Holiday Fun!!!!

With schools out of session, people off from work, and offices becoming ghost towns, communities slow down during the holidays.  That is when things come to life here at the Science Museum of Long Island with our holiday programs.  

While the kids are out of school, we run 6 programs.  Three of these programs have already run:  Diggin’ in to the past where we explored prehistoric life, Amazing Earth, where the focus was on geology, and Nascar, where we discussed science and engineering of cars.   

The days were action packed and could not have gone any better.  We built volcanoes, explored our paleontology lab, used chocolate morsels to simulate the rock cycle, and even built model cars that we raced at the end of the day.  There is always time to register for these programs.  They run from 10 – 3 and will give our child an experience that is not only educational, but fun too. DON'T MISS OUT!!!

Constructing A Cave

Mr. Owen & Ms. Stephanie

The painting of the Cave Room is finally underway! In an exciting undertaking the “Cave Room” or Geology Room is being restored to its former glory. For many years this room was designed to look like a cave to capture the spirit of Geology and awaken buried desire to learn about the things of this Earth. But for the past couple of years the Geology room has been a boring, hospital white, room. It wasn’t until recently that we realized how truly amazing the room used to be. Which shows you to never take anything for granite!

Progress so far

This week has marked the beginning of a project to restore the room to its more cave-like state. The walls are being painted slate gray with pockets of brown to accommodate some paintings of burrowing animals. Stalactites will hang down from the ceiling surrounded by (fake) hanging bats. This room is truly going to Rock.

And if you didn’t catch all of the Earth Science puns then here is a Geology joke just for you.

Watson: “Holmes, what kind of Rock is this?”

Holmes: “Sedimentary, my dear Watson!!

-Owen

Halloween Fun!!!

After a year hiatus the Science Museum of Long Island decided to bring back the SMLI Halloween Family Fun Event on Friday, November 1^st. 

The original weather forecast had the staff a bit worried but the evening turned out to be just perfect.  There was something for children, as well as adults, of all ages.  Several of the stations were favorites from Halloweens from the past but this year we wanted to add some new surprises.  At the end of the self-guided spooky walk in the woods guests were treated to a warm campfire, a haunting tale and marshmallow roasting.  After guests got their face painted, a giant cutout pumpkin was a great spot for a photo op.  An expanded refreshment room, thanks to the many organizations and people who donated, made sure no one went home “dying” of hunger.   As an added twist this year as well, costumed guests had to solve the mystery of which animal was hiding in the visitor center. 

All of the princesses, pirates and minions seemed to have a wonderful time.  Since the Halloween Family Fun Event was a huge success, the staff here at the Science Museum looks forward to bringing this haunted happening back again next year. 

Thanks to everyone who participated in this event and helped to make it our best Halloween event yet. We hope to see many of you at our holiday workshops, throughout the year.

If you would like to attend any of our holiday workshops please give us a call at (516)-627-9400 ext. 10 or visit our website at SMLI.org and submit your very own request form.

- Jennifer

Weird Science!

Hello Fellow Scientists!

Things are starting to get busy around here at the museum. It helps that this is also my favorite time of the year, Halloween! Words cannot express how excited I am for our Halloween Event on November 1^st.

Earlier last week SMLI was lucky enough to receive an amazing donation of taxidermy birds from the Salerno Family. For those of you who might not know what taxidermy is, it’s the art of preparing, stuffing and mounting the skins of animals. Taxidermy is loved for its beauty and educational value.  I know it might sound a bit strange, and even creepy to some people, but I think of it as a wonderful combination of art and science.

All the donated specimens are from

New York, and there are even a few rare, maybe even endangered species! The SMLI is super excited about this new collection and we are eager to have them on display in the near future.

Have a safe and fun Halloween everyone.  Don’t forget to register for our SMLI Halloween Family Fun Party on November 1^st.  Hope to see you there!!

For more information regarding our Halloween Party or to register, Please visit us at SMLI.org or give us a call at (516) 627-9400 ext. 10

-Caitlin

Off to a Great Start!!!

Hey there!

We have had a fantastic start to the month of October here at SMLI! 

During the first week of October, both of our home school groups met.  We have groups with ages ranging from kindergarten through high school attending these programs on Wednesdays and Fridays. On Wednesday, I showed my class of third- and fourth-graders the reptiles we have at SMLI.  We talked about what is special about the turtles, snakes, and lizards, and what makes each of them different from mammals and each other.  On Friday, Caitlin and I discussed survival skills with the fourth- and fifth-graders.  They learned about the important “Rules of Three,” and then went out into the woods to build their own survival shelters!

