Talk:Science-Technology Museum/Science Factory





Comment by
Paige Petersen EDT630 I have been to several museums that focused on science and math and allowed parents and children to interact to increase their previous knowledge or to spark an interest that might encourage more learning on a particular topic or allows for the development of interest and skills in a hands-on way. It was interesting to learn from reviewing this article the high cost of independents to come in and set up these exhibits. I hardly see how these exhibits can pay for themselves and now I understand the high admission costs of such museums.

If these types of exhibits are out of range for building a child's interest in math/science. You might look at ways that you can being to have children recognize how they actually use math in the real world. For example, in one such museum there was a mock grocery store set up so that children could push the buggy down the isles and go through the experience of purchasing the products and even working the cash register. This can be done by a parent simply taking the time to create a field trip to the grocery store with their child. In many places today there are even self-check out lanes provided so that the child could actually make the purchases as in the museum. This takes little time and effort to do, is affordable, and with the price you might spend on admission, you could buy a cake mix, compare prices of brands, check yourself out a register, and even go home and bake the cake. That would include reading directions, measurements, temperatures, and time, which the parent could point out are all math concepts. A further discussion of how a cake rises and why would introduce science topics for further understanding.

Still, I do think that these hands-on museum sites are beneficial. Exhibits often open the child's eye into a world of exploration that had not been previously imagined. Children need to see the advantages and uses of math in the real world if they are expected to be motivated to learn the sometimes boring pen and paper computations that math will require. If not the child will be left frustrated saying, "When will I ever need to know this stuff? Why waste my time."(ironically, time itself is a math concept)