Akron Fossils & Science Center facts for kids

The Akron Fossils & Science Center is a museum and learning place in Copley Township, Ohio, near Akron. It has a special area called the Creation Education Museum. This museum shows different ideas about how life began, including creationism and intelligent design. It also looks at how science and the Bible might connect.

The center also has many hands-on science activities. Outside, there's a park with playground equipment and a fun 200-foot zip-line.

Throughout the year, the center offers many educational programs. Some programs focus on general science, like summer camps, talks about fossils, and live animal shows. Other programs, such as guided tours of the Creation Education Museum and science classes, explore ideas related to creationism and intelligent design, often linked to the Judeo-Christian religious tradition. These programs are optional for visitors.

History of the Center

The Burning Tree Mastodon exhibit at the Creation Education Museum.

The Akron Fossils & Science Center first opened its doors on May 26, 2005. It was started by William Sanderson II. He used to be a financial planner and a middle-school science teacher in Cincinnati. Sanderson studied at Malone University and Miami University.

Since it opened, the center has added many new programs and updated its spaces. For example, fossil presentations now let visitors touch real dinosaur bones and eggs. They can also see unique items like teddy bears that have turned into stone over time, and bivalve fossils. The center also has live animal shows where you can learn about snakes, bearded dragons, guinea pigs, and sugar gliders.

Inside the Creation Education Museum, you can learn about topics like how life might have started (abiogenesis), the powerful eruption of Mount St. Helens, the amazing Grand Canyon, and the Ice Age. The museum also talks about different ideas, such as how living things change over time (called microevolution and macroevolution). It also explores interesting and sometimes debated subjects like Ica stones, OOPArts (Out-of-Place Artifacts), stories about dragons, and the idea of Noah's flood.