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Explorit Science Center Weekly Column
This page contains the material submitted to the local paper - The Davis Enterprise - for Explorit Science Center's news column published in
that paper on Fridays.
Date: March 3, 2006 Author: Mackenzie Yamamura EXPLORIT HOSTS ART WEEK Registrations begin Monday Explorit's West Wing classroom will transform into an art studio for a week during this year's spring break, April 10-15. Participants will create visual art with chemicals, develop interesting and colorful patterns with bubbles, and, with the help of maggots (yes, maggots), paint unforgettable pictures. These, and more, are part of the weeklong offering of science and art workshops that are planned "Art Week at Explorit." Workshops are designed for adults and children to experience science together with the help of an Explorit educator. All workshops are hands-on and minds-on and involve participants in the doing of science. Explorit will be offering two types of workshops this spring, similar to years past. Both types of workshops require adult participation. Workshops requiring advance reservation are $6 per child (or $3 for members). Adults participate for free. Workshops are limited to 20 child participants, so call ahead to reserve your spot. Reservations begin Monday, March 6. These workshops will include extra activities as well as special take-home projects. In addition, admission to the museum exhibition is free following the workshop. Drop-in workshops are less structured and activities will be self-guided. Participants can drop in any time during the program and stay for as long as they want. An Explorit educator will be on hand to assist and answer questions. Drop-in workshops are free for members or free with paid admission to the museum exhibition (children and adults). Except for "Maggot Art!" each topic is offered as a reservation required workshop from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. and a drop-in workshop from 2:15 to 4:30 p.m. "Maggot Art!" is drop-in only from 1 to 4 p.m. Monday, April 10 - Nature's Palette Use materials supplied by nature to create collages, make a mosaic of seeds, and produce prints with leaves and flowers while learning about the structures and functions of plants. Tuesday, April 11 - Beautiful Bubbles Bubbles are bits of air or gas trapped inside a liquid ball. The surface is a fragile layer, which refracts light into a rainbow of colors. Try sculpting, painting, and more with these delicate spheres. Wednesday, April 12 - Colorful Chemistry Surface tension, chromatography, and hydrophobic properties may not sound like artistic terms, but they're all important to understanding and creating colorful chemical concoctions like marbled paper and more. Thursday, April 13 - Tinkering Toys Experiment with kaleidoscopes to view the world in new and interesting ways. Explore motion and balance by spinning tops. Surprise your kids and express your own inner child by playing with and making some artistic toys to take home. Friday, April 14 - Illustrious Illusions Now you see it. Now you don't. Learn about how your mind can play tricks on you by creating art that seems to move when spun, appears when flipped, or changes when viewed through colored filters. Saturday, April 15 - Maggot Art Forensic entomologist Rebecca Bullard leads this program where you can paint with maggots. Using different colors and live maggots, visitors will create fascinating artwork that's safe for everyone including the maggots. And, learn about maggots and their role in forensic science. A complete outline of workshops and times is available at www.explorit.org. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Explorit Science Center is at 3141 Fifth St. in East Davis. The current exhibition "Catch a Wave: The Science of Light and Sound" runs through March 12. Public hours are Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Tuesday through Friday from 2 to 4:30 p.m. For more information, visit www.explorit.org or call Explorit at (530) 756-0191. |