Harry Potter Magical Mystery Tour
Come join us where the magic of science, art, and literature meet! Sample some of the escapades of Harry and his friends. Play "muggle quidditch," make an edible wand, and brew some fantastic potions to drink. Create and observe some amazing chemical reactions, make cool crystals, and watch a mirage appear. See a mysterious glowing ball and experiment with colored magic sand.
Ages 7 - 11
June 9 - June 12, Monday - Thursday, 8:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
July 7 - July 10, Monday - Thursday, 8:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
August 4 - August 7, Monday - Thursday, 8:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Follow Me Robot
Build your own robot! This robot will detect sound and move accordingly. Make it move the way you want it to move, or let it do its own routine. Learn about the different gears and sensors as you build it. You will also get to build other robots while working in groups, and watch them Sumo wrestle or wind through an obstacle course. You can take your robot home with you at the end of the week.
Ages 7 - 12
June 9 - June 12, Monday - Thursday, 1:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Crime Scene Investigation (CSI)
Have fun learning about forensics, crime scene investigations, and crime lab chemistry as you perform as many as 15 different experiments designed to show you just how those tricky cases are solved. Search for evidence, gather clues, and discover how science can help solve a mystery. You will be a super science sleuth! You'll dust for fingerprints, analyze handwriting, test for blood type using simulated blood, examine hair and clothing fibers, practice chemistry to identify mystery substances, and much more.
Ages 8 - 12
June 23 - June 26, Monday - Thursday, 8:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
July 14 - July 17, Monday - Thursday, 8:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Magnetic Levitation for Future Transportation
Build your own futuristic magnetic levitation ("maglev") car to race and take home! In 1999, a Japanese five-car maglev train set a record of 345 miles per hour. Yours won't go that fast, but you will have fun building it and learning how it operates. Learn about the relationship between magnetism and electricity by building a simple maglev track and a cool electromagnet. Learn about motors and generators, then build and take home a simple motor. Make your own compass and take part in many other magnificent magnetic activities!
Ages 7 - 12
June 23 - June 26, Monday - Thursday, 1:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Buried Egyptian Treasure Dig
Discover the amazing science of archaeology as you uncover "artifacts" and learn about ancient Egyptian culture! Excavate faux items to take home such as a scarab, a hieroglyphic tablet, and an ankh symbol using tools similar to those used by a professional archaeologist. Create sand sculptures of pyramids or sphinxes!
Ages 6 - 12
July 7 - July 10, Monday - Thursday, 1:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Engineering: Model Airplanes, Bridges, and Electronic Gadgets
Build your own plane and use it to learn about aerospace or just for fun. Design and build a model bridge for a contest to see whose bridge can hold the most weight. Build six electronic projects such as a patrol car siren, a burglar alarm, and a Morse code transmitter while learning about electronic components.
Ages 7 - 12
July 14 - July 17, Monday - Thursday, 1:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Dinosaurs: Can You Dig It?
Paleontology and geology come together for an exciting dinosaur dig and fossil hunt. Take part in a simulated fossil excavation, uncovering the different bones of a dinosaur replica using the tools, labels, and specimen bags we provide. You'll then get to reassemble the bones to form a completed three-dimensional dinosaur skeleton to take home. You'll learn how to use our geological time and fossil charts. Make a plaster mold of faux fossils such as ammonite or Tyrannosaurus rex tooth, plus learn how to identify other faux fossils like a 20-million-year-old shark's teeth or dinosaur eggs. You'll also learn how to identify different rocks and minerals from our collection, including some from an active volcano.
Age 6 - 12
July 21 - July 24, Monday - Thursday, 8:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.
Advanced Robotics
Build an advanced-level robot to take home by assembling a gear box, and learning about how the different types of gears mesh and are driven by a motor. You'll connect the motor, battery and microphone to a circuit board, which will program your sound-activated robot. Working in small groups, you'll also get to use your imagination and skills to build different robotic creatures and vehicles that we'll test for speed, strength, and endurance. After making trial runs, you can modify your designs to increase your robot's level of speed and strength to meet the testing challenge. Your robotic creations will be tested in Sumo battles, tugs-of-war, and vehicle distance timings. Then we'll disassemble the robots and use the parts (tires, motors, gears, wires, and controllers) to build yet another robotic creation.
Ages 7 - 12
July 21 - July 24, Monday - Thursday, 1:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Creative Engineering Workshop
Design and build simple or complex models of a vehicle, a robot, or buildings using our instructions or your own imagination. Work with an advanced three-dimensional (3D) construction kit that is yours to take home. You will also get your own 3-volt geared motor to power up a movable Radar Surveyor.
Ages 7 - 12
August 4 - August 7, Monday - Thursday, 1:15 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.