This is a list of characteristics that contribute to a meaningful and enjoyable experience at a history museum or historic site. It is based on recent studies that contribute to our understanding of how people learn, how they use the past in their lives, and what they enjoy. A list of the sources is given at the end of the list.

Contact us if you wish to explore ways of using this checklist to assess or plan your exhibits or historic site interpretations.

1. A coherent, compelling theme consistently shapes all elements of the experience.

2. All elements are in harmony, with positive cues to reinforce the theme. The overall aesthetic, including the use of language, the presentation of objects and spaces, and the demeanor of personnel, work together to reveal the theme. Negative cues are eliminated.

3. The experience engages the intellect with relevant information and insights. It offers new information and perspectives, building on the visitor’s previous knowledge and understanding of the topic.

4. The experience helps visitors learn through activities grounded in the ways humans know the world: through language, logical-mathematical analysis, spatial representation, musical thinking, the use of the body, understanding other individuals, and understanding themselves.

5. The experience involves all five senses. Sight, sound, taste, smell and touch come into play as the visitor goes through the experience. In some cases the engagement of a particular sense is direct, in others it is ambient.

6. The experience engages a variety of emotions—pride, anger, empathy, humor, sadness, etc. To a degree the outcome is uncertain, dependent upon individual reactions to what is presented.

7. The experience addresses the beliefs and values of visitors. In some cases the experience may support, and in other cases challenge the visitor. In either case, the experience leads to critical reflection.

8. The experience provides a sense of immediate, personal contact with the past. Through artifacts and historical settings visitors feel a strong personal connection with past events and individuals.

9. The experience is familial or social, enabling visitors to share with others as they seek to find personal meaning in the historical presentation.

10. The experience enables visitors to teach. They share with their children and grandchildren stories and lessons they deem important.

11. In the very best experiences, visitors achieve a sense of flow. They lose all sense of time and feel a connection with a larger universe.

12. The experience is memorable, and through memorabilia, books, videos, and subsequent contact, the visitor is able to remember and extend the experience after leaving.

Sources:

• Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Flow
• B. Joseph Pine and James H. Gilmore, The Experience Economy
• Howard Gardner, Frames of Mind
• Roy Rosenweig and David Thelan, The Presence of the Past
• Will Phillips, "Aristotle’s Insight" (this is a Management Briefing which can be found on this web site.)