Between duty and fantasy

• Exhibition

This is what childhood in the village was like in the first half of the 20th century. An interactive exhibition for children with lots of learning and sensory stimuli.

The term "childhood" in the modern sense cannot be applied to the early 20th century. Today, it is considered an independent developmental phase, whereas in the past, children grew very quickly into the everyday lives of adults. In rural areas in particular, children were part of the family work and economic unit and had specific duties to fulfill depending on their age and gender. These ranged from looking after the farm animals, gardening, field and kitchen work to supervising younger siblings or running errands for miles. There was as little separation between the living and working environment as there were separate private rooms.

Families had a strict hierarchy with fixed work structures, into which children had to fit through their own experiences and learning processes. This required them to be resilient, obedient and dutiful. Between work, school and church, this left little room for their own needs and ideas. Nevertheless, children created their own world with imaginative games, stories and daydreams. Although there are hardly any surviving sources on children's lives at that time, the exhibition aims to inspire visitors to think about "childhood" then and now.

Through active and playful approaches, the exhibition recreates various everyday situations based on objects in the museum buildings in the farmhouse of Hufe I, the shepherd's cottage and the village school.

In the rooms of the children's museum there is another interactive hands-on exhibition "From Riffelkamm to Knarrbücks" on the subject of textiles on the farm. The children's museum invites children's, school and adult groups to discover the world of children in earlier times on their own. You are also welcome to book a project with the support of a museum employee. Contact: Björn Küppers, Tel.: 0385 20841-26, bkueppers@schwerin.de.