Benefits of outdoor exploration

Move your body and your mind will follow 🏃

Did you know that moving and going outside is associated with higher brain function? Allowing kids the time to explore and be creative while being out in nature helps build physically healthier bodies and stimulate cognitive development - not to mention, great for their health and happiness!

Here are the top 5 benefits of encouraging children to explore outdoors:

1. It improves executive function
   Executive function refers to the skills that help us plan, prioritize, troubleshoot, negotiate, and multitask. Researchers at Harvard have linked going outdoors to an improvement in these abilities, which play a big role in their success as adults. How? When children are allowed to spend time outdoors, especially with other kids, they exercise creative and critical faculties as they learn to make up their own games, socialize with others, solve small problems, and entertain themselves.

2. It supports their mental health
   It’s no secret that nature is great for one’s mental health. Children who spend time outdoors, breathing in fresh air and getting plenty of sunshine, are less likely to experience severe stress or depression, and are better equipped to regulate those emotions.

3. It improves their sensory skills
   Being outdoors exposes children to an incredible amount of stimuli—all sorts of textures, shapes, scents, sounds, and sights. This multisensory stimulation helps them develop observational skills and spatial awareness as they are able to learn and interact with the world using all their senses. In contrast, those who learn primarily through a computer screen engage only their sight and hearing, which can negatively impact their other perceptual abilities.

4. It develops their immunity
   Sunlight doesn’t just feel great, but it actually plays a vital role in human health! For instance, sunlight helps stimulate the pineal gland which helps keep our immune system strong. Regular exposure to the many non-harmful microorganisms that keep our environment alive also helps “train” our immune system so in the event of a pathogenic infection, our bodies are better equipped to respond. Being in a completely sterile environment for most of the time actually weakens the immune system as it becomes unable to determine what is and isn’t safe. Occasionally getting your hands muddy is as beneficial as it is fun!

5. It builds physically healthy bodies
   Aside from immunity, regularly spending time outdoors is a great form of exercise! It helps with their motor development, sense of balance, and bone strength through getting a healthy dose of vitamin D from sunlight. Who knows, this play may lead to an interest in sports as well!

There are plenty of ways to encourage your kids to spend time outside (if they don’t already demand it!), which include biking or walking together as a family, scheduling outdoor playdates, or regularly enrolling them in summer camps like the Science Outside Summer Camp!

The Science Outside Summer Camp 2023 is a week-long camp that includes lots of exciting, engaging time at the Science Mill and field trips to Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center, Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park, and one overnight at Bamberger Ranch Nature Preserve. Activities cover Environmental STEM topics such as: Conservation and Land Stewardship, Water Resources, Wildlife Biodiversity and Resilience and Geology!

This year, the summer camp will take place on June 19-23, 8am-3:30pm each day. Register now while slots are still available!

This summer camp is part of the Science Mill’s year-long Science Outside! Program. Developed for 3rd-8th grade students in the Hill Country region of Texas, the Science Outside! program is focused on exposing kids to outdoor based STEM skills, tools and careers, within the realm of environmental science and ecology. Science Outside! is a combination of community outreach, Saturday family engagement workshops and a 5-day summer camp designed to get kids interacting with their families outside in nature. Students learn through inquiry-based exploration at the Science Mill and at partner locations in our community. Learn more here.

Things to do for Earth Day 2023

Did you know that this year, on April 22, is the 53rd celebration of Earth Day?

As a science museum, the Science Mill has always valued environmental protection. After all, curiosity about our planet comes hand-in-hand with taking care of it. Join us and countless countries around the world as we advocate for sustainability. Here are 5 simple things you can do to celebrate Earth Day:

1. Conserve water

   While water conservation should be made a regular practice, being particularly conscious of it on Earth Day is a good habit. Maybe it’s a good time to reassess your garden’s water requirements, to check your faucets and pipes for leaks, or to develop a rainwater collection system.

2. Minimize single-use waste

   If you’ve been looking for the right moment to cut down on your plastic consumption, Earth Day is the perfect time to do it! As with any other sustainable change, the most important thing is to take it one step at a time rather than doing anything drastic. It can be as simple as refusing a plastic straw, if possible, carrying a reusable water bottle with you at all times, or switching to reusable storage containers like food-grade silicon bags or glass lunchboxes.

3. Join or organize a clean-up event

   Keeping the environment clean requires constant effort from everyone. One simple action you can take is by going on a walk—around your neighborhood, at the nearby park or hiking trail—and pick up litter along the way. You might be surprised at how much trash, especially single-use plastics, there is to collect! You can do this yourself, with some friends, or as part of a community-wide clean-up event.

   If there are recycling services in your area, you can even take it a step further and recycle the plastics you picked up based on this recycling chart.

