The Intersection of Art and Math: Putting the A & M in STEAM

January is about discovering why art and math make a great pair!

Career Expert: Susan Oliver Heard, GG, GJ, AJA

11am, Noon, 1pm

Join us for one of Susan Oliver Heard’s presentations during this month’s Homeschool Day! Her artistically guided and civic-minded odyssey creates a can’t-miss compelling story of a career built out of a love for both math and the arts.

Susan is the founder and director of Cinnabar Gallery and a Master Jeweler. She is joining us for Homeschool Day this month to artfully connect the dots between math and the humanities. Susan will share her journey from childhood in San Antonio, around the world, and back home again. She’ll tell us how math has been threaded throughout her life’s work in custom jewelry design, art consulting, gallery management, music performance, and civic service. 

From her beginnings in downtown San Antonio, Susan’s studies and career path then led her to Bali to study music, London to study art and drama, and Vienna to study art and piano performance, and to some stops in the States, too. She has BAs in Classics, History, and Political Theory, along with three certifications in jewelry design, fabrication, and graduate gemology from the Gemological Institute of America. Susan, an award-winning jewelry designer, managed art galleries and jewelry stores before returning home to San Antonio where she opened her own gallery, Cinnabar, in 2013. Susan also serves on the City of San Antonio’s zoning commission and the Public Art Committee for San Pedro Creek. 

Hands-on Activities- Stations run continuously from 11am-2pm

• Pi Skyline: Create a cityscape by graphing the numbers in Pi! This colorful project starts with the pythagorean theorem and ends with a beautiful art piece.

• Pythagorean Snail: Discover how mathematical relationships show up in nature when triangles turn into snail shells!

• Tessellation:  Create a colorful repeating pattern using just one shape!

• Mobius Strip: Math is beautifully one-sided when it comes to mobius strips! Make your own to take home.

Learning Labs:

$5 for non-members, $4.50 for members, Learning Labs are included for STEM Scholars

Due to the popularity of Learning Labs, reservations are strongly encouraged. Space is limited! Email fieldtrips@sciencemill.org to reserve your child's spot.

 K-2 Pattern Palooza, 10:30, lasts 45 minutes: Play with pattern blocks to learn how different shapes fit together to make patterns. Then use pattern blocks to make your own picture and create a tessellation.

3-5 Shapeshifter City, 11:30am, lasts one hour: Learn how architects use math, shapes, and patterns when designing and building. Try out your new skill with Magformers when you put shapes together to form 2D patterns. Snap your patterns together and watch them transform into a 3D figure!

6-8  Dive In!, 1pm, lasts one hour: Explore what it would be like to work for a bungee jumping company, and learn about the math involved in creating this type of thrill ride. Can you design a bungee that will give Ken & Barbie a thrilling but safe bungee jump experience?

Movie Moguls, 3rd-5th grade

Offered Tuesday, November 20 and Friday, December 28

9am-4pm

$60

Claymation, digital storytelling, interactive coloring and more! Campers will have an opportunity to make their own movie or put together a video portfolio of their work.

Robot Roundup, 3rd-5th Grade

Offered Monday, November 19 and Thursday, December 27

9am-4pm

$60

We’ll be programming mBots, taking care of MicroPets, and making our very own robots! Campers will get to develop a robot product out of recyclable materials, and then put together a sales pitch for their creation.

Register Now! Limited spaced.

The Science Mill welcomes Hill Country native and friend of the Mill, Major Keegan S. Dale, as our special guest during Up, Up and Away: The Physics of Flight!

Major Dale is an F-16 instructor in the 16th Weapons Squadron, U.S. Air Force Weapons School. The U.S. Air Force Weapons School trains tactical experts and leaders to control and exploit air, space and cyber on behalf of the joint force. Major Dale graduated from Fredericksburg High School in 2004 and entered the Air Force in May 2008 as a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy.

Join us at 11am or 1pm on Wednesday, December 26, to hear about Major Dale’s life as a F16 Flight Instructor. He’ll focus on the science of flight, specifically how lift relates to the G forces flying fighters sustain. Learn how pilots counteract those forces on their bodies.

