TERRE HAUTE —
The Terre Haute Children¹s Museum today will debut Imagination Station, a fun new exhibit area designed to inspire open-ended, creative play.
The centerpiece of the area is a new exhibit called Imagination Playground. The components of the exhibit itself are simple big blue foam blocks of all shapes and sizes but when they are combined with the imagination and creativity of children, these components can be transformed into a variety of amazing things. They can create animals, robots, and houses, or they can even invent games to play.
Imagination Playground is a breakthrough playspace concept conceived and designed by renowned architect David Rockwell. It was developed to encourage child-directed, unstructured play, the kind of free play that experts say is critical to a child¹s healthy development.
With a focus on "loose parts," an assortment of open-ended, movable objects, Imagination Playground stimulates kids¹ creativity and inspires them to invent their own ways to play. Children can shape their environment, move props around, work together to create imaginative structures, and make up their own stories, rules and games.
Educators and child development experts have long recognized that block play builds serious skills hand-eye coordination and fine motor development, spatial awareness, and foundational math and science thinking. Imagination Playground blocks also invite collaboration. The big foam pieces encourage kids and families to work together to construct elaborate structures, creating an active, social play experience.
"We are so excited to introduce Imagination Playground to our guests," said Lynn Hughes, executive director of the Museum. "This is a unique exhibit because it allows our guests to, literally, make their own open-ended fun. There¹s no right or wrong way to play with the pieces. We can¹t wait to see what our guests will create!"
Hughes said the new Imagination Playground exhibit was funded by a gift from an anonymous donor.
In addition to Imagination Playground, the new exhibit area will also feature ZOOB and K¹NEX building tables. ZOOB is unique because the pieces move after kids put them together. The pieces snap, click, and pop together to form joints that rotate, limbs that extend, axles that spin, and lots more. K'NEX is the next generation of construction sets. With wheels, pulleys, gears, bricks, rods and connectors, K¹NEX inspires creativity, builds self-confidence and encourages interaction among children and parents. With ZOOB and K¹NEX, the possibilities are endless.
The Terre Haute Children¹s Museum is open Tuesday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. Admission is $7 for children age 2 and over and adults. Children under the age of 2 and members of the Terre Haute Children¹s Museum are admitted for free.
For more information about the Museum, visit www.thchildrensmuseum.com or call 812-235-5548.
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Children's Museum debuts Imagination Station today
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