A new exhibit that serves up a taste of East Asia to the Naperville community has arrived at the DuPage Children’s Museum, 301 N. Washington St.
“This (exhibit) was put together by the Association of Children’s Museums and connections with the Freeman Foundation, and their goal is to expose children to the cultures of East Asia, and they’ve done that through a lot of different approaches, and this one happens to be through food,” said Kimberly Stull, Chief of Building and Making at DuPage Children’s Museum.
Learning more about East Asian cuisine
The exhibit features a plethora of stuffed food toys and interactive opportunities for young kids.
“I think the most intriguing is the giant noodle bowl,” said Stull. “You can pretend it’s ramen, you can pretend it’s bibimbap. There (are) these wonderful cooking stations, where it exposes children to the different ways that food is prepared. Steaming dumplings and barbecuing food, and grilling on a wok, it lets them put their hands right on some of the cooking utensils that are used, specifically to cook different types of East Asian foods.”
Though you may not be able to taste the food at the exhibit…
“There are scent jars that have four or five different spices that are used in East Asian cooking so that kids can really smell the differences of spices that might not be used in their own home,” said Stull.
Stull is excited to see children at the DCM learn more about other cultures.
“We present food traditions in play because there’s a lot of sensitivity trying to be respectful about the food that is really important in people’s lives,” said Stull.
‘A Taste of East Asia’ will be on display from June 15 to July 26.
“It’s a great opportunity to experience things that are both similar and different from your own traditions,” said Stull. “And that’s part of what brings us all together in this world, is to be able to see that we all do the same things. We all eat, we all prepare food, it’s just that we may use some ingredients this way or that way. But it’s really just about play and learning and letting kids explore things.”
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