Don’t miss this great opportunity! Major Dale’s talk (about 25 minutes) is free with admission, but space is very limited. Sign up on the form below to save your spot. Please arrive at the Science Mill Theater 10 minutes before the talk. Unclaimed spots will be made available on a first come first serve basis at 10:50am and 12:50pm.

RSVP to save your spot here!

Join us in December to turn all kinds of junk into all kinds of fun! We’ll focus on careers that allow you to make something out of nothing. Let your imagination run the show this month!

Career Expert: Information coming soon! Watch this space for details.

Hands-on Activities

Stations run continuously from 11am-2pm

Marble Maze

Design and create a one-of-a-kind marble run! You choose the twists and turns that will take your marble from start to finish.

Instruments

We’ll use everyday materials to create musical instruments! Do you have materials that you think could make a great musical sound or would be a good instrument starter? Bring them along and the Science Mill staff will help you build your sound machine. (We’ll have materials on hand, too!) Some ideas for materials that could become sound makers: straws, rubber bands, paper plates, yarn, jingle bells, beads, plastic cups, balloons, bobby pins, recyclables and MORE!

Invent a Creature

Use your imagination and our materials to invent and build a creature! Science Mill staff will help you make your creation move and produce sounds.  

Learning Labs

Pricing:

$5 for non-members

$4.50 for members

Learning Labs are included for STEM Scholars

Due to the popularity of Learning Labs, reservations are strongly encouraged. Space is limited! Email fieldtrips@sciencemill.org to reserve your child's spot.

K-2 Crazy Contraptions, 10:30, lasts 45 minutes: Use building materials to create a contraption that will move objects, like toy cars, marbles, and ping pong balls, from the top of a board to the bottom!   

3-5 Conductive Creatures, 11:30am, lasts one hour: Create a little buddy using conductive and insulative dough and LEDs. Complete a circuit and watch part of your new friend light up!

6-8  Makey-Makey, 1pm, lasts one hour: Design and create an interactive soundboard using a Makey Makey.  Then ramp up your creativity to turn your soundboard into a modern noise-making toy using different conductive materials!

The Science Mill and The Austin Museum Store Collective are excited to be part of the second annual Museum Store Sunday on Sunday, November 25, a one-day event offering special sales, discounts and giveaways.  Shoppers will receive 25% off purchases of $40 or more in the Science Mill’s Science Store, which offers the largest selection of science toys and games in the Hill Country.

Celebrate the intersection of art and science at the Science Mill’s annual benefit and experience the exclusive unveiling of the Science Mill’s newest exhibit, a 1,000-square-foot Aquaponics Greenhouse. Enjoy cocktails and heavy hors d’oeuvres while exploring the 1,000-square-foot greenhouse as well as the museum’s 50+ interactive exhibits  Guests will also have the opportunity to purchase nature-themed fine artwork from emerging and renowned artists. Ticket and sponsorship sales directly benefit the nonprofit’s mission to expand students’ understanding and appreciation of science in their everyday lives. 

To learn more, or to purchase tickets or sponsorships, click here

Technology Trends: Transporting Us to the Future

November’s Homeschool Day will focus on careers in technology! We’ll explore augmented reality, create 3D drawings, and have coding-focused Learning Labs.

Guest Speaker

Suzanne A. Pierce, PhD, Founder and Lead Scientist, Pixel Profundo

Suzanne A. Pierce, PhD, studies integrated watershed systems and designs technologies to help people interact with earth and environmental information. As a founder and lead scientist for the educational technology company, Pixel Profundo, Dr. Pierce and her partners are creating augmented and immersive reality applications based on the local species that make Central Texas unique. Her work has received awards at  local and international levels for innovation and engagement. Most recently, she launched Creek Quest AR, a new Science Augmented! card game.

About Pixel Profundo

Pixel Profundo is focused on the creation of technologies and products that educate and inform, such as interactive gaming, augmented reality, artificial intelligence applications, decision support systems, and 3D tangibles based on scientific themes critical to sustainable futures, conflict resolution and understanding how natural systems work.

Hands-on Activities- Stations run continuously from 11am-2pm

Color With Quiver

Bring coloring pages to life with an augmented reality app!

Take Your Drawings to a New Dimension

It’s like holding a 3D printer in your hand when you doodle with this amazing pen!

