Imagination Station Thanksgiving Hours

CLOSED: Thursday, November 28
OPEN: Friday, November 29

Theater Open Today: 10:15 AM - 4:15 PM

Take Science Home with You!

Can't get enough of Imagination Station?  We've got you covered!  Science At Home is a library of fun and exciting experiments you can do from the comfort of your own home.  Simple ingredients and step-by-step instructions make learning fun and easy for every budding scientist.  Embrace your curiosity and discover the chemistry behind lava lamps, harness your creativity with chromatography or get hands-on and messy with slime and Oobleck!  The possibilities are endless!

What are you waiting for? Start exploring NOW!

Click the experiment titles for instructions and information.

Blow your own Bubbles

Concoct a bubble solution so you blow your own bubbles!

Flower Dissection

Are all flowers alike? Find out by dissecting, or taking apart, a flower piece by piece. Then observe the parts of the flower and learn how each part is involved in helping a plant continue to grow.

Coloring Carnations

Using biology, coloring carnations amazingly takes white flowers and transforms them into rainbow colored blossoms.

Watch the video! 

The Magnus Effect

Ever wonder why when a pitcher throws a curve ball, the ball moves the way it does? It's called the Magnus Effect! 

Watch the video! 

Balloon Skewers

This material science activity allows you and your scientist to learn how strands of molecules called polymers make it possible to stick a skewer through a balloon without bursting it.

Watch the video!

Lava Lamps

Since being invented in 1963, lava lamps make a unique decorative piece in any room, but making your own lava lamp can be a fun hands-on chemistry experiment for any scientist!

Watch the video!

Paper Plate Dinos

Make science connections with your child as they act as an archaeologist when designing their own paper plate dinosaur!

Watch the video.

Get the guide.

Chromatography Butterflies

Did you know that most inks are not made of one but many colors? In this experiment, we blend art with science to make a beautiful butterfly!

Watch the video.

Alka-Seltzer Rockets

Explore chemical reactions and see what happens when mix these effervescing tablets with water and put it under pressure.  Hint: it pops!

Watch the video.

Naked Egg

Have you ever seen an egg without its shell? Using household items, this chemistry experiment allows you to completely dissolve an egg's shell while keeping the inside of the egg completely intact.

Watch the video.

Egg Brushing

Learn the importance of dental care and keeping your smile bright and white with egg brushing!

Watch the video.

STEM on the Fridge - Water

Spend each day this week exploring a new activity! This week's theme is water! Your scientist will see what sinks and what floats, build bridges, learn about colors and so much more!

Cabbage Chemistry

Enjoy the sweet smell of science with this activity! Make your own red cabbage indicator and test the acidity of certain liquids!

Microwave Soap

Ivory soap... why is it the soap that floats? Discover the science behind why this soap floats by putting the whole bar of soap in the microwave.

Weather Wheels

Weather wheels can help your little scientist understand how weather affects their lives. From bundling up in a hat and scarf to applying sunscreen and needing sunglasses, weather wheels make understanding weather easy!

Water Cycle Bags

Explore the four stages of the water cycle by watching evaporation, condensation, precipitation and collection up close!

Watch the video.

STEM on the Fridge - Math

Spend each day this week exploring a new activity! This week's theme is math! Your scientist will learn what's more, how to measure and so much more!

2D and 3D Shapes

Exploring shapes is a great way to get anyone's mind turning! This activity explores the difference between 2D and 3D shapes, and only requires supplies that can be easily found around the house!

Watch the video.

Pick your shape and get started.

Cipher Wheels

Keep your message a secret and learn how to encryption can make that happen! Spy kids can create their own secret messages with their own cipher wheel.

Watch the video.

Download your own Cipher Wheel.

Hoop Gliders

Glide, drift, swoop and soar with hoop gliders! Similar to the dynamics of a paper airplane, hoop gliders are a fun way to learn about things that fly, such as insects, birds and airplanes. How far will your hoop glider fly?

Thaumatropes

Trick the eye and spin into the world of optical illusions with a thaumatrope! A thaumatrope is an optical illusion activity that blends two still images together to create one!

Tri-Zonal Space Warper

It won't hypnotize you, but the tri-zonal space warper will make your eyes do strange things!

Invisible Glass

This physics activity explains how glass objects are visible due to the light that reflects on them, but when that light is diminished, the object becomes invisible.

Sun Prints

When sunlight interacts with our bodies, it warms us! When it interacts with construction paper, it changes the color and leaves a silhouette (like a shadow)! Try this activity and observe the sun's energy while experiencing nature and making art!

Watch the video.

Birdwatching Field Guide

Use this guide to learn about the birds and animals you can discover in your neighborhood or park!

Oobleck

Oobleck is a mixture of cornstarch and water that sometimes behaves like a liquid and sometimes behaves like a solid. It all depends on how you treat it!

Slime

Slime is an ooey gooey substance we all love to concoct, but behind this creation is a science explanation! Learn how polymers make slime so much fun!

Paper Tower Challenge

Don't just build...create! Explore the engineering design process as you see who can build the biggest tower out of paper and tape!

Watch the video.

Candy Towers

Who doesn't like candy? How about building with it! Candy like gumdrops or marshmallows is ideal for building and engineering structures and sculptures of all kinds.

Watch the video.

Sink or Float

Explore density with Sink or Float! Whether an item floats or sinks depends on the density of the item. Try collecting items from around the house and predict if the item will float or sink before submerging it in water!

Watch the video.

Aluminum Boats

Have you ever wondered how a ship made of steel can float? In this stay at home science activity, you will make a little boat to explore how their size affects how much weight it carries and how this relates to the density of water.

Watch the video.

Gizmo Copters

Gizmo Copters are a fun way to explore the science of gravity and you’ll love watching Gizmo spin around in the air just like a helicopter!

Watch the video.

Download the template.

Balancing Gizmo

Explore the science of gravity with our friend Gizmo! Balancing Gizmo explores the center of gravity and how it differs between objects. Once you've successfully balanced Gizmo, try finding the center of gravity of other objects around the house!

Watch the video.

Get your own Gizmo and try it out!

Catapults

Create your own catapult using items around the house and launch marshmallows and other items. With each marshmallow sent flying a combination of potential energy, kinetic energy and inertia work together to launch the marshmallow.

Watch the video.

Tinkering Towers

How tall can you stack items before they all fall down? That's for you to find out! Learn about balance and stability as you pile unusual items on each other in new ways and see how far you can go.

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