Imaginology

I took my kids to the Imaginology event at the Orange County Fairgrounds this weekend and it blew me away. What an amazing event! What could have been your run-of-the-mill youth expo, has been totally redesigned to become one of the most creative, interactive, educational, and worth-while events I've ever attended.

The S.T.E.A.M.-themed activities and vendors were so well put together and they had so much to offer to get kids thinking and creating. S.T.E.A.M. stands for science, technology, engineering, arts, and math, so on-site we were able to explore a science fair, see 4-H exhibits and livestock, dig for dinosaur bones, build structures with toothpicks and marshmallows, build mobiles, create with clay, and build a foil boat and see how many pennies we could put in it before it sank. Oh, and my son made a cardboard rocket and got to launch it himself. Loved that. These were only a few things we got to do in our short time there. I say short because we went on Sunday at 1:00, and some vendors and activities were packing up ahead of the 5:00 closing time, but we were still able to participate in some really fun activities.

 

 

 

I love the Centennial Farm area at the Fairgrounds, and was excited to see that a lot of the event was situated here. We got to see and touch baby chicks and plant radish seeds, and they had brand new piglets and lambs that the kids thought were super cute. You could even catch a hayride.

 

 

After attending this event I'm hyped to try to incorporate more of this style of learning into my children's education at home. The School Library Journal has a great article on STEAM and a list of resources to refer to for inspiration and information. Don't forget to check out the STEAM Pinterest board. And keep an eye out for the STEAM Carnival that will be coming to the Port of Los Angeles in October.