Help Bring the Imagination Playground to the East Kentucky Science Center

Scholastic, in partnership with the Imagination Playground, is giving away 5 sets on May 9, 2014, so this is where we need your help! Please click the provided link below, fill in your information and nominate the East Kentucky Science Center and Planetarium to be one of the organizations that wins one of these 5 sets. This would be a huge help to getting our exhibit up and running!

Here is the link to nominate the East Kentucky Science Center to become a host partner: http://bit.ly/schblocks1.

Fill out the information form, then in the comments section, put I nominate the East Kentucky Science Center and Planetarium to become a host partner! Thank you!

The East Kentucky Science Center and Planetarium has been working on a new exhibit that would enhance learning and creativity, called the B.I.G. (Building Ingenuity in Girls) Block Party! It will have multiple aspects at its completion, however, the primary component of this exhibit is the Imagination Playground.

The Imagination Playground is a set of indoor/outdoor portable, large blocks made of lightweight, durable, nontoxic foam that will create an environment where kids can build ingenuity, social skills, confidence, cognitive skills, and more. Children aged preschool through adult will be able to create their own narratives and games; build something and tear it down; or simply play and enjoy shapes and textures.

Because there is such a wide array of movable objects, each play session can become a new experience. These blocks are deliberately oversized to encourage collaboration and exercise problem solving and critical thinking skills among participants. It would be utilized throughout our year-round programs, including field trips, outreaches, Discovery Saturdays, summer camps, and more.

Here is the website for the Imagination Playground if you would like to learn more about it: http://www.imaginationplayground.com/product.html.

Block play has been proven throughout many years of educational research to be effective in the growth and development of early learners. Research also shows that children with a range of disabilities have benefited from block play. Playing with blocks has been shown to enhance creativity, motor skills, coordination, social development, math skills, problem solving skills, scientific thinking, and much more. Playing with blocks are a lot of fun, but the wide variety of educational benefits are the reasons why this project is focused on block play.