The Creek Quest by Science Augmented!™

 Creek Quest gives you a link to an Augmented Reality game where you can test your knowledge and see the critters up close and personal.

Learning Labs ($5 for non-members, $4.50 for members, Learning Labs are included for STEM Scholars)

Due to the popularity of Learning Labs, reservations are strongly encouraged. Space is limited! Email fieldtrips@sciencemill.org to reserve your child's spot.

K-2 Botley Coding, 10:30am, lasts 45 minutes

Learn basic principles of coding through a series of challenges with your Botley Robot!

3-5 mBots, 11:30am, lasts 60 minutes

Use logical and critical thinking to create a program that directs your mBot through an obstacle course!   

6-8 MicroPet, 1pm, lasts 60 minutes

Create your own pet! Code your MicroBit to light up with different shapes and faces, and to play music in response to different actions.

We promise it won't be that spooky, but we can guarantee plenty of kooky chemistry fun to kick off Halloween week!

Join us for pyrotechnic gourds and frightening foam pumpkins. We’ll have ghosts and their ectoplasm, too! Come to the Science Mill for Halloween-themed demonstrations and hands-on activities, and stay for a special, one day only showing of Flying Monsters 3D.

We want to see your Halloween costumes! We’re giving away FREE Halloween excavation kits to all kids wearing a costume. (Parents, no costume-related giveaways for you, but it would make our day if you dressed up, too!)

Chemistry Day activities run from 11am-2pm, but stay and play all day! The Science Mill is open from 10am-4pm on Saturdays, and you can explore over 50 hands-on exhibits and activities.

The Science Mill will be closed all day Saturday, October 20 for a private event. Interested in hosting your holiday party, family reunion, wedding, or other special event here at the Science Mill? The exclusive enjoyment of our interactive, technology-based exhibits can be part of your memorable experience. More info…

Our daytime hours make it hard to see the night sky and space when you visit the Science Mill, but that doesn’t mean you can’t see some super cool space-related items!

On Saturday, October 13 we are celebrating Astronomy Day by hosting a collection of artifacts from the Space Station Museum in Novato, California.

Come see a full Russian space suit, pieces of space stations, and more! During your day of exploration at the Science Mill, be sure to stop by our theater for a special, one day only showing of Space Junk 3D, too.

The Astronomy Day exhibit is included with admission. All artifacts will be on display in the lobby.

Calling all Daisies, Brownies, Juniors, and Cadettes! Join us for this special day, brought to you by Girl Scouts of Central Texas and the Science Mill! We’ll have some STEM-tastic workshops, and you can earn badges alongside your troop or family. Meet Girl Scouts from all over Central and South Texas, too!

All Girl Scouts, from Daisies through Cadettes, are invited to join us for self-guided workshops where they will earn the following badges:

Daisies: Model Car Design Badge
Brownies: Brownie Bug Badge
Juniors: Junior Animal Habitats Badge
Cadettes: Art in Nature Badge

The self-guided badge workshops, along with the Science Mill’s 50+ exhibits and activities (plus a 3D movie!), are included with museum admission and open to all Girl Scouts. The self-guided workshops are available on Saturday, September 29 during regular business hours. Wear your Girl Scout uniform on the 29th and pay only $7 for admission!

But wait… there’s more! For an additional fee, participating Girl Scouts can earn the Programming Robots badge at special workshops! These workshops are limited to 30 Girl Scouts per class, and are first come, first served. You will be able to sign up for a workshop upon arrival.

Workshop fees and times:

Daisies (K-1) - Coding with Color!
Spend some time with our gang of Ozobots, and earn your Programming Robots badge.
10:30-11:15 a.m., $4

Brownies (2-3) - Coding with Color!
Spend some time with our gang of Ozobots, and earn your Programming Robots badge.
11:30 a.m. - 12:15 p.m., $4

Juniors (4-5) - Oh My Ozobots!
Take programming to the next level, and earn your Programming Robots badge.
12:45-1:30 p.m., $4

Cadettes (6-8) - We’re Mad for mBots!
See what you can create with mBots, and earn your Programming Robots badge.
2-3:30 p.m., $6.

Enjoy free access to exhibits and activities at Austin-area museums!

