McCurtain GEAR UP students visit the Science Museum Oklahoma

Twenty-four McCurtain seventh- and eighth-grade GEAR UP students recently visited the Science Museum Oklahoma in Oklahoma City. The two-story museum consists of a wide array of hands-on activities that allow students to have fun in an engaging way. The museum, as well as the name, has evolved since its creation in 1958. The mission of Science Museum Oklahoma, formerly known as the Omniplex Science Museum, is to enrich people’s lives by revealing the wonder and relevance of science.

McCurtain students experienced the Science Live show which gave them an opportunity to experience live explosions. The Science Live Host explained the safety rules and the science behind explosions before performing a variety of experiments.

GEAR UP students learned about various exhibits throughout the museum including Life Imagined: The Art and Science of Automata, a tour of mechanical creations from the 1850s to modern day. Light Minded, wherMe students can, freeze time with the Shadow Stopper and see your body’s heat patterns in living color with an infrared camera, and CurioCity, a 20,000-square-foot city with eight whimsical neighborhoods, and many more. Students were exposed to science through a number of interactive activities that encourage learning through play, the heart of the museum with hundreds of activities to teach, entertain and astound guests.

“Educational tours are an important part of Eastern’s GEAR UP program,” said GEAR UP Education Coordinator Bethany Hicks. “The live science demonstrations and experiences everywhere you turn is an incredible experience for the students.”

The field trip was sponsored by Eastern Oklahoma State College GEAR UP. Participating schools take two field trips each academic year—one to tour a college or university and one that is cultural/educational in nature. In 2017, Eastern received a $17 million federal GEAR UP grant and serves over 3,000 students in 39 area schools.

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