The state’s largest children’s museum is growing.
The finishing touches are being put on a new exhibit– while fundraising continues for a major interactive display several years in the making.
After a recent closure for routine maintenance and upgrades, the Children’s Discovery Center is open and raring to go.
Several improvements were made to the already existing market.
And the not-so-haunted rainforest has been designed to get kids ready for Halloween. But first Curious George will arrive in Honolulu this Saturday to educate and entertain kids of all ages.
"Kids can role play as well as learn some of those math and science and engineering skills as well," says Loretta Yajima, with the Children’s Discovery Center.
The center welcomes more than 100,000 keiki every year and has 2,000 active members.
"I think the greatest thing about the Discovery Center is all interactive hands on learning for the kids," said Janny Gibson, a mother and visitor to the Children’s Discovery Center.
For the past two years organizers have embarked on a journey to get a new exhibit up and running next year.
"And that is going to be all about conservation, teaching children about the rain forest and about protecting and preserving our natural resources, so we are very excited about that," Yajima says.
The Rainforest Adventures Gallery still needs the installation of water features, electronics, sound effects and lighting.
"Well we need to raise another quarter of a million dollars for that but we are building a lot of it in house," Yajima says.
The eco-friendly interactive exhibit is slated to open by March of 2012.
"The main reason we all do this is really for the kids and so we think its really important to keep the museum fresh," Yajima says.
The Curious George exhibit opens October 8 to February 2012. A preview for members will be on October 6 at 5p.m.
For more information visit www.discoverycenterhawaii.org.
See the original article at: KHON2 Local News
