Science factory is on a roll

Gitana Gray, of Lancaster, eyes the 6-foot-high motorized K'NEX Ferris wheel. Photo Courtesy Lancaster Newspapers

The traveling exhibit, which officially opens Tuesday, Jan. 13, features 15 glass-enclosed, motorized models made of the construction toy K'NEX, highlighted by a 6-foot-tall Ferris wheel and a 10-foot-long roller coaster. The exhibit was added to mark the first anniversary of the Science Factory, which opened Jan. 22 last year.

Most recently at the Maryland Science Center in Baltimore, "K'NEX: Building Thrill Rides" also includes interactive exhibits about motion, spin, energy and friction.

In addition to the models, there will be three building stations where children can play with an unlimited number of K'NEX parts. And the kids don't have to leave their creations behind; they can be purchased by the ounce in a "weigh and pay" program.

Two of the stations will remain permanently once the K'NEX exhibit leaves. "It's amazing what they end up building out of these things," said Janet Stone, the Science Factory's director of operations.

Shown is a closeup of the K'NEX Ferris wheel, part of the new "K'NEX: Building Thrill Rides" exhibit at the Science Factory. Photo Courtesy Lancaster Newspapers

A complement to the 45 or so other interactive exhibits on display, the K'NEX exhibit runs till April 15.

The mission of the Science Factory, housed in the old Kerr Glass building at 454 New Holland Ave., is to "introduce science to children in an exciting way," Stone said.

And that mission, she said, revolves around the acronym STEM - science, technology, engineering and math - with the goal of helping students improve their test scores.

The Science Factory collaborates with the School District of Lancaster and other schools, Stone said, and all exhibits are aligned with state standards.

The keys for students, she said, are "understanding how things work, looking at processes and asking questions.

"That's the very basis on which we were founded."

The K'NEX exhibit is an ideal supplement to what SDoL is doing because some of their pupils use its parts in class, Stone said.

Sixth graders in the district build K'NEX race cars, and eighth-graders learn about energy, machines and motors by constructing a large K'NEX roller coaster, she said.

"We recognized the need to get more involved with K'NEX," Stone said. The new exhibit "is reinforcing what they do in the schools."

Last month, the Science Factory also started holding weekend K'NEX workshops for kids ages 7 to 15, she said.

In one, Stone said, they constructed a replica of the famous Kinzua Viaduct in northern Pennsylvania. Badly damaged by a tornado in 2003, the viaduct was at one time the highest and longest railroad bridge in the world.

A second workshop, focused on levers, pulleys and gears, consisted of building a Ferris wheel, she said.

Ferris wheels do indeed seem to have a universal appeal. Nine-year-old Gitana Gray, of Lancaster, who visited the Science Factory Saturday with her parents, Cathy and Brian Gray, and two siblings, said her favorite K'NEX model was the Ferris wheel.

Frances Thiry, 5, of Lancaster, whose grandfather, Junior Thiry, brought her to the Science Factory, agreed.

"I liked the big Ferris Wheel."

But it wasn't all that impressed her, she said. "I liked the roller coaster, too."

From September to June, the Lancaster Science Factory is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. July and August, the hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $5 for children 15 and younger accompanied by an adult; $7 for adults; and $6 for seniors. Children 2 and younger get in free.