Category: Museum of Science and Industry

Museum of Science and Industry offers Illinois residents free admission weekdays in January

Museum of Science and Industry offers Illinois residents free admission weekdays in January
I wanted to share some info that you might find helpful (assuming that we are able to dig out from the snow drifts and sub zero temps later this week of course). Starting January 6, 2014, general admission to the Museum of Science and Industry is free for all Illinois residents on weekdays. Run in... Read more »
By Caitlin Giles,
January 5, 2014 at 3:39 pm • 

101 Things to do with your Chicago Kid

  I am reposting this entry from March 1, 2010 because I came across it in my archives and it really is a pretty darn good list if I do say so myself. I’ve got to really focus if I want to get to all of these things before my kids head off to college.... Read more »
By Caitlin Giles,
November 22, 2013 at 10:09 am • 

Wee Windy City Winter Break Survival Guide

Assuming we get a little bit more snow in the next few days, we are planning to head over to Cricket Hill at Montrose Harbor for some good 'ol sledding. This small hill is perfect for younger kids who are just getting the hang of steering their sleds.
When the holiday hoopla and the new toy excitement die down, your kids will still be on holiday break from school. I’ve learned the hard way that it behooves you to make a plan ahead of time and figure out ways to keep the troops entertained during what can frankly be a long week. Here... Read more »
By Caitlin Giles,
December 26, 2012 at 2:10 pm • 
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Life in Space? Exhibit at MSI features a model of the Curiosity Rover set to land on Mars on Monday

Life in Space? Exhibit at MSI features a model of the Curiosity Rover set to land on Mars on Monday
The Museum of Science and Industry (MSI) is always a fun spot for an outing. But on top of all of the usual interesting stuff like the trains, farm exhibit and Idea Factory, the MSI is also featuring a temporary exhibit called Life in Space? through September 30, 2012. This exhibit features a full-scale, NASA_owned model of the Curiosity Rover. Named "Dusty," the model is a life-sized, six-wheeled robotic explorer modeled after the real Curiosity Rover, a 7 foot-tall robot scientist on wheels scheduled to land on Mars on this Monday at 12:31 a.m. CDT. The MSI is one of only two institutions in the world selected by NASA to host a full-scale model of the rover during the landing. The Curiosity has a daunting task:  many previous attempts at landing similar rovers on The Red Planet have been unsuccessful. If the Curiosity makes a successful landing, it has an even more daunting task ahead: this robotic scout is on a mission to discover whether Mars ever harbored life...
By Caitlin Giles,
August 4, 2012 at 11:03 am • 

Museum of Science and Industry celebrates National Robotics Week

Museum of Science and Industry celebrates National Robotics Week
Robots have been a big topic at our house lately. We made our simple "robot" craft for Chicago Parent magazine a couple of months ago. And my kids recently watched Star Wars for the first time - so now they are liberally using the word "droid." If your kiddos are into robots, I wanted to tell you about an opportunity to learn more about robots. In celebration of National Robotics Week (April 7-15), MSI will host a “Robot Revolution Block Party” displaying more than a dozen robots from around the world in the Museum’s Rotunda. Some of the robots on display throughout the week include...
By Caitlin Giles,
April 13, 2012 at 11:21 am • 

Guest Post: Family Living in Hyde Park

Guest Post: Family Living in Hyde Park
@font-face { font-family: "Times"; }@font-face { font-family: "Cambria Math"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Times; }.MsoChpDefault { font-size: 10pt; font-family: Times; }div.WordSection1 { page: WordSection1; } Hey look — it’s another installment in the Wee Windy City Neighborhood Spotlight Series — this time about Hyde Park! Please welcome guest... Read more »
By Caitlin Giles,
January 31, 2011 at 9:15 pm • 
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The Holiday Host List: What's on our agenda this year

Things have been really quiet around here. Sorry about that. The truth is that we’ve been so busy enjoying all of the fabulous holiday activities around town that I haven’t had time to blog about any of them. Last year, my husband was out of town for work for much of the holiday season and... Read more »
By Caitlin Giles,
December 2, 2010 at 1:55 pm • 

5 free things to do before your kids go back to school

5 free things to do before your kids go back to school
This is a bittersweet time of year. On the one hand, I want to hang on to these lazy, unscheduled summer days. But another part of me longs for structure, afterschool activities and a few hours a day when my house isn’t overrun with children. No matter how you feel about it, one thing is... Read more »
By Caitlin Giles,
August 19, 2010 at 9:42 pm • 

Summer Links

Are you having a good summer so far? Me too. We’ve been doing all sorts of fun activities around town — and then I’ve been busy blogging about it all. I am writing another blog for the months of June and July called School’s Out!. I’ve been posting about family-friendly activities in and around Chicago... Read more »
By Caitlin Giles,
June 21, 2010 at 11:18 am • 
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Good times at the Museum of Science and Industry's Idea Factory

This morning, we headed over to the Museum of Science and Industry to spend some time in the Idea Factory. This is a great spot for little ones. It is like a mini version of the Chicago Children’s Museum (plus you have all of the other great MSI attractions when your little museum-goers are ready... Read more »
By Caitlin Giles,
June 8, 2010 at 4:13 pm •