Based on an award-winning book entitled “Children Just Like Me,” the University’s Spurlock Museum is housing an exhibit based on the book until May 3 in their Campbell Gallery.

The exhibit, which focuses on promoting diversity among children, takes visitors through the lives of 11 children from various parts of the globe, often brought up in cultures vastly different from American culture, said Kim Sheahan, assistant director of education at Spurlock. The displays include children from Mexico, Canada, Brazil, Australia, Vietnam, Mongolia, India, Russia, Poland, Tanzania and Egypt.

“The exhibit is great; it celebrates people and cultures from all over the world,” Sheahan said. “It’s a wonderful addition to the Champaign-Urbana community.”

Each child has a display that is incorporated into the Spurlock’s existing cultural exhibits. Pictures of the child’s family, home and country are displayed along with their favorite food and toys. Religious traditions, folk music, dancing and daily routines are also mentioned within the child’s exhibit.

Many of the displays are hands-on, allowing local children to try on clothes and touch cultural objects. An interactive touch-screen video also allows local children to compare their parents’ jobs with other parents’ occupations around the world.

“This display is really unique because of how it focuses on other native cultures, and not just our own,” said Cara Knoeppel, freshman in LAS.

The displays also features the children’s interest in school as well as potential career plans. Many wanted to pursue higher education to help improve technology in their home villages. As local children visit the exhibit, they will discover that their career aspirations are similar.

“This exhibit is wonderful,” said Larine Cowan, assistant chancellor and director of the Office of Equal Opportunity and Access at the University. “It really shows a common bond across cultures and promotes the University’s interest in diversity,”

Children Just Like Me is a traveling exhibit originated in Cincinnati, Ohio, and had caught the eye of members from the Spurlock’s educational department in May at the conference for the American Association of Museums in Chicago, said Beth Watkins, education coordinator at the Museum.

“We felt that the exhibit would be a good fit with the existing content in our museum,” Watkins said. “It displays diversity, yet makes learning about a child’s life accessible by commonalities among diverse cultures.”

The exhibit is one of the first child-focused programs that Spurlock has housed.

“The exhibit really seems to be grabbing the attention of young children who come here with their families,” Watkins continued. “It’s really hands-on. The kids love it.”