Today was a good mom day. I chaperoned several second-grade classes on a field trip to the Idaho Discovery Center in Boise. It’s been over a year since my family’s last visit, so I was anxious to see the new exhibits. 

The trip began with a herd of excited second graders wiggling on the benches, while a staff member explained the instructions (no running, no yelling, don’t touch the dinosaur sculpture and don’t take apart the Lego exhibit). She did an outstanding job of keeping the kids engaged and attentive while she explained each of the four exhibit rooms. 

Each section could have held the kids attention for the entire two hours, so the adults had to encourage the students to move from room to room. 

Some of my favorite interactive displays in the first room were; a paper airplane making station with launching machine, a building block station with air blower to check the integrity of the structure, the giant Light-Brite replica made from colored water bottles, and (of course) the large bubble maker. 

The second and third rooms focused on the sun, the Earth, the universe, and a giant t-rex named Tinker. The kids loved laying on the bed of nails, playing with robots, and reading about the dinosaur.

My favorite room was the Lego brick room. The kids were able to create wall art, build a dam (with flowing water), build a car and race it down a track, and create a stop motion movie. I’m not ashamed to say, I spent a long time building my car. The second graders were engrossed in play, creativity and engineering the whole time. 

With Idaho winter in full swing, I love taking my kids indoors to explore local museums and discovery centers. The Discovery Center is a bit pricey, $14 for adults, $13 for seniors and $12 for kids, but for EBT card holders, it’s only $3 (up to four family members). 

If you don’t live near Boise, consider visiting some of these other museums located all around Idaho.