Touch-A-Truck rolling into DuPage Children's Museum
Naperville's DuPage Children's Museum is gearing up for its Transportation Celebration with a Touch-A-Truck event, now in its fourth year.
On Saturday, July 27, the whole family - kids and kids at heart - can learn about and touch an assortment of vehicles and explore different ways to move by land, water and air.
From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., visitors can get up close to a variety of vehicles that are often read about in children's stories and explore vehicles big and small that dig, dump, push, scoop, reach and rescue. Children can sit behind the wheel, climb in the back, or perch on the bumpers.
Drivers and operators will be on hand to answer questions and explain how things work.
New to the event this year: visitors can zoom around CJ Raceway's portable RC Racetrack.
In addition, Kona Ice will be selling treats, with part of the proceeds benefiting the museum. Navistar, the presenting sponsor, is showcasing an International LoneStar Class 8 Truck, touted as being "even cooler" than last year's vehicle.
Touch-A-Truck is always an opportunity to learn something new about the vehicles on display and build vocabulary and work on other important skills.
Parents and guardians are urged to talk about colors and shapes they see with toddlers and to ask older children what's similar and different among the various trucks.
They also can use vehicles to keep learning when Touch-A-Truck is over. Count trucks when running errands or make up stories about where trucks are going - these are great ways to encourage a child's learning and development.
There will be additional activities from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. inside the museum that are focused on transportation, all designed with the mission of hands-on exploration and the integration of art, math and science in mind.
"The museum works to create opportunities for children to problem-solve, explore materials in new ways, and be creative," Cassie Coffey, public programs manager, said. "Visitors can explore many different STEAM concepts through fun, hands-on activities like Create Your Own Cardboard Transportation, Wheely Fun in the Construction House, Big Van Wash, Machines that Fly and Float, and more"
The event offers tangible ways children can see and understand energy through vehicles and things that move.
Museum admission or membership is required for access to special activities and the Touch-A-Truck. Admission to the museum is $12 for adults and children 1 and older, and $10 for seniors 59 or older; free for members.
For details, visit dupagechildrens.org.
The museum, 301 N. Washington St., near downtown Naperville, serves more than 300,000 visitors a year.