What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/1070576
JANUARY 13-19, 2019 WHAT'S UP! 9 television screen and shows them the locations of their internal organs. Both were genuinely blown away by "Can My Hand Fool My Brain?" in which placing your hand on two sides of a metal coil — warm on one side, cold on the other — makes the center of the coil feel startlingly hot to the touch, even though it's not. Magic tricks that teach science lessons? What more could parents want? Of course, my kids were their usual frenetic selves in the mentally, visually and socially stimulating environment that the Amazeum offers on a busy day, packed to the rafters with kids who were out of school. But even though they were running from exhibit to exhibit, seemingly skimming over the educational aspects of each one, they've continued to talk about what they learned there for days afterward. They usually mull over the more bookish aspects of the exhibits later, when they have some time and quiet to think. It is something I've come to expect from our visits, and it is truly the magic of the Amazeum. After we exhausted the temporary exhibits, we moved on to our old favorites: Canopy Climber — with leaves that kids can climb clear up to the ceiling, safe within a protective net — and the Nickelodeon Play Lab — where they can make music with innovative instruments created with nothing more than PVC pipe, ball bearings and rubber bands or move small balls from place to place using pipes hooked up to an air system. Surprisingly, the bulk of our time was spent at The Market, the adorable pint-sized grocery store. I found an empty stool at the meat counter and took the opportunity to refresh after our whirlwind tour around the building. I expected the respite to be short — I assumed that the kids were outgrowing this exhibit — but 10 minutes later, my son, store vest on, was still methodically patrolling the shop area for abandoned baskets full of groceries he could return to the shelf. Meanwhile, my daughter, ever the social butterfly, had bounced behind the ice cream counter and was offering someone else's dad a banana split. Watching the busy industry of children helping each other — checking each other out at the registers, handing pork chops over the meat counter, making "sandwiches" for customers at the diner — it occurred to me, and not for the first time: If adults could pitch in and work together with complete strangers like kids do at the Amazeum, the world would look a lot rosier. FAQ 'Eat Well, Play Well' "What is in the food we eat? Are fruits and vegeta- bles important? Can everyday activities burn calories? Find the answers to these questions by exploring nutrition and fitness in 'Eat Well, Play Well,' an engaging and educational science exhibit. This hands-on exhibit appeals to children and their families and features text in English and Spanish." Ends Jan. 20 'Magnificent Me' "Find out how body systems function and how lifestyle choices support proper func- tioning of respiratory, digestive, skeletal, and muscular systems of the body in 'Magnificent Me.'" Through May 12 WHERE — Scott Family Amazeum, 1009 Museum Way, Bentonville COST — Free to members; $9 for nonmembers (free to kids younger than 2) INFO — 696-9280 NWA Democrat-Gazette / LARA JO HIGHTOWER "The Madness" in the Nickelodeon Room is always a favorite. Bonus: this room doesn't seem to get as crowded as some of the other exhibits. NWA Democrat-Gazette / LARA JO HIGHTOWER The music maker in the Nickelodeon room lets kids make beautiful music with unusual objects. NWA Democrat-Gazette / LARA JO HIGHTOWER If you stand in just the right spot at this exhibit, a special camera shows you where your organs are located. NWA Democrat-Gazette / LARA JO HIGHTOWER Lots of hands-on exhibits in "Eat Well, Play Well" and "Magnificent Me" make it an ideal learning environment — even for kids (like mine) who normally reject any attempts to encourage healthy eating.