Wonderful Wonderlab

It was rainy day weather, so a trip to the Science Museum beckoned.

Ordinarily, we would have headed to the Space section then straight to the ‘Garden’ in the basement for endless water play, then a picnic lunch on the steps and home again. Normally give the Wonderlab a miss…. but…

The Wonderlab

I had previously asked about the Wonderlab on the top floor, however the staff told me it was more for primary school learning, so my 4 and 6 year olds were probably a bit young.

This had been nagging at me a while, so I picked up a leaflet in the entrance hall and saw that some shows were suitable from 6 years and up. So I bit the bullet and bought an annual family pass for £32 (a one-off trip for a family is £18, so even if you only use it twice, it’s paid for itself).

It really was a wonder! There wasn’t a single exhibit there that the kids didn’t love! Even Littlie (13 months) enjoyed most of it as there were so many hands on, tactile and colourful things to look at and play with.

There was so much to see and do: dry ice, crystal experiments, colour displays, magnetic liquid, mist, space models, sound waves, infrared, light and sound shows, magnets, geometric shapes and tessellations.

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There were also activities to demonstrate centrifugal force (spinning pole), pulleys (helicopter seats) and friction (slides), as well as a number of shows and demos put on throughout the day.

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As I studied maths and science at school and university, I’m always trying to find interesting ways to get the girls interested in STEM subjects and this has been such a positive experience for them! I was blown away by how interactive it was, and it’s really piqued their interest. We’ll definitely be coming back again and again.

Top tip: During term time, try to get there at 10am when the doors open as the school groups don’t tend to arrive until 11am at the earliest.

Basement fun

With the morning spent in the Wonderlab, we moved down to the basement to feed my now starving brood. Packed lunch on the picnic steps, and then straight into the ‘Garden’.

This play area is, again, very hands on and interactive. It consists of a water-play zone with channels, dams and boats, a soft giant lego area, a play tower with chutes, bean bags and wheelbarrows, and a sensory area.

We’ve spent many a fun hour here in the past, and today was no exception.

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So, what was going to be a morning outing on a rainy day, turned into one of our best days out this summer! I just love those days that turn up and surprise you 🙂

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