February 24, 2026
Miss Laura and students from her Grade 6/7 class (students everywhere reading that right now are juggling their hands back and forth, saying 6 – 7…😊) travelled to Sudbury on February 24 for a field trip to Science North. Educational Assistant, Maani Assiniwe, and a parent volunteer supported chaperoning the students throughout the exhibits. Bus driver Cheryl was also welcomed along on their tour of the centre. The students lovingly cared for her well-being during their match with the mirrors maze in the Phenomena Exhibit, which brought a smile and a chuckle to her day.
While students adjusted and settled following the lengthy bus ride (a bathroom run and stretching ensued), Miss Laura retrieved the tickets for everyone and handed out the day’s tour schedule, which began at about 10:00am and concluded around 1:30pm.
Highlights of the field trip included:
- Space Place
- Phenomena Exhibit Hall
- Wetlands
- Discovery Theatre
- Coding Patterns - instructional challenge
Students bustled excitedly between the interactive displays and interpretive centres, traversing the four floors via the spiral column on foot or by elevator, a route that became popular as the day went on! While the elevator only held about 8 people, most were keen to walk (jog) up and down the column, enjoying the dinosaur skeletal display suspended from the ceiling overhead and the views through the expansive atrium windows of people out skating on Ramsay Lake.
The most captivating exhibits, according to the students, were the Phenomena Hall and the Wetlands. However, lots of experiences unfolded throughout the day, including:
- The mirror maze, upside-down room, and electricity ball (which demonstrates how the transfer of energy from our bodies can power an iridescent light bulb!) offered lots of laughter as students explored these optical illusions.
- Viewing insects like tarantulas, stick bugs, and oversized beetles, and then being offered the choice to sample (eat) plain, ranch, or BBQ-flavoured bugs brought about a surprising number of willing participants! These students were up for anything! And their enthusiasm and curiosity were exceptional.
- Turtles, beavers, fish, and toads in their habitats were explored with students getting a closer look at each specimen.
- At the space exhibit, students tested their coordination and patience using the Canadarm to pick up/move blocks and check out samples of astronaut food.
- They tried out first-aid equipment, including observing a working defibrillator and performing CPR on practice dummies. There were displays of human anatomy, like a baby in the womb, and an interactive display exploring the placement of the intestines, liver, heart, and so on.
- Students had a chance to construct objects with wheels and gears in a robotics section and to clock their sprint speed out of the starting blocks, with the results recorded in real time for them to review afterwards.
- One display allowed the student to drop a solid metal sphere into a pit of sand/gravel to replicate the force of a meteorite hitting the Earth. It demonstrated the subsequent crater depth and how this relates to the Sudbury region and the development of various mines we use currently, through this very same phenomenon.
After exploring all the exhibits, students gathered for an instructional lesson. A Science North staff member led the class through a simple coding exercise. Students were divided into small groups, given laptops, and shown a PowerPoint presentation on computer cells and how to write code. These cells, when placed in a specific sequence, create a result: a game, a moving diagram, or a starburst effect over a logo etc. Some were more interested in getting to lunch and the gift shop, perhaps, but others were intrigued and worked together to see what their team could accomplish.
Overall, the variety of exhibits prompted lots of questions for Miss Laura and the free-roaming Centre Staff! This day was a fun way to gain knowledge, to discover ourselves and our environment, and to explore possibilities – seeing and doing things we may not normally have a chance to see or even think about. The trip to Science North offered options and opportunities. It was an enjoyable and educational day out for everyone.
