National Motor Museum – a celebration of history and heritage
Children’s University Partners since 2013, the History Trust of South Australia operate three museums – the National Motor Museum, the Migration Museum, and the South Australian Maritime Museum. Complementing those established museums is The Centre of Democracy – an exciting collaboration with the State Library of South Australia. They also partner with other Australian museums to present exhibitions.
Museums offer us a glimpse into the lives of our ancestors. They show us how people lived and worked through exhibits and stories that can be exciting, sad or even shocking. Connections to our past allow us to empathise with and to understand the lives of people today, and opens our eyes to new ideas and possibilities. Even a short visit can have a profound and lasting impact on a child’s future.
In the words of the History Trust of South Australia, ‘Our museums are welcoming and adaptable – social places where visitors of all ages, backgrounds, purposes and abilities know their community is included and their stories valued. They are places where visitors don’t have to whisper, and can be confident that their experience has integrity.’
About the National Motor Museum
The National Motor Museum is a celebration of the people and vehicles that have had an impact on Australia’s motoring history. Through permanent exhibits and temporary exhibitions, the museum offers an engaging and often interactive peek into a rich past.
Discover how motor vehicles have opened up our country, linking some of the most isolated communities in the world. From the stately to the absurd, from the hand-built to the mass-produced, see the vehicles people loved and loathed, thrashed and pampered, in the pursuit of their motoring dreams!’
Activities
Collect The Wheelie Good Activity Book upon arrival at the Museum. Each free copy is packed with games and puzzles to encourage interaction with the Museum collection and will help you learn about our motoring history.
Try the Scavenger Hunt. As you explore the museum, find five quirky objects, take selfies in front of each and then solve the final riddle to become a Scavenger Hunt Master. Ask museum staff for a copy of the Scavenger Hunt worksheet or download from the CUA Portal. Show your completed worksheet and photos to a Museum Officer to receive a stamp.
If you enjoy this activity, ask for Scavenger Hunt worksheets at The Centre of Democracy, Migration Museum and South Australian Maritime Museum.
For more information about National Motor Museum, please visit their website.
Working Together
The History Trust of South Australia joined Children’s University in 2013 and was involved in several Pilot programs that offered collaborative workshops and lectures across multiple sites. In 2017, CU Adelaide partnered with Open State 2017; ‘a festival of innovation, collaboration, ideas and enterprise that explored how we can work together today to build a more vibrant and prosperous future South Australia’. Selected Children’s University members were able to participate in a variety of activities provided by CU Adelaide Learning Destinations, including the Centre of Democracy, History SA and Migration Museum.
More recently, the 40th anniversary Bay to Birdwood classic car event took place during the COVID 19 pandemic of 2020. Children’s University and the History Trust of South Australia responded by developing an activity to accompany the first ever live-streaming of the event allowing Children’s University members to participate safely from the comfort of their own homes.
With the support of organisations like the History Trust of South Australia, Children’s University is able to fulfil its goal of promoting a love of lifelong learning through community engagement.