Giveaway and Grand Opening of The New Discovery Cube Los Angeles!

Field Trip Boy and I recently had the opportunity to attend Family Day at the new Discovery Cube Los Angeles located in the heart of the San Fernando Valley.  Discovery Cube LA is just like a little scientist’s candyland, except that instead of candy, there are science experiments beaming from room to room!

Field Trip Boy and I both enjoy the original Discovery Science Center, now called The Discovery Cube OC, in Orange County.  So when I surprised Field Trip Boy on a random Saturday morning that we were going to the brand new Discovery Cube Los Angeles he was ecstatic.

The Discovery Cube Los Angeles is a place where imaginations sore, children explore with their hands and education always comes first.  The LA Cube features 71,000 square feet of building and exhibit space and is the Valley’s first major museum specifically designed for science-based learning.

Did you know that California currently ranks 46th in math proficiency and is tied for 48th in science proficiency compared to other states in our nation?  The Discovery Science Foundation has stepped up to help bridge this gap through their continuous education programs, exhibits and professional teacher development workshops.  With locations in Orange County and now in Los Angeles, they reach and serve close to 1,000,000 people each year.

Discovery Cube Los Angeles features a variety of exhibits that value environmental stewardship, STEM proficiency, healthy living and early learning including:

Environmental Stewardship

Guests can take a Helicopter Tour in the theater to get a bird’s eye view of California’s natural resources.

During the Race to Zero exhibit Field Trip Boy played a computer based game that taught him the correct way to sort trash and divert materials from the landfills.  He beat me of course!

Aquavator Exhibit

In the Aquavator exhibit guests learn the importance of protecting our fragile aquifer from pollutants as they descend inside a glass elevator through layers of the earth.

Inspector Training Course

While visiting the Inspector Training Course, Field Trip Boy learned the skills of a home inspector by using a touch screen tablet and how to make resource-efficient and sustainable choices for a house.  Field Trip Boy spent the majority of his time exploring this one exhibit at the cube and the staff was very friendly and helpful in answering all of his questions.

On The Discovery Stage you can watch one of the cube’s live, hands-on science demonstrations led by the Discovery Cube staff.

 The Planetary Research Station features a suspended, animated globe that shows dynamic images of the atmosphere, oceans, and land from a completely different vantage point.

• Explore weather patterns and observe historic storms exactly as they occurred
• Relive catastrophic earthquakes and see the impact of their aftershocks
• Observe flight patterns around the globe as lights soaring across the night sky

Healthy Living

At the Discovery Market, they use game-based technology to teach guests the importance of understanding packaging labels, nutrition facts, and making healthy choices to better their lives.  I had to help Field Trip Boy answer a few questions about how many calories a product had, what was the total sodium count, etc.  It even taught me a lesson or two about reading food labels.

The Discovery Cube Los Angeles makes a great outing for the entire family.  I especially like the fact that the designers of the LA Cube included exhibits that are attractive for older students and preteens.

BONUS TIP: The LA Cube offers excellent field trips for school groups at a discounted rate.

The Discovery Cube Los Angeles is open daily from 10am – 5pm year round except for Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day.  Tickets are $16.95 for adults, $12.95 for seniors (62+) and children (ages 3-14).  Admission for Museum members and children 2 and under is FREE.

The LA Cube is located at 11800 Foothill Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 91342.

The Discovery Cube Los Angeles is giving away a family-four-pack of tickets to one lucky SoCal Field Trips Reader!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Field Tripping,

Jilleen

Disclosure: SoCal Field Trips was invited to a media event to help facilitate this post.  All opinions are our own.  Images used by permission from the Discovery Cube Los Angeles.  Contest rules and details provided in the Rafflecopter link above.