Spring is here and birds will be nesting! Make a nest-building station with #CMSMatHome and help birds collect materials for their homes. Collect dried grasses, small twigs, straw, or native plants. (Do not use grasses or twigs from areas that have been chemically treated.) Find a suet holder, onion or orange netted bag, or an old kitchen

Let’s tell sky stories and learn about constellations today! Think of an object you want to turn into a constellation and tell a story about. Use paper or light cardboard, draw an outline, and punch holes where your stars are. Hold your constellation up to the light to see your starts shine. For this activity,

Do you miss the Museum’s ball course? Create your own today! Gather paper plates, cardboard, straws, paper towel or toilet paper rolls, marbles or small balls, scissors, tape, and a hot glue gun. Tape down straw and small pieces of cardboard, and connect other materials with glue. Engineer the maze by creating obstacles, then maneuver

Today, we’ll observe how light moves around objects and creates shadows. It’s shadow play time! If the weather serves us and there is some sunshine, we can go outside. Otherwise, we can use a flashlight or lamp. Gather some interesting shadow-makers, such as animal figurines, blocks, colander, thin colored fabric, lace, crocheted objects, or anything

The weather is getting nicer and we can start our seedlings! Today we’ll make starting pots with paper towel and toilet paper rolls, fill them with soil, and plant garden seeds in them. Once labeled, they’ll go in clear, plastic clamshell containers (such as those for salad greens or some takeout foods), which will act

Today, we’ll guess, predict, count, and measure! Gather materials, such as a measuring tape (or a ruler), see-through jars, and a variety of small objects found in your home (beans, paperclips, coins, rocks, cotton balls, small building blocks…). Fill a see-through container with small objects, then make a guess on their number. Dump them out,

We will be making music at home today! Let’s use items found in our kitchen and experiment with different sounds we can make, and hear. We’ll pay attention to the variety of sounds and how they change between instruments. Material ideas: uncooked/dry rice, noodles, or beans, plastic containers, kitchen utensils, rubber bands, plastic wrap… Make

Geology Rocks! Today, discover different types of rocks as you go on an adventure around your home. Observe what makes them similar or different from each other, then write or draw what you’ve come up with. For this activity, you’ll need a magnifying glass or any other item that can help you take a closer

Float or Sink? Today we’ll test boats made from found materials to see which ones will float, and which ones will not. Let’s play with water. Choose a bath tub, sink, or any container that won’t leak. Now, let’s build a vessel that holds more than 5 pennies. What can we build with? Paper, popsicle

Can you build a city? How do you do it? Find floor or table space. Gather materials: cardboard, paper, tape, scissors, markers, pencils, building blocks… Plan. Think about the city you wish to build. How big is it? What does it need? Who lives there? How do they get places? Build. Construct your buildings, roads, and parks. Don’t forget

Today, we balance! Collect items around the house, or in your yard. You’ll need a stick, ruler, pencil, or something similar. Pennies, dimes, buttons, small rocks, or pebbles may work. If you’d like, record your observations by drawing or writing. Here’s what we’re doing: Engage your fine motor skills by balancing objects on top of other

Have you explored the Museum’s Beaver Builders exhibit? You can build like a beaver at home, too! Choose to work outside, in a sandbox (or dirt), or in the house, using a cake pan. Gather twigs, sand, dirt, small stones, moss, or wet leaves. Form a beaver dam or lodge by stacking and layering different sizes of