Further ways to prevent boredom. Part two of our guide to events at local places of interest during half-term.
Coventry Transport Museum
Coventry Transport Museum will be opening the doors to its free winter exhibition ScooterMania, just in time for October half-term 2012. ScooterMania is a brilliant new exhibition of British scooters from the 1950s and 60s, and looks set to draw in the crowds over the half term break.
While many people are familiar with the Italian scooters favoured by the Mod generation, this new exhibition showcases over 40 scooters made right here in Britain – and there are quite a few weird and wonderful surprises in store. All of the scooters on display were collected by one man, and they include well-known British names such as Triumph, BSA and Raleigh, as well as more ‘obscure’ manufacturers such as DMW, DKR and Dunkley, to offer a unique perspective on this iconic form of personal transport.
During October Half Term week, Saturday 27th October to Sunday 4th November, the exhibition will be complemented by a variety of scooter-themed family activity trails and craft sessions, with different activities happening on each day and charges raised for different activities. The exhibition runs from Friday 26th October 2012 to Sunday 3rd March 2013.
For more information about Coventry Transport Museum contact 024 7623 4270 or visit www.transport-museum.com
RAF Museum Cosford
This Half Term, 22-26 October, the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford invites all children over 5 to join in a free and exciting activity in which both they and their friends will become active participants in an air sea rescue and discover how the Royal Air Force mounts such operations in hazardous conditions.
In each session children will be able to experience what it is really like to be marooned in a life raft and will learn various survival techniques, with their fellow crew members. Participants will also watch a DVD of an actual RAF rescue and learn about some of the dangers of the sea.
The sessions will take place at 11.00am and 2.00pm each week day and will be located in the Museum’s Hangar 1. Participation in this event is FREE of charge. Younger children will need to be accompanied by an adult but are welcome to participate in this experience. The Museum is open daily from 10am.
For further about RAF Museum Cosford please contact 01902 376200 or visit www.rafmuseum.org
SEA LIFE Birmingham
Between the 20th October – 4th November SEA LIFE Birmingham is hosting a special Shark Week event in celebration of one of nature’s most magnificent but misunderstood creatures.
See sharks of all shapes and sizes and learn to identify different types when we take you on a fin-tastic journey! In an urgent bid for shark conservation, SEA LIFE are proudly supporting the Shark Trust in presenting a range of exciting, interactive and memorable experiences to raise awareness about the wide range of shark species and the challenges that they are facing. During Shark Week you will be able to get up close and personal with our resident sharks; Hammerheads, Nurses, Black Tips, Zebras and Bamboo sharks. Learn a variety of cool facts on sharks, their habitats and how they hunt; see our Aquarists feed the sharks; Pick yourself up a shark hat, take part in puzzles and games and much, much more…
We’ll throw the spotlight on sharks for this event, so come and learn all about these amazing creatures whilst entertaining yourself with the activities throughout this two week event!
Tickets are available at; adults £18 and children (3-14 years) £14.40
For more information about SEA LIFE Birmingham contact 0871 423 2110 or visit www.sealife.co.uk/birmingham.
Dudley Zoological Gardens
Join the hairy, scary Halloween fun at Dudley Zoological Gardens with Close Encounters of the Furred Kind.
From Saturday, October 20 to Sunday, November 4 there’s spooky stuff for all ages going on every day including monster craft s in Creepy Crawly Corner, a chance to meet giant toads, blood-sucking leeches and rats with attitude, plus ghoulish games and ghost walks around 11th century Dudley Castle at the heart of the zoo.
Presenters’ spells will help young visitors befriend spiders and snakes and for night owls there’s a fangtastic Halloween Hocus Pocus on Wednesday, October 31 with a chance to join the spooks’ twilight tour and find out what really happens after dark at DZG!
The family show, which includes a fancy dress parade and disco, runs from 6pm to 9pm and must be pre-booked.
Across the 40-acre site there’s also an opportunity to catch up with Halloween arrivals including a baby red panda and seven newborn micro pigs down on the Farm, plus check out the action in Lemur Wood where dozens of cheeky little primates will share pumpkin treats.
For full details visit www.dudleyzoo.org.uk or call 01384 215313.
Thinktank
This October half term break, families can enjoy a whole host of scientific fun events and activities at Thinktank, Birmingham Science Museum. From prehistoric autopsies and animal handling through to storytelling and ‘Meet the Scientist’ sessions, there is something to entertain the most curious visitors of all ages.
From 22 – 25 October, to coincide with the BBC Two series Prehistoric Autopsy, BBC Learning and Thinktank are hosting a new hands-on exhibition, Prehistoric Autopsy – Uncovered. Visitors will come face-to-face with three of our earliest ancestors: a Neanderthal, a Homo Erectus and an Australopithecus Afarensis. At the centre of the exhibition are the actual models used in the new television series, which have been rebuilt in extraordinary detail based on fragmented remains of ancient bones and the latest scientific research. In addition, there will be interactive activities and games and a chance to recreate some of the shell jewellery that our ancestors may have once worn.
If you have ever wondered what scientists actually do, you can come and meet real research scientists at special Meet the Scientist sessions. Visitors are invited to talk to the experts and find out what it is really like to work in a lab, see some of their equipment and maybe even have a go at some of their techniques! From 22 – 26 October, scientists from the University of Birmingham and National Genetics Education and Development Centre will be on hand to meet visitors.
For more information about Thinktank visit www.thinktank.ac/half_term
See Half-Term Adventures Part I here
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