Often referred to as “Radiolab for kids,” Tumble is a pioneering science podcast that explores stories of science discovery. Co-hosts Lindsay Patterson and Marshall Escamilla will be presenting “The Surprising Story of Sea Stars’ Sticky Feet.” The story was inspired by a question from a listener: “How do sea stars grip onto rocks?” The answer leads to a discovery that turned 200 years of accepted science on its head. With help from a leading sea star scientist, interactive games, and original music, Lindsay and Marshall tell a story of how simple questions and experiments can challenge what we think we know to be true. There will also be a special opportunity to record a question for the podcast, after the show. 

Seating is limited. We recommend signing up in advance here to reserve your seat.

Join us when Dr. Kold demonstrates the amazing transformative powers of liquid nitrogen. Witness freezing science experiments, and discover how to make ice cream in under a minute. If combining fun and learning makes you hungry, you’re in luck - everyone in the audience will get a scoop of ice cream!

Dr. Kold’s presentations are at 11am and 1pm, lasts approximately 45 minutes, and is open to all ages. This event is free with admission, but seating in the theater is limited. We recommend arriving early!

Note: Due to the Dr. Kold event, we’re adjusting our 3D movie schedule for the day. On Saturday, August 4, Meerkats 3D is showing at noon, 2pm, 2:30pm, 3pm and 4pm.

Spend the 4th of July in Johnson City!

Start your day with the Johnson City Chamber of Commerce Fourth of July Parade around the Blanco County Courthouse at 10am and end it with a fireworks show at the Blanco County Fairgrounds at 9:15pm.

Whatever will you do in between the parade and fireworks? We have a thought…

Visit the Science Mill on July 4th for some STEM-filled summertime fun!

• We have new - and back-by-popular-demand - activities on the floor every day this summer. Make our robot marionette dance, test your physics mettle and knock a few pigs off the mountain, or channel your inner Mario in our live action Mario game!

• See our African Spurred Tortoises eat lunch at 2:15pm, and hear a talk from our staff biologist. 

• Experience all of our permanent exhibits, too, and catch our new 3D movie, Meerkats! 

There’s so much to do at the Science Mill this summer, and we can’t wait to spend the 4th with you!

Johnson City’s own Echo Gallery presents a brain-bending workshop! John Sone and Linda Haddock lead a drawing exercise that engages both your verbal system and your visual system. Explore how it feels to switch from your dominant hand to your less dominant, and what that mental shift means for both your art and your state of mind.

This workshop is free with admission, and open to ages 9 and up (children under 9 can participate with a parent). 30 minute workshops will be held at noon, 1pm and 2pm. Spaces are limited. Email us at programs@sciencemill.org to reserve your spot. See more art events in June.

A Smith Gallery and the Science Mill bring you a perfect summer project: cyanotype making! Use sun and water to turn a dyed piece of fabric into art. At 11:30am we’ll all work together to create a 9’ x 9’ cyanotype masterpiece. Leave your mark by using part of your body or a prop. You can also create a personal 6” x 6” cyanotype picture to take home. Both cyanotype activities are free with admission. The individual cloths will be available while supplies last, limit 1 per person. See more art events in June.

Starting June 13, 2018 We will be open

Wednesday - Saturday 10:00am - 5:00pm

and Sunday 12:00pm - 5:00pm

Use the power of the sun to harness your creativity! Using magnifying glasses, we'll burn designs into wood and we'll also explore the properties of prisms and shadows. Free with admission. See more art events in June.

Join world famous artist, McKay Otto, at this one-of-a-kind art class at the Science Mill! Bring your old toys, recyclables, unwanted household items and your creativity. Get ready to create your own masterpiece! Ages 8+ are invited to attend. Two classes offered at 10am-12pm and 1pm-3pm. Class is free with admission, but space is limited. Reserve your spot now by emailing programs@sciencemill.org. See more art events in June.

Join us for a day dedicated to women in STEM. Fun with Chemistry featuring the UT Women in Natural Sciences group will be on site with hands-on activities and shows. These hair-raising, mind-melting experiments will blow you away! All activities and shows are free with museum admission. Sound like an amazing day? It gets even better! Girl Scouts of Central Texas and the Science Mill are teaming up to bring you a special day at the museum! More information here