Calendar of Events

Visit Spark!Lab Smithsonian and use the process of invention to build a car that’ll protect its precious cargo. Using available materials and the invention process, you can create a vehicle that will protect a plastic egg in the event of a crash. Even if your egg breaks, you can tweak your design and test it again, and again, and again! Please note: Spark!Lab Smithsonian offers access to tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to…

Visit Spark!Lab Smithsonian and use the process of invention to build a car that’ll protect its precious cargo. Using available materials and the invention process, you can create a vehicle that will protect a plastic egg in the event of a crash. Even if your egg breaks, you can tweak your design and test it again, and again, and again! Please note: Spark!Lab Smithsonian offers access to tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to…

Visit Spark!Lab Smithsonian and use the process of invention to build a car that’ll protect its precious cargo. Using available materials and the invention process, you can create a vehicle that will protect a plastic egg in the event of a crash. Even if your egg breaks, you can tweak your design and test it again, and again, and again! Please note: Spark!Lab Smithsonian offers access to tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to…

Hands-on gets serious in The Shop! In this material-specific session of Open Build, you’ll use real tools to build nearly anything you can imagine out of wood. Best of all, what you create is yours to keep! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in this space.

Visit The Discovery’s Spark!Lab Smithsonian to explore nano technology by creating a thin film. A thin film is a layer of material ranging from less than a nanometer (one billionth of a meter) to several micrometers thick. Everyday examples of thin films include soap bubbles, oil slicks on water, and anti-reflection coating on eyeglasses. Scientists are developing thin films to use as computer memory and in solar cells. Please note: This activity includes materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged…

Join partners One Truckee River and Keep Truckee Meadows Beautiful (KTMB) for a fun-filled evening of watershed discovery for adults and kids! In this 1.5 hour program, we’ll start with an interactive storytelling activity about the history of the Truckee River Watershed for the whole family. Then the adults will break off to take a River-Friendly Living class with One Truckee River, while kids participate in a “Watershed Warriors” lesson led by KTMB. For Kids (recommended for ages 5-12) KTMB’s Watershed…

Visit The Discovery’s Spark!Lab Smithsonian to explore nano technology by creating a thin film. A thin film is a layer of material ranging from less than a nanometer (one billionth of a meter) to several micrometers thick. Everyday examples of thin films include soap bubbles, oil slicks on water, and anti-reflection coating on eyeglasses. Scientists are developing thin films to use as computer memory and in solar cells. Please note: This activity includes materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged…

Visit The Discovery’s Spark!Lab Smithsonian to explore nano technology by creating a thin film. A thin film is a layer of material ranging from less than a nanometer (one billionth of a meter) to several micrometers thick. Everyday examples of thin films include soap bubbles, oil slicks on water, and anti-reflection coating on eyeglasses. Scientists are developing thin films to use as computer memory and in solar cells. Please note: This activity includes materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged…

The future of transportation is in your hands! Visit The Shop to use available tools and materials to create a miniature car that uses a rubber band for power. Experiment with a variety of rubber bands to see which will make your car move faster, slower or travel farther? Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely…

Be ready to catch the autumn breezes with a kite you build in the The Shop. Using available tools and a variety of paper, you can design and build a bird kite that will soar on the winds at the end of a string. Best of all, what you create is yours to keep! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use…

Hands-on gets serious in The Shop! In this material-specific session of Open Build, you’ll use real tools to build nearly anything you can imagine out of cardboard. Best of all, what you create is yours to keep! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in this space.

Be ready to catch the autumn breezes with a kite you build in the The Shop. Using available tools and a variety of paper, you can design and build a bird kite that will soar on the winds at the end of a string. Best of all, what you create is yours to keep! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use…

The Discovery will be closed to the public on Monday, August 15, 2022 for staff training in preparation for 2022-23 school field trips and our upcoming featured exhibition. The museum will reopen at 10:00am and resume normal operating hours on Tuesday, August 16, 2022.

Hands-on gets serious in The Shop! In this material-specific session of Open Build, you’ll use real tools to build nearly anything you can imagine out of a variety of plastics. Best of all, what you create is yours to keep! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in this space.

Hands-on gets serious in The Shop! In this material-specific session of Open Build, you’ll use real tools to build nearly anything you can imagine out of wood. Best of all, what you create is yours to keep! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in this space.

In this hands-on activity in The Shop, you can use a variety of materials to create a tree sculpture. Choose from a plethora of reclaimed and repurposed materials to design and build a sculptural rendition of a tree. Best of all, what you make is yours to keep! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in this space.

Celebrate National Wildlife Day with an exciting open build project in The Shop. Using wood, fabric, plastic, and more, create your rendition of your favorite animal. Best of all, what you make is yours to keep! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in this space.

$5 museum admission all day! The Nevada State Treasurer’s Office invites you and your family to The Discovery on Saturday, September 10, 2022 for an event designed to inspire children to envision their educational future and help parents and caregivers learn about the variety of state-sponsored 529 college savings programs available. Visitors of every age will enjoy $5 general admission all day! Members are always free!

Hands-on gets serious in The Shop! In this material-specific session of Open Build, you’ll use real tools to build nearly anything you can imagine out of wood. Best of all, what you create is yours to keep! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in this space.

Discover your inner sleuth when you explore the science that solves crimes. Apply your own wound, create blood spatter artwork, see what it’s like to be buried alive, gather evidence from crime scenes, test your crime committing knowledge in a trivia challenge, and much more! Labs, lectures and experiences at this Social Science will include: Autopsy Science In this lecture, explore topics like time of death, postmortem changes, patterns of injury, and a step-by-step presentation of the autopsy process from…

Visit The Shop to create the perfect decoration for fall. Using hammers and nails, you can create a autumn-inspired shape to trace with festive fall yarn. Best of all, what you make is yours to take home! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in this space.

Combine art with engineering in this design challenge in The Shop. Using cardboard and fasteners, you can create a set of “monster” jaws that chew when you activate them with your hands. Experiment with a variety of parameters during your build to see what makes the strongest set of jaws! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in…

Develop or refine your carpentry skills when you build a custom photo frame in The Shop. Using a variety of tools and materials, you’ll create a frame perfect for your favorite photograph. Keep it for yourself or give it as a holiday gift! Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use the tools and materials safely in this space.

Turn a pile of trash into a toy car—and watch it go! In this activity you’ll learn some physics concepts and use recycled materials to build a toy car that is propelled by a balloon. You can even find a friend, build two cars and race them against each other. Whose car will go the fastest? Please note: The Shop offers access to real tools and materials that can be dangerous if used improperly. Parents are encouraged to help young tinkerers use…