Some of the hardest activities for me to do with my kids at home are science lessons because, even though I absolutely love teaching them about how things work, it seems like I never have all of the items simultaneously on-hand to perform the experiment that Pinterest promises will be “super easy and fun.”
So, when I found out about the Itsy Bitsy Science Club at the Schweitzer Brentwood Branch Library, I was excited to see what the kids might be able to learn and try, especially since it encouraged STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and math) learning.
When you enter the library, take a right and you’ll see the Children’s Section toward the back. Walk all the way through the Children’s Section to the room where the Itsy Bitsy Science Club is held. There were several tables set up around the room, each with a different activity (painting stars, constructing straw constellations, learning about the planets, musical instruments, and kinetic sand), and two big blankets on either side of the room with puzzles, toys and the coolest gear-building set. It wasn’t quite what I had expected (I guess I was thinking there would be experiments or a guided lesson or something), but there were definitely some new things that my kids hadn’t tried before, which was really fun. The website says to “dress for a mess” but the only thing that was messy was the painting station (which did end up getting all over the girls’ shirts but only because the wind blew their half-dried papers onto them when we left the library).
The girls went from activity to activity as the chairs emptied in each area. There were only a few parents with their kids there, so it wasn’t crowded at all. There was no particular flow to the hour, but there was one incredibly sweet librarian who walked around and showed the kids how to use the toys at each station and encouraged creative play. At the music station, they could mix up music notes on a large paper, then try to “play” their arrangement with the instruments labeled with each note. At the space station, they learned about the order of the planets by arranging them according to a colored pattern. And my oldest especially liked trying to make a spinning tower with all of the plastic gears.
The event is FREE, and is one hour long, which is plenty of time to explore and play with the toys and make the crafts. The Children’s Section of the library is cute and is open afterward if your kids still need time to play (besides books, there are a few toys, puppets and other imagination-boosting ideas).
The Itsy Bitsy Science Club meets once a month on Wednesdays from 10 am – 11 am (visit the website for exact dates: https://thelibrary.org/programs/program.cfm?id=442382635546&lc=b) and is geared toward kids ages 2-6. It’s a fun hour-long indoor idea to keep your kids moving and thinking and trying new things!
What You Need to Know:
- Held once a month on Wednesdays
- FREE
- For more information and exact dates: https://thelibrary.org/programs/program.cfm?id=442382635546&lc=b
- Ages 2-6
- Hours: 10 am – 11 am
- Address: 2214 Brentwood Boulevard, Springfield, Missouri