Elyse Lattner was interviewed by Emily Botein on July 4, 1996. She was born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1964 and lived in Connecticut for five years, then Baltimore, Maryland, for 5 years, and finally Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for 8 years. She has lived in the Washington, DC, area since 1982. She is trained as a teacher for early childhood, but is currently a full time mother. Lattner and her family visit the Smithsonian several times a month. This interview discusses how often she visits the Smithsonian and the Zoo, her memories of visiting as a child, what it is like to visit the museums with her children, her children's favorite Zoo animals, changes at the Smithsonian, what the Smithsonian means to her, her interest in history and popular culture, how the museums can foster parent and child interaction, visiting the Festival, suggestions for the improvement of the Smithsonian, field trips she and her class made to the Discovery Theater and the Zoo, suggestions for an increased Smithsonian presence in the classroom, and the 1996 Festival of American Folklife. Her sons Jacob and Noah, ages 4 and 2 respectively, are also present in this interview.

Object Details

See more items in: Smithsonian Memories Project, Festival of American Folklife Oral History Interviews; Smithsonian Memories Project, Festival of American Folklife Oral History Interviews / Interviews

Collection Citation: Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 9594, Smithsonian Memories Project, Festival of American Folklife Oral History Interviews