Going to the Perot Museum of Nature and Science is always an adventure. Where else can you mingle with dinosaur fossils, wild weather, bird displays and sparkling rocks in a single afternoon? When a trip to the museum isn’t feasible, the Perot wants kids to keep learning. That’s why the staff is sharing videos, activities and other resources for children to access from home.
Browse the resources below to start learning about critters – and what they leave behind — along with space science, plants, engineering, fossils and much more.
▸ Leaf Chromatography: Have you ever wondered about how leaves get their colors? Explore the exciting process of photosynthesis through this hands-on experiment. All the materials you need are in your backyard or a nearby park!
▸ Butterfly Hide and Seek: Get acquainted with the blue morpho and monarch butterflies and discover how they use camouflage and mimicry to protect themselves. The Perot invites you to to design your own butterfly and share your creation with them!
▸ Scat Chat: Head to the woods and check out trail camera footage to find out who left the poop! Analyze scat from an outdoor wooded area to understand how different animals interact with their environment.
▸ Build a Hovercraft: Have you ever ridden on a hovercraft? It is like gliding on a cushion of air! In this exercise, you will make your own hovercraft using a CD and a balloon. See how the amount of air in the balloon affects how long the hovercraft hovers. Click to download the video and DIY activity PDF.
▸ Build a Frog Robot: Get crafty and learn about nature and engineering through this fun, hands-on project! Gather some materials such as cardboard, craft sticks, hot glue, and a few simple pieces of electronics to get started.
▸ Making it to Mars: Grab your spacesuit and get ready for travel to the red planet! Find out how rockets escape Earth’s orbit, learn what to search for on a typical mission to Mars, and build your own rover using a common kitchen ingredient. Download the video and the DIY activity PDF.