Remove yourself from the fascinating astronomy and physics exhibits. Science Works Hands-on Museum In Ashland, you enter an artistic new space designed to take you on an imaginary journey to find knowledge.
At the end of the museum’s nearly block-long building is the entrance to Storyworld. Here, the adults, mostly children, and many teenagers move slowly around a room filled with tall glass cases. Each represents a step in a noble challenge. It’s a classic hero’s journey, venturing into the unknown, facing complexity, and adjusting course along the way. Then go home and share what you learned.
Miniature dolls remind you how to respond at each step. Which superpower would you take with you? How do you overcome the limitations of parents who try to block change?
It may seem daunting, but ScienceWorks, like other educational institutions, including schools in Oregon, has transitioned from promoting science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) curriculum to STEAM with an A in the arts. It has expanded.
Storytelling, visual art, and introspection play an important role here at ScienceWorks, where the Da Vinci Repair Garage is named after the Renaissance painter, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. I am.
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Research shows that STEAM exploratory activities teach innovation, critical thinking, and creative approaches to problem-solving in an increasingly complex world. Oregon Department of Education.
Superintendent Scott Beveridge Southern Oregon Educational Service Districtquality STEAM activities and career technical education Improving Graduation Rates (CTE) programs.
The Southern District of Oregon is part of a statewide network. STEAM hub It funds classroom activities, as well as after-school programs, summer camps, and robotics and other innovation competitions. ScienceWorks is a partner. Recently, the two organizations hummingbird robot Participated in Rogue Valley classrooms to enhance students’ computer coding and programming knowledge.
Experts say learning is rooted in exploration and discovery.
During Friday’s after-school program at Science Works, children explored a giant harmonograph that uses pendulums to create Lissajous curves and other geometric shapes. They spent time dropping marbles to spin black holes and staying at a NASA-inspired space center. They slowly made their way to the edge of the 26,000-square-foot building, stopping at an entrance hidden by a leaf-like clump.
Inside, they instinctively focused on ten tall cases, not noticing the sign announcing entry to the storyworld. Each case was filled with hundreds of figures and objects depicting scenes from “Superhero Boot Camp” and “Mythical Muse His Marketplace” to The Tempest. ~A sparkling treasure bazaar that looks like a forest~
Creator Cynthia Salvato, who is also a director at ScienceWorks, said the diorama was designed to be inspired by writing games “about the characters you play in your life.” “You can explore different aspects of life and discover that there is indeed a ‘wizard’ you, a ‘superhero’ you, and a ‘mystery detective’ who wants to learn.”
The theme of the hero’s journey, woven into literature, film and entertainment, is a fundamental premise of life and of anyone willing to go on a journey to achieve what they desire, Salvato said. Stated. “To have something new, we need to change, and we need to share what we learn,” she said.
The StoryWorld exhibit represents a year of empowering storytelling, starting with Time Travel Hotel in January. “This is a place to meet your past and future selves, to end the year, and to plan for the year ahead,” Salvato said. She conceived and assembled elaborate exhibits. Laura Knapp. Many of the dioramas are tree house books Located in downtown Ashland.
In February’s diorama, people look for power pets to accompany them on their journeys. “As we enter the Moon of Crossroads, we need a guide,” Salvato explained. In other dioramas, small doors represent projects nearing completion or planned for the future.
Exhibits that encourage decision-making can also be used as planning tools. “The stories we tell shape our lives,” Salvato said.
Ashland parent Sarah DeLong attended Storyworld on Friday afternoon, sitting at a table under a gold cloth canopy with her daughter Aurora DeLong, typing away on an old-fashioned typewriter. was.
of ashland middle school The sixth-grader said her math teacher, Brittany Hardy, helped her understand the math story and that math is not an isolated skill but something that is useful on a daily basis.
“But more than that, we need social education,” Aurora says, adding that creative expression allows them to have fun with their friends. She added that she “cannot use mathematics” to defuse disagreements.
sarah delongThe former costume department manager for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival said businesses of all kinds require creative and original minds. “Science is part of the everyday work of artisans and craftspeople,” she said. “They have to understand the chemistry of glue when making shoes and jewelry, they have to know the engineering and geometry of making intricate masks and balancing giant things on actors’ heads. No need.”
Everything is connected, she said, and solving life’s complex problems requires a multifaceted and nuanced approach that goes beyond simply memorizing facts and learning to make connections. Ta.
” scientific method It’s about asking questions and looking at the world with curiosity,” said Sarah DeLong. “Storytelling and art are a great fit.”
Skye Elder, a resident chef and parent, has been caring for her children, now ages 26, 13, 11 and 7, most of the time since the nonprofit center opened in 2001, where community volunteers created exhibits. is brought to Science Works.
Standing at the museum with his three young children on Friday, he said interactive exhibits that blend science with oral traditions and stories are an important natural step toward learning. “That makes sense,” he said. “For generations, children have been learning here.”
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— Janet Eastman | 503-294-4072
jeastman@oregonian.com | @janeteastman
