We brought along a friend on our excursion. Little Man's friend A-Man. The boys had a great time at the event.
We walked along the nature trail to the Life Science building. We explored the different classrooms and their contents. The first one was filled with animals and plant specimens from around our state. Live reptiles and insects were housed in displays for the children to look at. Tanks with fish, turtles and even an alligator delighted the children.
A beehive was in one area for the children to look into and see the bees busy tending to their various hive jobs. We eagerly searched for the queen. We found her! She had been marked with a dab of green paint. A clear tube allowed us to see the bees go outdoors to collect more food. Pictures were displayed along several tables of the bees and close ups of the hive. This was all very interesting because we have a neighbor that keeps bees. Now the children know a little more about the hive and process.
Stereo microscopes were out for the children to observe dragonfly larvae. Everyone loves looking under the microscope!
We explored the touch table. Two turtle shells were present. Little Man asked about the differences and we noted how the box turtle shell had two hinged areas to pull himself tight into the shell; where as the aquatic turtle shell did not have hinges. We felt the snake skin and wool from sheep. We looked at the fossilized sea shells and the regular shells. The table had many interesting things.
Next, came the marine life room. Various aquariums held tropical fish. Each display was interactive. The boys darted from one to the other. That's okay. Next time we come it won't be new and more time will be spent learning more. There were also touch tanks! We were able to touch a sting ray, horseshoe crab, hermit crabs, and sea urchins.
We finally made it into a reptile room. There were many different reptiles on display and some were out for the children to touch and hold. Egee and Little Man were excited to touch the reptiles. A-Man not so much.
We walked through the rainforest room. It was very humid and warm. The room was filled with different plant specimens and nicely done.
Our last destination inside the biology building was the critter room. The children delighted in the baby mice and chinchilla on display. They all held the baby mouse and didn't want to put it down.
We finally made our way outside to the living history farm. We walked in the garden and around the pond. We looked into the old school house and played old fashion games of graces, ring toss, hoops, and darts.
We visited the barn and the farm animals. The children helped grind corn and pump water.
We watched wood carving and leather crafting demonstrations. The children learned about different tools used for each.
Lastly, we made our way to the cabin. Inside were more games played long ago.
The children had a wonderful time and we only saw a portion of Roper Mountain Second Saturday. Good thing we have season passes to go back and explore next month!
