STEM ON THE ROAD Whether you are driving to grandma’s house down the road or across the state, every road trip can become a learning experience. Instead of plugging bored kids into the DVD player, try these tips from the Tulsa STEM Alliance. Before pumping gas to explore Lake Murray State Park just south of Ardmore, ask your child to predict how many gallons of gasoline it will take to fill up the tank. Lake Murray is open year round, so visit the trails in the winter and again in the summer to see how the natural world looks different. Take kayaks out to explore how the water acts in cold versus warm weather. Instead of driving, squeeze in an engineering study by taking the Heartland Flyer Amtrak train to Ardmore, located just minutes north of Lake Murray. Bring along a book about the history of trains. Pay attention to which direction you’re traveling when you are driving. If you’re headed to Weatherford to visit the Stafford Air & Space Museum , ask your kids how they can tell if you’re going north, south, east or west. Pass around a compass to your passengers to demonstrate. Bio-index your trip by counting how many animals and birds you see while driving to Woolaroc in Bartlesville. Woolaroc was the ranch of oil baron Frank E. Phillips, and the museum and wildlife area is full of historic artifacts that helped shape the west. As you travel, take note of areas where you see the most of each animal and ponder together why. No matter where your road trip takes you, entertain your passengers with a box of marbles. Ask your kids to take note of which direction the marbles roll as you speed up, slow down, stop or turn.
AMUSEMENT STEM Watching or riding a roller coaster at Frontier City fires up the imagination. Open from April to October with special holiday events for Halloween and Christmas, the park is full of STEM fun. Talk about how roller coasters travel faster on a downhill slope and research how the rollercoaster cars stay on the track. Demonstrate centripetal force by having your child swing a bucket of water in a circle to observe that water does not splash out even when directly overhead. Then take a ride on Frontier City’s Tina’s Tea Cup Twirl to feel the force in action. Even walking from ride to ride can be educational. Using your smartphone, track your steps around the park to engage in math exercises to determine how far you walked, how many steps equal a mile, convert miles to kilometers or calculate miles per hour.
BACKYARD STEM If your spring or fall break is a staycation, explore the amazing science in your own backyard. Slip in some engineering by having your children build stick forts, create a dam, build a bird’s nest or even dig a hole that doesn’t collapse in. Learn about biology through planting a garden, collecting insects, inspecting and pulling weeds or counting birds in the backyard. Create a nature mandala by collecting leaves, flowers, sticks and pebbles. Place your nature items in a pile and arrange them in pictures and patterns. See if you can create a fish or a tree using the items collected.
Try building a stone maze out of rocks in the yard. In the summer months, talk about why some items float in a pool while others sink. While searching for bugs, talk about camouflage and watch how insects adapt their colors and shapes to their environment.
PHOTOS BY STACY NOAKES.
Whatever your vacation entails, the opportunity to add fun learning experiences is endless. Your children’s passion for exploration can be the perfect gateway into STEM family fun.
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