The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, located in Chicago, gives teachers a unique educational travel option that's bound to delight and inspire their students.
Opened in 1999 as part of the Chicago Academy of Sciences, the museum is the legacy of naturalist Robert Kennicott, who founded the Academy in 1857. He was concerned about the disappearance of native plants and animals and began an effort to ensure that irreplaceable native flora and fauna was preserved.
Today, teachers and students are among those who benefit from that vision when they visit the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum. Among the exhibits to be found at the museum are:
The Greening Project:
Some 17,000 square feet of rooftop gardens, including the three-storey John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Cliff Garden on the south wall, make the Greening Project the museum's largest exhibit. The eco-friendly, energy-efficient exhibit is said to be a combination of beauty and brains.
The exhibit contains native climbing vines, an expanded prairie, a "use every drop" water conservation system and solar rooftop panels. There is also a quiet gathering area with a reflective pool and an in-museum exhibit that gives real-time views of the rooftop with the opportunity for students to design a rooftop garden of their own.
Hands-On Habitat:
This hands-on, body-on exhibit gives students the opportunity to explore the secret world of animal homes. A highlight is the two-story Tree of Life, a climbing tree house.
Students can also collect and sort colorful fish from the Explorer's Boat and pump "water" through a root pump all the way to the branches. They can also peek through an underground prairie periscope to see animals and plants that live above ground.
Judy Istock Butterfly Haven:
This spectacular exhibit features over 1,000 butterflies and 75 different species. The exhibit is in a 2,700-square-foot greenhouse complete with tropical trees, glimmering pools of water, flowers and, naturally, the butterflies.
There are hands-on exhibits explaining butterfly lifecycles, survival strategies and the Monarch butterfly migration. The museum plays a leading role in the repopulation of endangered species through its work with butterflies.
Riverworks:
This water play exhibit gives students the opportunity to find out how rivers support plants, animals and humans. Live animals and plants are on display and students can have the time of their lives by reversing the flow of a river, shooting water through waterwheels and actually building a dam.
Extreme Green House:
The concept of "being green" is about being aware of the connections between people and the other living things that share our world. The Extreme Green House is a full-sized bungalow in the middle of the museum, home to the Greens, a somewhat offbeat family that nonetheless provide insight into what it means to co-exist with nature.
The house contains a Digestive Dining Room, Conservation Kitchen, Bacterial Bathroom, and Bargain Basement. Students can also "recycle" themselves in a crawl-through tube, interact with major appliances, meet the fold in their food, and discover what's crawling around in the basement.
Wilderness Walk:
Students touring the Wilderness Walk exhibit at the museum will discover the region's true self, with three meticulously recreated environments, including prairie, savanna, and dune. All include true-to-life lighting, sounds and live animals (e.g. an ant farm and white-tailed deer) from the region and preserved animals.
If you are a science teacher looking for educational, hands-on experiences for your students, a tour of the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum is a must on your next visit to Chicago.