MY SCIENCE GEEKS AT THE FRANKLIN INSTITUTE.

Only two weeks into the school year and already the elementary kids had their fall field trip. I swear going to the Franklin institute never gets old. There's always new exhibits, and attractions to see, and the kids love it here! I have to say that this is the perfect place to bring kids of all ages! Noah is at an age where he is discovering all things about science, and slowly but surely it's beginning to make more sense to him. It also helps having an older sister who loves it, and when we bring books home from the library that are associated with anything science Noah becomes more engaged. 

Every year my crew gets smaller and smaller. With Sierra out west, and Lexie busy with school we came here with only Noah and Chelsea. Lexie had a tennis match, but since the kids only have one field trip in the fall to the museum we chose the museum, and Lexie didn't mind. The last time she came she had fun, and learned all about the brain. She has a ton of tennis matches to play, and we'll make sure to go to the rest of her games. By the way...she's been winning all of her matches so far!! 

As I was saying Noah and Chelsea both had a blast. We tend to go to the museum during the school year only because they seem to have exhibits that are specifically for kids. It's almost as if their brain somewhat shuts down during the summer due to all the beach trips we took, because when we entered into the kids science room they were all over the place relearning all the elements of light, water, air, and earth! It is amazing to see the light in my kids eyes when they are exploring the wonders of outer space! 

^^^ Noah has become obsessed with spacesuits. ^^^

^^^ There is this kiosk where Noah and Chelsea love playing with. It's basically a "space trip" where it helps you get outfitted in the perfect spacesuit for their destination when going into outer space. It's pretty cool. ^^^ 

^^^ We couldn't leave the museum without checking out the locomotive! Aside from the space center, Noah will always love trains! ^^^

^^^ oh...this was a fun hands-on project for the kids to do. There was a station with legos (which is the kids other favorite thing) where they had to guess what the other person is building by describing how they built their legos. And guess what?? They both nailed it. The men on the other side of the partition guessed exactly what both Noah and Chelsea built! It was awesome. ^^^

^^^ If you're wondering what they're looking at there was a light show on the ceiling with stars, meteors, and planets. It was pretty cool, and they couldn't take their eyes off of it. I just had to pull away to take a picture. I swear Jon was like a little kid in a candy store. He too loves coming here with the kids, and deep down is truly a die hard  science geek. ^^^

^^^ If you have a snapchat which is r_jorgensen I snapped the heck out of our evening here. They absolutely love it here. Three hours isn't enough at this place. Next time we'll have to come earlier in the day and spend longer hours here. There were a couple of shows to see in the planetarium, and franklin theatre that we didn't get to watch. It's amazing here, and I highly recommend every child, teen, and adult coming here to appreciate the earth, and how truly big space is getting! 

All About The Brain at The Franklin Institute.

Yesterday we took our yearly school trip to the Franklin Institute. This is by far my favorite part of the school year simply because we get to educate our minds as a family, and have fun while walking the streets of Philly. After we arrived we checked ourselves in with our group, and had three hours to spare. The very first thing we wanted to see was the temple, and to see the progress they have made especially on the exterior, and it is looking absolutely beautiful!    

^^^ Philly temple...looking good! ^^^

^^^ Checking out the traffic from above. ^^^

Science and technology have been the two loves in our homes for quite some time now, and I'm not saying that because of social networking, or because of the ability we have to play games on an iPad, iPhones, iMac, or what have you,  but what we can benefit, and truly learn what the "human eye" can see, and how our brain really works when it comes to everything we take in is amazing. 

As usual these two ran straight to the 'giant heart' to trace the path of blood as they walk through. They have an amazing time in this section of the institute, and it is exciting to see them have an interest in how the body, and heart are connected. Seeing the look of excitement on their faces as they go around exploring all about the human heart brings a smile to my face because these kids are always filled with curiosity when it comes to anything that looks complicated. 

As many times as we come here there is always a new exhibit to see, and learn from, and new shows in the Planetarium. Since there are no cameras allowed inside the planetarium I wasn't able to take any photos, and didn't have the desire to because the show was too awesome to put my head down. The show we saw was called "To Space and Back", and this show tells an incredible story of human ingenuity, and engineering. It was amazing to see how the technology that transports us through space is paving the way of the devices and apps we use everyday. It was absolutely amazing! Kind of makes me wonder what technology is going to bring us in the next five years! 

They also have an exhibit called the "The Brain", and it tells you all about how our brain works. There was even a 'fake brain' where you put your finger through to touch, and feel. It wasn't gross, and it felt like Styrofoam to me. 

^^^ This display was pretty cool for the kids. They climbed a two-story tall network of firing neurons." ^^^

The look of fascination on their faces as they learn more about science and technology, and the brain, and human body makes me happy to see that they never get bored when we come here. It brings me so much hope knowing that they could all become a future scientist, engineer, and/or doctor. 

So far I know that Lexie is very interested in the medical field and has been since she was 11. Who knows...but on this night she was fascinated by everything that this institute has to offer, and every time we come here her passion for learning about science expands. We could have spent another hour (or more) in here. 

Grateful to Benjamin Franklin for the spirit he brings for anyone who enters this building in giving them the desire, and passion to learn more about science, and technology. I couldn't stress enough how educational it is for every parent and child to come here.

**You can read more posts on our trips to the institute here, and another post of the Philly temple here.

the franklin institute.

It seems that the older the girls get the less gifts they get...and that's okay. They've never had a major birthday party, and if they did we've only invited close friends, and family. But this year it was extremely low key, and the girls didn't mind...neither did I.

The fact that we had a free bus ride, and admission to the Franklin Institute was a good enough gift for them. They absolutely love that place, and it surpasses all the times we've gone to the Please Touch Museum. The fact that it is educational and has all things scientific makes Lexie one happy camper. She loves Science, and anything that has to do with the Respiratory system. If you haven't been to the Franklin Institute, it's at the top of my list of things to do while in the Philadelphia area. 

I didn't take as many photos because I myself am amazed with this institute. I love it, and could come here periodically. I like to enjoy myself with my family, and pause to look at the reaction on my children's faces. I can tell when something amazes them, or catches their interest. 

 ^^ Noah's favorite part of the institute was the space command center and exploring all the gadgets inside this steam locomotive. ^^

^^ check out this helicopter outside the building...Noah sure loves it! ^^

This institute has various events and a new exhibit of something educational and right now they have an exhibit called One Day in Pompeii. This exhibit shows artifacts that are on a loan from a museum in Italy. It is amazing the exhibits they come up with! We also saw a 3D film about the animal kingdom in Kenya, and that was Noah's favorite. It showed all the animals in Africa, and how I learned that a hippo is very territorial, and how crocodiles sneakingly await to stalk their prey which are zebras when they cross the water. I'm glad they didn't show anything graphic such as the 20 foot crocodile catching one! Noah loved watching the animals, but was not too fond of the glasses. I don't think I'll take him to a 3D movie anytime soon because he couldn't keep his glasses on! I did manage to capture a photo of him wearing them right before the show began.

We have been here many times before, and it never gets old. Coming here a few times a year (especially when it's free) is a plus. It's such a fun thing for the kiddos, and I am extremely grateful that we have museums like this close to home. 

'Twas a good evening with our family of five. (miss you Sierra!)