, which are now part of the participatory exhibition and complement the interactive elements with their authenticity. Many of these objects also bear witness to our own local sailing tradition in Bremerhaven and Bremen. Both equipment and models from the museum collection are shown within the exhibition.
One object takes on a particularly important role: The optimist dinghy Jakob. Framed between the colonial pictures depicting the continents, the small sailing boat represents the first steps one takes on the way to sailing the wide sea. The small boat, which is equipped with buoyancy bodies, serves to teach children how to sail. In the sheltered space of a lake, harbour or bay, children can learn the mechanisms necessary to navigate larger and more complex ships. Many of the sailors who later headed for distant destinations learned the basics with these small dinghies and covered their first miles at sea.
However, this ship only comes to life within the exhibition through the explanatory films of a primary school class of the Gorch-Fock-School from Bremerhaven. They have created clips as part of a working group, which can be seen within the exhibition and show Jakob teaching children to sail or travelling around the world.
Film workshops for primary school classes
Space is on the smallest dinghy. Playfully we prepare ourselves for a sailing trip: What should be in the equipment? Who does what on board? How do we get to our destination? The children invent their own sailing trip in small groups and create the story as a short film clip with paper, tablet and their own hands. Duration: 90 minutes / Costs: 50 Euro plus 1 Euro admission per person. Registrations via booking contact.
The children's exhibition is on tour
The participatory exhibition "Will you go sailing with me?" has been on display at various locations since June 2015 and will be shown for the last time from 13.05.2018 at the German Maritime Museum. The exhibition of the Flensburg Maritime Museum was created in cooperation with the Children's Culture Office from Hamburg. On the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the local sailing club, the Flensburg Maritime Museum took the opportunity to focus on the long tradition of sailing in a way that is also exciting for children. Interactivity within the exhibition is one of the main focuses, making the fascination of this sport attractive to children of all ages. This interactive exhibition shows the public that the traditional sport is still relevant and by no means boring.
At a total of seven stations, topics closely related to sailing are discussed. The structure and functions of a boat that are necessary to move with the wind as drive are explained. Whether leeward or windward, starboard or portside - important terms of sailing language are part of this children's exhibition. But the hands-on exhibition does not only focus on the boat, it also deals with wind and water. What basic physical knowledge is necessary to successfully steer a ship? This question will also be explored.
The tasks that have to be done on and below deck are further topics of the hands-on exhibition. Order and teamwork characterize the coexistence on a sailing boat, which helps to master dangerous situations and enables successful sailing. These qualities are essential for all sailing enthusiasts and make sailing a serious sport.
But the fun is not neglected either. The children's exhibition also shows the beautiful sides of sailing, both on the water, at competitions - the regattas - and on land at the sailing club.