This week, we had two fifth-grade classes take a boat trip with some of our teachers, to learn about Manhasset Bay, the Long Island Sound, and some of the amazing marine animals that live there.  The students got to handle creatures such as sea stars, spider crabs, and during one class our boat’s Captain caught a fluke! 

The museum is starting to look really spooky these days, all of the SMLI teachers have started decorating for our Annual SMLI Halloween Party!  We have lots of fun, spook-tacular events planned for the evening.  All who attend will get to do some crafts, make some slime, see and feel some of our creepiest animals, and go on a walk through our haunted woods!

The event will be on Friday, November 1^st from 6:00 – 8:00pm. Registration has already started, and tickets are $15 per child, $5 per adult.

Follow this link for more information.

Also we are in need of volunteers to help make this year's party the best one yet. If you would like to donate your time please give us a call at (516) 627-9400 ext. 14

Have a wonderful weekend, see you soon!

- Stephanie

Leeds Pond Preserve

       Summer time is almost here and for us at the Science Museum, the transition into summer brings with it our busiest time of the year. Over the next few weeks we will be working hard to prepare the best summer experience any child could have on Long Island. As we bust out the basketball hoop and dust off our beakers, we can't help but take notice of the beautiful scenery that is Leeds Pond Preserve. Leeds Pond is a 35 acre preserve located in Plandome, directly between Port Washington and Manhasset, which over looks the Manhasset Bay.
       The preserve is home to several different species of trees and plants as well as rabbits and an immense variety of birds. Take a walk on the trails and you will pass an old farm house ruin, which gives the preserve a sense of history. Travel a bit further and you will be able to walk along a stream that runs directly to Leeds Pond. The trail along the Pond has a bench where many visitors sit and gaze upon the beautiful pond and all the ducks floating on top. Leeds Pond Preserve is an excellent home for the Science Museum of Long Island as well as the perfect place for your child to visit and join one of our science camp weeks. So what are you waiting for? Register today!

Happy Earth Day!!!

Written by: Mr. Matt (an educator at SMLI and one of the coordinators of the first SMLI Earth Day)

           

We know the official date was last month, but every day is Earth Day at the Science Museum! This year we celebrated with PW Green and local volunteers, planting over 250 native tree species on the Eastern side of our preserve. After the devastation Hurricane Sandy brought to our forest, the valley along our stream was in desperate need of care and ecological intervention, and our planting fit the bill.

As of the end of May we are pleased to announce the success of our (and your) work, with the majority of our trees showing new growth and generally looking healthy, beautiful, and in my personal opinion, happy.

Our teacher Mr. Matt standing next to one of the newly planted trees

 Did you help us with the planting? Interested in volunteering or helping out further? Let us know in the comments, visit smli.org or give us a call at 516-627-9400 ext. 14

Summer Camp 2013

It is time for another summer full of excitement at SMLI Summer Camp, the best camp on Long Island. If your child isn't registered for our camp, than he/she is missing out on a great summer experience. At the SMLI Summer Camp your child will learn advanced science topics through hands-on activities from our excellent staff of Senior Scientists. What could be a better way to learn how to survive in the wilderness, than to actually build your own shelter or to learn about dinosaurs than by excavating bones yourself?

At SMLI we pride ourselves in nurturing the young minds of the future through science and all our programs are aimed at accomplishing this goal. Unlike other camps our small class sizes makes it easier for your child to make long lasting friendships, while you can rest assure your child will be getting the individual attention he/she needs.

This year we have changed a few things, which we hope you will love. Camp will now run from 9:30 to 3:00 to ease your rush at pick up time. We have also made Fun Fridays even better, with a new surprise each week your child is sure to love.

On behalf of our excellent staff at SMLI, we can't wait to see you this summer at camp and for those who have not registered we hope you will join us for a summer of science fun!!!


For more information about SMLI Summer Camp please feel free to contact  Rosemarie or Register at (516) 627-9400 ext. 10 or visit our website at www.smli.org

Welcome to our New SMLI Blog

The Science Museum of Long Island is growing and advancing. To keep up with the change in times, we must emerge ourselves into the world of social media. We are proud to say that as of this moment SMLI has its very own official Facebook page, Twitter page and now our very own blog. This benefits us as well as our members, to keep you informed of all the exciting programs and event we offer at the museum and to allow us to connect with you and hear your comments and concerns. 

I believed the most appropriate title for this blog would be SMLI Adventures. We have embarked on an adventure to bring the latest information to you our members, as well as parents and teachers through out New York. All we ask is that you take advantage of these new resources, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and join us on our SMLI Adventure.