Kaleideum facts for kids

Kaleideum is an exciting museum in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It was created in July 2016 when two awesome places joined forces. These were the Children's Museum of Winston-Salem and SciWorks, which was a science center and environmental park. Today, Kaleideum has two locations. They are called Kaleideum Downtown (which used to be the Children's Museum) and Kaleideum North (which was SciWorks).

History

Kaleideum North

The former logo for the Kaleideum from when it was the Children's Museum.

Kaleideum North started way back in 1964. It was first known as the Nature Science Center. The local Junior League helped get it started. The museum was first located in a barn at Reynolda Village.

In 1972, the Nature Science Center moved to its current spot. This is on Hanes Mill Road. The area used to be a hospital and home for Forsyth County. In 1992, the Nature Science Center closed for a big update. It reopened as SciWorks. In 2001, the museum made its facilities even better. It doubled the size of one of its main exhibit areas. It also added an indoor eating space.

Kaleideum North is located at 400 West Hanes Mill Road in Winston-Salem. It has a building with about 30,000 square feet (2,787 square meters) of exhibit space. There is also a 15-acre (6 hectare) environmental park. Plus, it has a cool planetarium where you can learn about space!

The exhibits cover many different topics. You can learn about North Carolina's geography and geology. There are also exhibits about the human body and physics. One physics exhibit features a Foucault pendulum, which shows how the Earth spins. You can also explore sound and technology. Kaleideum North also has special traveling exhibits. Some come from other places, and some are made right there! The BioWorks exhibit, which is about local and exotic animals, was updated in 2010.

The environmental park is home to white-tailed deer. It also has a barnyard with donkeys, sheep, and cows. The museum offers many interactive learning programs. These are great for elementary and middle school students. Kaleideum North also has fun summer camps. They even have camp-ins for Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts.

Kaleideum Downtown

Kaleideum Downtown used to be called The Children's Museum of Winston-Salem. It is located at 390 South Liberty Street in Winston-Salem. The Junior League of Winston-Salem created this museum. It was a gift to the city to celebrate the league's 75th birthday.

The museum opened in November 2004. It was a safe place for young kids and their families to learn and play. The museum was designed around a literature theme. It focused on learning by doing. It also showed how play helps education through books, storytelling, and art. The museum offered birthday parties, summer camps, and field trips. They also had workshops, storytime, theater shows, and special community events. The Junior League promised that 10% of its active members would volunteer at the museum until at least 2020.

In November 2014, the Children's Museum added Peppercorn Theatre. This theater was started in 2010 by John Bowhers and Anna Rooney. Peppercorn became part of the museum's programs. It creates high-quality, original theater and puppet shows. These shows are both fun and educational.

Joining of the Museums

The idea of the Children's Museum of Winston-Salem and SciWorks joining together first came up in 2015. In July 2016, they officially merged. The Forsyth County leaders approved $17 million for a new museum building. This new building will be where the sheriff's office used to be. On February 7, 2017, the new name for the museum was announced: Kaleideum. This name combines the words "kaleidoscope" and "museum."

On July 6, 2017, Kaleideum announced something exciting. Stitch Design Shop and Gensler would be the architects. They would design the new museum building.

Permanent Exhibits

Kaleideum Downtown has many exhibits that are always there, plus some that change. The permanent exhibits include:

• Kaleidoscape: This is a climbing structure made of crochet by artist Toshiko MacAdam.
• Two multi-level climbing structures: These were designed by playground creator Tom Luckey.
• The Enchanted Forest: A fun play area with a folklore theme.
• The Amazing Library: A library just for young readers.
• Food Lion Supermarket: A child-sized supermarket area with soft, pretend food.
• Amazing Airways: A series of air tubes. Kids can test ideas about how air moves.
• The Prop Shop: A recreated theater backstage area. It has craft materials and art activities.
• Krispy Kreme Doughnut Factory: A pretend doughnut assembly line and delivery truck.

Kaleideum North has several permanent features:

• A planetarium for exploring space.
• PhysicsWorks: You can learn about physics using simple machines and demonstrations.
• BioWorks: This is where the museum keeps its small live animals. It includes a Blue-and-yellow macaw.
• HealthWorks: An exhibit about the human body.
• KevaWorks: A building area with KEVA Planks.
• Mountains to Sea: A natural history exhibit. It has animal, plant, and rock samples.
• Nature trails for exploring outdoors.
• Barnyard and garden learning areas.