Updated 12/17/2009 09:31 PM
Young New Yorkers Get A Real "Night At The Museum"
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To many, "Night At The Museum" is just a movie, but some lucky youngsters can take part of a sleepover in the exhibits at the Museum of Natural History. NY1's Rebecca Spitz filed the following report on NY1 and Time Warner Cable's ongoing efforts to interest young people in the sciences through the "Connect A Million Minds" program.Not every kid has a chance to sleep below a blue whale, but for the kids participating in the American Museum of Natural History's "Night at the Museum" program, this childlike fantasy becomes reality.
As the doors close to the public and the lights dim, over 450 kids armed with flashlights and sleeping bags take over the museum for an annual program that educates and inspires.
"I think the most exciting part for the kids is they walk into the Hall of Ocean Life and they see the whale. They're screaming and they wonder if it's going to move at midnight," says Leslie Martinez, the manager of the "Night At The Museum" program.
A flashlight-lit fossil hunt, an expedition into the world of frogs and a presentation of local birds of prey are just a selection of the night's itinerary. The night magically closes as the kids settle down next to a school of dolphins or under the 94-foot blue whale.
Participating children readily share with NY1 what they learn about in the museum.
"Like, the animals' habitats and how they live," says one child.
"Dinosaurs," says another.
"I just really want to see if it's true, if everything really does come alive at midnight," says a third.
The night is also for parents who want to introduce their children to the world of science.
"Everything about the museum is about them exploring, whether it's about underwater life or the mammals. They love the discovery area where they dig for fossils," says one participating child's parent. "They get to come and see and feel and touch things here. It's terrific."
"And to see them just be so excited and to have a hands-on learning experience is just so lovely and also sleeping under the whale is pretty cool," says mother Ilana Mattison. "I feel like a kid setting up my sleeping bag and pillow. Come on, as a grownup when do you get to do that?"
For more information on how to have a "Night At The Museum," visit www.amnh.org or call 1-212-769-5200 to make reservations.