Program Calendar

In the Science Museum

How You Make Things
Explore the How People Make Things exhibit and learn the stories of how different objects are made. Have you ever made something? Sit down at the table in the middle of the room and write the story of how you made something and illustrate it. If you are not writing yet, your grownup can help you write the story and then you can draw a picture of what your story is about.

The Neighborhood, 10:30 am-1:30 pm and 2-4 pm
Spark!Lab is a dynamic learning space where children, families, and groups create, innovate, collaborate, problem-solve, and invent. This week will feature a special activity called The Neighborhood! There are lots of different buildings in the neighborhood. They all have a different look and purpose. What buildings would you want to see in your neighborhood? What buildings does a neighborhood need? Add your building to the Spark!Lab Neighborhood and help create a sprawling metropolis!

What Problem Will You Solve?
Inventions are created to solve problems! Drop by the How People Make Things exhibit and think of a new invention that can help you or your family. Using the story paper on the table in the middle of the room, describe your invention and the problem it solves, and then draw it.

Form Over Function
A practical way to create everyday objects is to put function over form. This means that it’s important for everyday objects to be more useful than beautiful. As an artist you might want something to be both useful and beautiful. Pick one of the objects created in a Mister Rogers Factory Tour featured in How People Make Things and describe ways that you could make it more interesting to look at too! Write a few sentences and then draw your new and improved object.

Tell Woodland Tale
Use custom oversized story blocks to create a tale for the forest creatures you can find in Habitat and Mammal Hall.

In the GWV Smith Art Museum

Four Seasons Trees, 12-4 pm
Asian arts often depict trees in different seasons, all in one scene, to tell a story. Visit the Art Discovery Center to create a folded diorama of one tree repeated four times, once for each season. Decorate the tree tops and embellish the trunks to tell the story of how one tree can change dramatically during a year.

Create a Shield
Take a close look at the objects in the Japanese Arms and Armor Gallery. How do they reflect the individual who used them? What symbols are used to create unique pieces? What differences can you see in the weaponry used by men and women? When facing battle, what would you want your shield to say about you? Use your colored pencils to decorate your own shield to take home.

In the D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts

Innovations in Art
Visit The Outwin and its companion exhibit This is Us: Regional Portraiture Today to see some of the innovative ways portraiture can be created! Then stop by the Fuller Gallery and use simple supplies like pencils, paper, and rubbing plates. Can you create an innovative portrait?

This is Me
Visit The Outwin and This is Us to see all the portraits created locally and across the US. When you look at the paintings, carefully observe how the artists used colors and shapes to tell the story of the person they depicted. When you are done, visit the table in the Fuller Gallery. You’ll find story paper and mirrors on the table. Create a self-portrait that tells a story about you.

In the Wood Museum of Springfield History

What Problem Does It Solve?
Visit the Made in the Valley Gallery and discover inventions that were developed right here in Greater Springfield. Check out our list of problems that these inventions can solve and see if you can match the solution to the invention that solves it.