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While we're brigning you Museum at Home during these unprecedented times, our teachers at The Children's Museum Preschool have been busy creating ways to work with their students while everyone stays home. Our teachers send home assignments for our Preschool families to do at home. Here are two of the asssignments that were recently sent home. Check out what some of our preschool students came up with!
Maybe this will spark your own Museum at Home creativity.
Create your own Rube Goldberg machine
You can learn more about the museum's Rube Goldberg machine here.
Instructions to Ms. Spears's Blue Team:
1. For this activity, read this short history of Rube Goldberg with your child.
We love to create reaction contraptions on the Blue team!
One man who also loved reaction contraptions was Rube Goldberg. Mr. Goldberg lived a long, long time ago. He loved to draw as a child! He went ot school to be an engineer, but when he left, he decided to become a cartoon artist. He loved to draw movement and objects in motion. Often, he would use objects that he found around his home or workspace to draw a reaction contraption. Reaction contraptions are not the easiest way to accomplish a task! However, he believed that most people prefer to do things the hard way instead of using a simple and direct path. What about you? Do you like to create reaction contraptions or do it the easy way?
2. Show them the video above or Google search "Rube Goldberg machines" and ask, "What do you see?" "What do you wonder?"
3. Next, collect your materials! Here are some ideas: cups, dominoes, blocks, spoons, bowls, etc.
4. Draw your design. Rube Goldberg always drew his reaction contraptions!
5. Test your design and build your reaction contraption!
Feel free to share a picture or video with me. Have fun!
The Results:
One of Ms. Spears's students created her own reaction contraption and her father recorded it. Check out her really cool reaction contraption!
Be an architect
Instructions to Ms. Handel's team:
Today let’s be architects! I would like for you to design and build your favorite spot to explore in Indianapolis. Is it The Children’s Museum? We hope so! It could be somewhere else. Your local park? Maybe Circle Center downtown? Together think of a spot and then grab a piece of paper and pencil.
1. Create your work plan! Architects work as team. Together—with your child—sketch out your plan. The more detailed the design the better! When you are illustrating, think about using a variety of shapes and lines to represent different details.
2. Start gathering materials you will need for building. You can certainly use blocks, but I encourage you to get creative. You can use a variety of materials like boxes, cans, doll house pieces, etc. While you are constructing, refer back to your work plan.
3. After you've finished building, take a step back. Look at your work plan. Does your work plan and creation look similar? Did you include all the details in your picture?
*To enhance this activity, you can add labels or titles to your creation once you are finished building. Grab post-it notes and write out what each part of your creation is. Have fun being architects today and be sure to send me pictures! I cannot wait to see your creations!
The Results:
One of Ms. Handel's agreed that The Children's Museum is her favorite place to explore! She drew out her plan and then she followed her work plan. She even included Seymour the Brachiosaur! We think that's an extraordinary detail!
Now it's YOUR turn!
Can you create your own reaction contraption? How about building your favorite spot to explore in Indianapolis? Grab some paper and create your plan. Let your creativity run wild!
Don't forget to share your creations with us by using #TCMatHome on social media! We can't wait to see what you make!
