Tinkertoy: Build Your Imagination! will be opening on May 26, at Creative Discovery Museum. This traveling exhibit celebrates Tinkertoy, a classic toy invented in 1914.
Officials said, "There’s no limit to what kids can do in Tinkertoy: Build Your Imagination! Visitors will explore a walk-in replica of a Tinkertoy canister that highlights a variety of educational materials celebrating unconventional ideas and introducing some very unique inventions, such as a Rube Goldberg-like creation.
The exhibit helps children understand how imaginative thinking, sharing and teamwork can create solutions to real world problems and provides a rich educational experience for children and adults to enjoy together. Children will also be introduced to biomimicry — nature’s influence on design — as well as explore other current topics such as renewable energy and water filtration.
"Opportunities to build in Tinkertoy: Build Your Imagination! are plentiful. A two-sided panel will inspire families to build together to make original Tinkertoy designs or to play together with Tinkertoy pieces in an open area for children ages three and older. Guests will load up on fun while filling a life-sized human form with Tinkertoy hubs, providing a great photo opportunity for families and explaining the concepts of a healthy lifestyle."
“With Chattanooga’s rich tradition in manufacturing and engineering, Tinkertoy: Build Your Imagination! is an ideal exhibit to bring to our city,” said Henry Schulson, Creative Discovery Museum’s executive director. “It will be fun to watch children use their imagination to build unique Tinkertoy creations while learning how technology is solving many of the world’s problems.”
The exhibit, targeted to children ages three-10, was developed by the Betty Brinn Children’s Museum in collaboration with GE and Playskool, the infant/preschool division of Hasbro, Inc (NYSE: HAS). Giant replicas of the classic Tinkertoy construction set provide the framework for fun, educational activities inspired by GE technologies that turn imagination into working solutions to real world challenges.
Visitors to the exhibit will enjoy a variety of activities that promote imagination and collaboration, including:
- The Welcome Gallery -The Welcome Gallery celebrates the 95th anniversary of Tinkertoy through a retrospective of the toy’s history, and highlights GE technologies that improve communities around the globe every day.
- Invent - Children are encouraged to think about where ideas come from, and to explore the emerging field of biomimicry – nature’s influence on design. Visitors can match real inventions with their natural inspiration and create a design of their own.
- Collaborate – Dual-sided panels allow visitors to work independently or with a partner to create Tinkertoy designs.
- Energize – Children can explore GE’s commitment to renewable energy as they use a kid-powered fan to test their own wind-powered Tinkertoy creations.
- Change – A Rube Goldberg-like contraption illustrates the power of creative thinking and how simple mechanisms work. The activity lets children select and position words to build silly – but thought-provoking!--sentences that serve as the springboard for innovation.
- Process/Connect – Tinkertoy-inspired equipment lets children explore the concept of filtration, while a companion activity invites them to build ball tracks that illustrate how GE technologies help address the challenge of providing clean water. Finding the correct path through a graphic maze answers children’s curiosity about “Where does the water go?”
- Develop – Visitors will enjoy filling a life-size human form with Tinkertoy hubs, providing a great photo opportunity and revealing the elements of a healthy lifestyle – and emptying the piece is fun, too! A special rotating Tinkertoy hub array inspires children to consider the impact of their personal choices, highlighting one of our most important responsibilities: taking care of ourselves so that we can do anything!
- Create – This open play area reserved for children age three and older features a spectacular assortment of Tinkertoy pieces – the perfect place to build their imagination. Pictures of remarkable Tinkertoy creations and special tips provide guidance and inspiration.
- The Tinker Tank – A walk-in size replica of a Tinkertoy canister is the starting point for the exhibit’s challenging scavenger hunt, a must for those with an eye for detail and a nose for knowledge! The Tinker Tank contains a variety of educational materials that attest to the impact of unconventional ideas on some of the world’s greatest – and strangest – inventions, and serve as a reminder that “If at first you don’t succeed…”
Local exhibit sponsors include Little Debbie Snack Cakes and Volkswagen Chattanooga.
Tickets to the museum are $11.95 for adults and children age two and older. For more information, cal 756-2738 or visit the museum website at www.cdmfun.org.
The Tinkertoy: Build Your Imagination! exhibit was developed by the Betty Brinn Children’s Museum in collaboration with Playskool and GE. Tinkertoy is a trademark of Hasbro, Inc. and is used with permission. © 2010 Hasbro. All Rights Reserved.