4. Advocate on social media

   With any advocacy, spreading the word is as important as doing the legwork. You can help promote environmental conservation by talking about its importance and sharing resources in your own networks on social media. Keep an eye out for relevant global and local hashtags and accounts that you can help amplify, like #InvestInOurPlanet or #EarthDay2023. Of course, if you’re celebrating Earth Day with us during Pollinator Palooza, make sure to tag #sciencemill so we can view our shared moments!

5. Support our pollinators

   All terrestrial life on Earth—humans included!—depend on pollination, so the importance of supporting this essential process cannot be overstated. You can start a garden using native plants to help attract pollinators like butterflies, bees, and other beneficial insects.

   It may sound overwhelming at first, but starting your pollinator garden is all about having the right knowledge and tools. You can start by attending the upcoming Pollinator Palooza event here at the Science Mill where you will gain more insight into the process through fun activities like making a wildflower seed bomb, watching a documentary on butterfly migration, meeting a local beekeeper, and more!

New to the Science Mill? The Science Mill is a high-tech science museum just an hour away from Austin or San Antonio. Located in Johnson City, the Science Mill is home to 50+ interactive indoor and outdoor exhibits that stimulate the imagination and curiosity of people of all ages. Support future data scientists, engineers, and inventors by being a part of the Science Mill’s mission! Learn more about it here.

#ThrowbackThursday: 2021 Butterfly Bonanza & Pollinator Pals

As we gear up for this month’s Pollinator Palooza — happening on Earth Day 2023, April 22 — we wanted to look back on the fun during the 2021 Butterfly Bonanza & Pollinator Pals event!

Beekeeper Mike Mendez presents the audience a live demo of a beehive and insight into beekeeping tools

Visitor releasing a butterfly into the Science Mill garden (live butterfly release is happening this year too!)

Michelle Camara from Southern Wildlife Rehab, who helped 6,000 injured bats after Winter Storm Uri, shares her expertise with the help of real bat specimens

Humans and the rest of the living beings on Earth depend on the essential ecological function that is pollination — which is why we think it’s worth honoring it every year. Join us during this year’s Pollinator Palooza where you learn about this fantastic process through hands-on activities like a butterfly release, a wildflower seed bomb workshop, and more!

So if you’re looking for unique or fun things to do in Austin or San Antonio, consider making the short drive to Johnson City to explore something new this month.

Reserve your tickets online — slots for the butterfly release are limited, so make sure to grab them! — or buy them at the door.

Kid-friendly podcasts to listen to while driving to the Science Mill

While Austin and San Antonio both offer a ton of family-friendly activities, a quick day trip out of town may sometimes be what the weekend calls for. The Science Mill in Johnson City, only an hour away from either city, is a great choice for those looking for a unique experience not too far from home.

There are plenty of ways to fill the time during the drive to the Science Mill, like playing road trip games or jamming to an energetic playlist. One way to get into the science-y mood is by listening to fun, educational podcasts that both kids and adults can appreciate. As they say: “Enjoy the journey as much as the destination.”

Whip out the snacks, snap on the seatbelts, and play these podcasts to make the most out of your daytrip to the Science Mill!

1. Tumble
   Hosts Lindsay and Marshall introduce fascinating science discoveries through interviews with scientists that are sure to inspire even those kids who think they’re not into science! Each episode is around 20 minutes long, so if the family’s driving in from San Antonio or Austin, you can choose three topics to learn about.

2. Brains On!
   If you’ve got a kid who likes to ask simple but difficult-to-explain questions about everything—why are we so sweaty? Why is glass see-through?—this award-winning science podcast is perfect for you. Host Molly Bloom is joined by a different kid every week to co-host this engaging but informative show, so you’ve got plenty of topics to choose from.

3. StarTalk Radio
   Teens and astronomy enthusiasts would enjoy StarTalk Radio hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson. Topics like time travel, wormholes, and space suits are explored in this funny and mind-blowing show featuring a rotation of co-hosts, celebrity guests, and scientists.

4. Science Friday
   Interested in a longer, info-packed episode? Science Friday might be a good place to start! Just when you think you know everything, a new episode of the show, with its timely science topics, teaches you something new.

5. Earth to Humans
   Finally, for kids and families who are into the field of conservation, Earth to Humans is highly recommended! As one of the longest running podcasts on the topic, the show has covered a diversity of topics ranging from social and environmental justice to climate change to animal rescue. Listening to this show is a great way to get hyped up for the Science Mill Biolab which features our crowd-favorite exhibit, the Masters of Disguise!

Then, continue your scientific journey as soon as you arrive at the Science Mill where over 50 high-tech, interactive exhibits await! Make sure to stop by the Science Store on the way out for an educational toy to take home or a token to commemorate a great trip.

The next time you’re thinking of things to do near Austin or San Antonio, consider the hidden gems scattered all over the Hill Country—like the Science Mill!

Plan your visit here or get your tickets at the door.