
Mobile Museum Units
MoMUs: Unique, differentiated classroom-based portable programming, brought to schools by the Berkshire Museum.
MoMUs were created to address potential obstacles in museum education
These art and STEM-curated mini-exhibitions offer field trip experiences in the comfort of the classroom. A month-long MoMU residency is specifically crafted to activate learning across multiple classes and grades, offering expanded support to supplement and propel the curriculum. Grant funding partnership opportunities allow for this innovative experience to be brought to your school at no cost.
Obstacle 1
The cost of field trips, which hinder visitation to a physical museum. MoMUs are a no-cost-to-you option for facilitated museum programming. The Berkshire Museum delivers the MoMU to your facility, initiates the educational process through a rigorously developed activation lesson, and retrieves the MoMU at the end of the session.
Obstacle 2
Time constraints. Traditional museum education is generally limited to a day of programming in person, often for only a few hours. With MoMus, schools will have access to a mobile museum unit for month-long cycles, allowing for continuous use from students and educators even without museum staff. MoMUs can be moved class to class and grade to grade, giving students broader access to a “museum visit” without ever leaving their school. The curriculum and experiences designed around these mobile units are adaptable to a comprehensive range of learning styles and age ranges, hitting upon multiple intelligences and setting no limit on who can learn from them.
Obstacle 3
MoMUs are intently designed to address the critical dilemma of modern education: the learning and achievement gaps that arise from disparities of access and resources. From conception, MoMUs were envisioned to create portable experiences that extend to underserved populations that do not commonly visit museums, due to either stigma or inability. The ability to bring part of our museum to the classroom also allows for unique museum programming that provides opportunities for hands-on learning with authentic museum objects. Our mobile units are designed to be out in communities, exhibiting a fundamental aspect of the Berkshire Museum philosophy: that museums are meant for everyone.
Topics
Under the Sea (Early Education)
Mohicans: Here and Now
Rocks and Minerals
Mammal Adaptations
Request your MoMU Today!
MoMUs can be tailored to fit the curriculum and students’ unique needs – just ask!
To begin the process, please contact Joseph Mastronardi at JMastronardi@berkshiremuseum.org.
MoMUs on Display at the Berkshire Museum
This selection of MoMUs is currently displayed throughout the galleries of the Berkshire Museum.

Through a New Lens
Science | Human History
This object-packed mobile exhibition explores the science and usage of lenses, from microscopes and glasses to cameras. Visitors can even peer into the MoMU through three differently shaped lenses to see how lens shape impacts vision.
Mammals: Nails or Claws
Science | Biology
This exciting MoMU is filled with scientific specimens to illustrate the ways mammal physiology can reveal what and how each species eats. The unit is equipped with pelts, bones, and skulls from the museum’s teaching collection for educators to bring out as part of hands-on educational programming stemming from the mini-exhibition.


Mabel Choate, Collector
Culture | Human History
What makes a collection, and why do humans like to create them? This small exhibition seeks to answer those questions while showcasing several rarely-seen items collected by former Naumkeag resident Mabel Choate during her travels around the world.