Roadschooling: Science - Technology Centers
Science and Technology Centers are great for helping kids learn about science and technology. They can be really fun for adults too! We love it enough that we have invested in a membership at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. It has been well worth the $140 we spent on a family membership. A single visit would cost us $72 so it only takes 2 visits to start saving money. The membership also gives us access to the ASTC Reciprocal Program and gives us free admittance to over 250 different science and technology centers around the world. We visited several different ones in the South East of the USA during our travels this past winter.
Now that we are in Sweden we noticed that we could get free admittance to Teknikens hus in Luleå a Science and Technology center about 2 hours away from where we are staying. We were planning a visit but discovered that there is a newly opened center right here in Skellefteå. We did not get free entry, but considering the cost of gasoline, it would have cost more, to drive to Teknikens hus in Luleå, than the 320SEK it cost for the family to spend the day at Exploratoriet in Skellefteå.
Exploratoriet is by far the smallest one we have visited, but that doesn't mean that there is nothing to do. We had no problem spending the whole day exploring the different exhibits and trying some of allthe different activities they offered. We realized that there were enough different activities to fill the whole day, but that would give us no free time to explore so we decided on a few that looked most interesting.
We began our visit outside the building where the kids got to drive an electric mini Tesla.
Peter driving the mini Tesla.
After both kids got a chance to drive we went straight in for the next activity: Programming lego robots! There were 5 different stations with a laptop and an EV3 lego robot. In the middle of the room was a platform where the robots could complete different tasks. We tried 2 different tasks before the kids wanted to move on and one of our rules, when we visit museums or places like this, is to do it on their level and let them set the pace. This helps keep them interested and I'm convinced that they, in the long run, end up spending more time exploring and learning, than if we had made them stay after they lose interest.
Checking if we programmed it right to knock the ball down.
The forest is one of the most important resources here
so there had to be a section dedicated to that.
Controlling the flow of water in order to make 3 different
water-wheels turn requiers good planing.
I love seeing the gears turn in his mind!
I think we have a little engineer in the making.
The theater was both interesting and fun, but when the actors warned the kids
that the next thing could be both loud and scary,
my kids took it very seriously!
They almost missed the light bulb glowing in the microwave.
After watching the theater show about electricity they got to try making
their own electricity with first a wind generator
and then solar panels.
One of my favorite things was the augmented reality sandbox
that projected elevation lines and water
on the landscape they build.
We ended our visit in "the sun". It was the smallest planetarium I've ever seen - a dome only about 6m across. But the size did not matter. When the light went out the entire night sky was projected on the inside of the dome. We got a nice guided tour to several of the more visible star constellations.
All in all we had a great day and hopefully the Exploratoriet will join ASTC and the next time we visit, it will be free.
The augmented reality sandbox looks like a lot of fun, so real!!
It really was awesome. The sand was some kind of cloud dough and stayed very well in the shape you made. It took a few seconds for the new landform to register but then the color changed and water flowed into depressions. Thanks for reading!
This is great! Taking kids and exposing them to science and technology, really getting those gears spinning in their heads early on and giving them more reasons to think outside the box and utilize logical deductions is only going to benefit them in the long run. I always had a great time visiting science centers as a kid (and I still enjoy it now as an adult).
This is really all-around development for children. It takes a lot of time and efforts, but so necessary.
Life takes time and effort! Why not fill it with things that make a difference. We have never felt regret after spending a day in a place like Exploratoriet or any other type of museum for that matter. Learning is a part of life and we love this type of experience based learning.
Thanks for reading and taking time to comment!
Great post, it's wonderful watching their eyes light up with amazement. I truly believe they learn much better this way and have fun while doing it. :)
Yes, they really do learn a lot every time we visit a place like this. It also builds their intetest and I've noticed that we talk more about science or technology after a visit like this. It is a great way to learn for the kids and also for me!
This project is epic @kingjan
Exporatoriet was a very cool place to spend the day. Thanks for reading.
welcome
yes that's true, this will bring more smart generations to
this world
those who will solve the major problems of this world.
Yes a good science and technology center is a great place to develop your problem solving skills. I see the especially in my middle child, he really works on inderstanding everything and draws conclusions like a pro.
yes dude and that will help them to find more opportunities to build their lives without problems
and even if it is, they will have their own strategies to solve it :)
thats what we need in our development countries
thanks for sharing this
followed and upvoted :)
homeschooling is the best!
We like it a lot!