This week, Road Trip: Close to Home visits the Westchester
Children’s Museum — where a kid can be a kid, hone in on their
creativity and walk away learning something new!
“That’s why they love coming here, because everything
is – ‘Yes you can do that. Yes you can go there.’ And they will spend hours and
hours here,” says Jeannette Mirabile, of the Westchester Children’s Museum.
The museum puts the fun into teaching, from science, technology,
engineering, art and math, kids don’t even realize they’re learning while
playing!
Like the museum’s wind tunnel design challenge. “They will
remember making an object in the wind tube that actually stays in the tube.
That’s the challenge that we set, not that it will fly out or fall down but
that it will hover,” says Mirabile.
It’s the power of aerodynamics! “So I put a plate and put
the cone on, I put some tape and I put the ribbons on…it’s supposed to fly
there,” says one future scientist.
You can also let your creativity flow through your hands by
exposing kids to the concepts of engineering, architecture, balance and
symmetry. “Because we’re learning the basics of building with these Keva
planks,” explains Mirabile.
And in the room over, you’ll take your skills to new heights by
building your own roller coaster! Explore the waves of motion, force and speed
by connecting the paths and loops of your own ride.
And that’s not all, a large “maker space” is one of the most
creative areas in the museum. It changes its theme every few
months, anything from inventions to sustainability.
One of the best parts of the museum’s location is that it sits
right on the beach! So close out your visit by checking out nature's exhibit!