Next week’s Camp Au Pair theme is Science (STEM). This includes science, technology, engineering, and math.
Crafts, recipes, activities, and games related to all things science, technology, engineering, and math can be found here on the Camp Au Pair – Science (STEM) pinboard.
Field Trips can be a great way for kids to learn and have new experiences. Get permission from your host parents before any outings. Here are a few places to go, that fit this theme:
- Airport Observation Area off Cedar Ave. in Richfield
- Aquarium – Either Sea Life at Mall of America or Discovery Bay at the MN Zoo
- Factory Tour – Check out the Mill City Museum in Minneapolis, or the Ben and Jerry’s Factory Tour in St. Louis Park
- Farms – Gibbs Farm in St. Paul. Kelley Farm in Elk River, Brooklyn Park Historic Farm are all open for tours
- Mississippi River Gateway Regional Park in Brooklyn Park has an observatory over the lock and dam and a lovely nature walk
- MN Science Museum in St. Paul, Bell Museum on the U of M campus, The Works in Bloomington, and the Bakken Museum in Minneapolis are all great STEM-themed places to take the kids
- Nature Centers such as the MN Arboretum in Chaska and the Minnesota River Wildlife Rescue Center in Bloomington
- Planetarium
Virtual Field Trips
Videos – On YouTube, you can find many great videos of science experiments to do with kids.
The Magic School Bus is a cartoon series with episodes on lots of great science topics. You can find some episodes on YouTube and the full series on Paramount Plus.
Bill Nye the Science Guy is science TV series for kids. There is an episode guide on his website with clips and explanations on a wide variety of science topics.
Movies – The Lego Movie, Big Hero 6, Wall-E, Hidden Figures, Robots, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Flubber, Honey I Shrunk the Kids, and Meet the Robinsons all fit the STEM theme.
Webcams – You can do a Google search for science websites with webcams. Here is a collection of 22 science webcams from around the world.
Books – Stop by your local library and look for books on science, technology, engineering, and math. You can also find many read aloud book videos on YouTube. Here are a few to get you started.
Remember… Science is learning about how things work through observation and experimentation. Every day is full of opportunities to encourage children’s natural curiosity about the world!
Image: sweetpaulmag.com
