Educational Programs for Schools, Libraries, and Groups
The Museum of Innovation and Science (miSci) offers a variety of engaging STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) programs as field trip experiences, virtually, or in-person (off-site) at your location. Each program features a miSci science communicator performing demonstrations and guiding hands-on experiments designed to excite and inform learners. The complete lineup is as follows:

Engineering, Technology, and the Application of Science

Rosie Revere: Engineer (miSci, virtual, off-site)
Learn about the science of engineering through an engaging story and hands-on engineering project. Then build your own take-home flying machine and test and improve its performance.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: K–2

 

Nanotechnology (miSci, virtual, off-site)
The smallest things around us make a big difference! Through hands-on activities, students observe and learn how things at the nanoscale act in unexpected ways, and how these differences are harnessed by scientists and engineers to create fascinating technology.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: 1–5

 

Engineering Mission (miSci, virtual, off-site)
Following the engineering process, participants design, build, test, evaluate, and redesign a shock-absorbing system that protects marshmallow “astronauts” or a rover while they land on the Moon or Mars.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: 3–8

 

Erie Canal Ticket to Ride (miSci)
Discover the Erie Canal through a hands-on, inquiry-based learning experience that explores the science, technology, and history of innovation in Upstate New York. Students will understand the physics behind the workings of the Canal, including friction, buoyancy, and Pascal’s Law. Using the engineering process, participants build a lock model based on the Erie Canal’s lock system.
Program Length: 45 minutes
Best for Grades: 3–7

 

Life Science

It Came From NY (miSci, off-site)
In this workshop, designed to accompany miSci’s Ground to Gourmet exhibit on view through January 2024, students will learn about native and naturalized foods grown in New York State, including their unique attributes. Students will dissect and make scientific observations of apples and taste some unique NY foods. When booking, please identify if participants have any food allergies.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: K–5

 

Waiting for Wings (miSci, virtual, off-site)
What makes a butterfly an insect? Discover the amazing world of the butterfly, learn the basics of their anatomy, understand their lifecycle, and see their fascinating metamorphosis! Students will also use their artistic skills to create a model of the four stages of the life of a butterfly.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: Pre-K–3

 

Dino Discovery (miSci, virtual, off-site)
How are dinosaurs different from other animals? What happened to the dinosaurs? What did they eat? What is a fossil? Explore the prehistoric world as you learn how to identify dinosaurs while holding real fossils and creating your own Dino-fossil to take home.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: K–3
 

Optical Illusions (miSci, off-site)
Trick your eyes and brain with optical illusions and discover how artists have used techniques to trick us for hundreds of years. Learners will observe a real cow’s eye dissection and learn about how the parts of the eye work together to create our sense of sight.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: 3–8
For classes younger than Grade 3, a recorded cow eye is observed in place of a live dissection.

 

Crime Lab Science* (miSci, virtual, off-site)
Learn about forensic science and how evolving technology helps scientists and detectives discover the truth about mysterious criminal cases. “Detectives in training” participate in a mock investigation where they identify the main types of fingerprints, explore the science of chromatography, learn about DNA and how to extract it, and use evidence to identify the culprit.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: 3–8

 

Earth and Space Science

Finding an Eclipse* (miSci, virtual, off-site)
In this workshop, students will learn about the patterns of movement that the sun, moon and stars make and make a model to show how an eclipse works. With a near total solar eclipse coming up on April 8, 2024, this workshop will help learners understand what is happening in the sky above them and get ready for this special event.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: K–5

 

Spinning in Space (miSci, virtual, off-site)
Why is it light during the day and dark at night? Learn about Earth and its relationship to other bodies in the solar system. Students discover, through kinesthetic activities, the movement of the Earth, Moon, and Sun system and how this causes common phenomena such as day and night.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: Pre-K–5

 

Just a Phase* (miSci, off-site)
This program investigates Earth’s closest neighbor, the Moon. Students explore lunar phases by creating and observing a scale model of the Earth-Sun-Moon system, identify the phases of the moon, and discuss how and why they occur.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: 2–5

 

Surviving on the Moon 101* (miSci, off-site)
Participants assume the role of an astronaut at an outpost on the Moon and collaborate to solve challenges grounded in science about living and performing research on our closest celestial neighbor. Challenges are based on scientific concepts connected to lunar exploration. As the team conducts research, a moonquake damages life support systems and survival requires teamwork. Can you work together to quickly restore the systems needed to survive?
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: 2–8
For Visiting Groups of 40 or Fewer, or Off-Site Classes of 10 or Fewer

 

Let’s Talk Space (miSci, virtual, off-site)
Learn about the newest discoveries and most exciting science missions beyond our planet with an interactive lecture from miSci program designers. Topics range from the most recent footage of other planets to the design and launch of brand-new research missions, to the search for life beyond Earth.
Please note that Let’s Talk Space is a lecture program without a hands-on component designed for students looking to get an in-depth review of a current space topic.
Program length: 45–60 minutes
Best for grades: 9–12

 

Physical Science

Fun with Physics* (miSci)
Physics is everywhere, even when we play! Students observe and identify different forces by observing Bernoulli’s principle, falling objects, gyroscopes, and more. In the second half of the program, participants create a toy helicopter to illustrate the concepts they have investigated.
Program length: 35 – 45 minutes
Best for grades: 3–8

 

Dry Ice* (miSci, off-site)
Explore the states of matter with some super-cold chemical ice! Participants watch as objects freeze before their eyes, bubbles float on an invisible bed, and clouds of gas erupt from the lab table. Learners also observe the process of sublimation, where a solid becomes a gas without first becoming a liquid.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: 1–8

 

Liquid Nitrogen*(miSci, off-site)
Nitrogen is a gas that can become a liquid! Participants observe uncommon states of matter including liquid boiling at room temperature. Through fascinating demonstrations, learners discover how liquid nitrogen is made and used in science, and the curious effects that extreme cold has on a variety of materials.
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: 2–8

 

Chemistry

Science Solutions (miSci, virtual, off-site)
Did you know that the famous toy Silly Putty® was accidentally developed by General Electric engineer, James Wright? Bounce into the world of chemistry by mixing different ratios of ingredients to make the best bouncy ball!
Program length: 35–45 minutes
Best for grades: 2–5

 

Field trip experiences are $15 per student, $20 per adult, and $18 per senior and include a guided exhibition tour, a Planetarium show, a hands-on STEM program, pre- and post-activities for teachers, and a room for having lunch at the Museum. The minimum number of students required is 10. Your visit may be customized to meet your interests and needs. Click here to view our current Planetarium offerings and exhibitions.

If you would like your program to be presented virtually, classes or groups will be invited to join a private Zoom or Google session to connect with the science communicator at miSci. Two weeks prior to a scheduled virtual program, miSci will send a package containing the required supplies to your school or organization.

The fee for each virtual program is $175 per 25 students, which includes materials for hands-on experiments.

The fee for most off-site programs is $175 per 25 students, which includes materials for hands-on experiments. The fee for the Optical Illusions program is $195 per 25 students, and the fee for the Dry Ice or Liquid Nitrogen program is $215 per 25 students. For all off-site programs, the fee for additional students is $7 each. Mileage is charged for all off-site programs.

Financial aid may be available for those who qualify. Please inquire during booking for details.

*These programs can be adapted for students up to grade 12.

To request a program contact Cindy DeMarco, miSci’s Reservationist, at cindy.demarco@misci.org or by phone at (518) 382-7890, ext. 228.