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Cover Story
New, improved explorations
[Photos: Oscar Williams]
As you enter the new Great Explorations, you pass a display of ordinary objects that make surprising sounds when touched. |
By SHARON KENNEDY WYNNE
© St. Petersburg Times
published March 27, 2003
Great Explorations The Hands On Museum welcomes junior scientists - and their parents - to its new home at Sunken Gardens.
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ST. PETERSBURG -- Shana Taylor is learning how a plane flies, but she doesn't know it. The 6-year-old's dark bobbed hair shoots upward as she giggles and snatches bright plastic balls floating in midair because of air pressure shooting from pipes at an exhibit in the new home of Great Explorations The Hands On Museum.
The museum has moved from temporary digs at the Pier to Sunken Gardens and has been transformed in a $3.5-million overhaul. The public can get a free peek at the place Sunday, but a preview earlier this month showed there'll be more holler for your young scholar at the new facility.
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Great Explorations exhibits are hands-on fun
As Great Explorations, the Hands On Museum prepares to reopen on March 30, the St. PetersburgTimes sent Xpress Team reporters Lindsey Brooks and Jacob Ludin in to check out some of the new exhibits. |
Shana was among a group of kids from St. Pete Prep who tested a few exhibits for the museum. Their first stop was the Bernoulli station, in which plastic balls show how air pressure lifts objects while atmospheric pressure keeps them from flying across the room.
The kids' take: Poking the balls gently while they hover makes them dance; toss them toward the pipe and air pressure will "catch" them. And it's hard to keep your hands on the suckers because the air pressure keeps changing.
Their chaperones' take: The tray should be angled so the balls roll back toward the kids instead of getting stuck against the wall. Plus, make sure you have only as many kids at the station as there are balls.
Long-time visitors to Great Explorations will recognize the stringless harp, the only exhibit to move from the museum’s previous location.
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Next, they took turns with the Tennis Ball Launcher, which is as eye-popping as it sounds.
Caitlin Hobbs-Esposito, 6, flexed her small arms and pulled on a thick black rope, lifting a bowling ball in a tube (sneaking in a little science about pulleys).
"Here it goes," she declared.
She planted her Skechers sneakers and leaned back with all her weight before dropping the bowling ball. That sent air pressure through another tube (again, sneaky science), shooting a tennis ball 35 feet or more in the air before it landed in a giant basket.
"That was awesome," roared Billy Brightman, 7, after he sent the lime-green tennis ball rocketing to the museum's roof.
With 24,000 square feet to play in, Great Explorations is giving bay area parents a new place to take the kids where they can run around. And unlike past incarnations that were so heavy on the science lessons that preschoolers were easily bored, the remake has something for every child, from toddler to preteen.
Some highlights:
The Great Beginnings activity zone for the 6-and-under set has lots of busy boxes to touch and make noise with, stuff to climb on and a tot-size sailing ship with a spyglass, captain's wheel and a crank that powers up a fan to fill the ship's sail.
A lie detector that museum officials say really works. That might be a frequent stop for parents of older kids.
A race track at which the children (and more than likely, quite a few dads) build cars and then put them on the track. The car's speed depends on how well built and aerodynamic it is.
Wheeled sailboats can be manipulated before a bank of fans, teaching kids about tacking and wind resistance by adjusting the sails.
Make your own movie by using a digital video recorder to take a series of snapshots, then adding sound effects.
A soundscape area, where visitors can use their bodies to create music by walking in front of light beams. As the beams are broken, it triggers a digital symphony.
Also of note: lots of seating all around the museum, including a reading area.
"We found in our research that parents are very tired and could use a place where they can sit and watch their kids play if they choose, or jump in and join them," said Wendy Sikora, marketing director for Great Explorations. "And parents are clearly looking for a gathering place. We wanted to create a family room for the city."
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PREVIEW: Great Explorations The Hands On Museum holds a free grand opening Sunday until 4 p.m., after a noon ribbon-cutting. Visitors are asked to limit time to 30 minutes if the museum is crowded. The museum is at 1925 Fourth St. N, St. Petersburg, next to Sunken Gardens. Free parking with a shuttle also available at the Coliseum, 535 Fourth Ave. N. Regular hours, beginning April 1: 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday; noon to 4:30 p.m. Sunday. Adults $8, children younger than 2 free, 3-11 years and seniors, $7. Memberships with unlimited admission for 12 months are $35 for individuals, $50 for a family and $75 for a joint membership with Sunken Gardens.
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