Archive: Around Town

Guests to the Sciencenter can get a turtle’s-eye view of life in the 'slow lane' when the featured interactive exhibition, 'Turtle Travels,' opens on Saturday, January 18.

The exhibition opens Saturday, January 18, 10 am – 5 pm, and Sunday, January 19, 12 pm – 5 pm. Throughout the weekend there will be special hands-on activities including making a 3D turtle shell and creating an origami turtle. At 10:30 am on Saturday, toddlers and preschoolers are invited to a special 'Turtle Travels Yoga' where they’ll hear stories and explore how turtles travel through fun, creative movement.

Guests will explore firsthand what it is like to be a turtle moving through local habitats as they  crawl through a turtle tunnel, try a turtle shell on for size, and guide turtles to safety.

“This hands-on exhibition takes an upbeat, family-friendly approach to convey a vital environmental message,” says Tim Scott, associate director for program. “It has practical ideas to help families understand what they can do to help protect turtles and their environment from threats such as habitat fragmentation and the international pet trade.”

Guests will flip out the feet of a 'Swiss Army Turtle' to make an animal adapted to life in the desert, in a pond or at sea. Families can watch footage shot by a CritterCam attached to a loggerhead sea turtle, track turtles and get nose-to-beak with a live turtle. There is also a lounge for enjoying a selection of books with turtle themes.

'Turtle Travels' was created by the Environmental Exhibit Collaborative, funded by Jane’s Trust and the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

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