ROOFTOP
FUN FACTORY
You’ve got to see this new exhibit! The Rooftop
Fun Factory takes play outside and opens it up under a big blue
sky. Explore the world of simple machines as you enjoy sound,
movement and fun high up on the rooftop. Blow soap bubbles and
watch as they gently sail through the air. Turn a wheel to play
a pretty tune. Use pulleys to lift yourself off the roof. Work
a hand pump up and down as you launch balls into the air and
make them bounce through a cage. Spin yourself around as you
simulate the motion of an Archimedes' screw. Crank a huge ball
into the air and watch as it shakes the roof on its way back
down. Moms, dads and kids use simple machines disguised as huge
amusements to build family fun in this factory.
The factory is located in previously unused
space (the rooftop). It takes fun sky high as it teaches children
about the form and function of six simple machine types: pulleys,
levers, wedges, wheels and axles, screws, and planes.
- Blow
It! Bubble Bins – Kids can play in tubs filled
with bubble solution. They can use bubble wands of different
sizes and shapes to blow bubbles into the sky. Playing with
bubbles teaches children about molecular surface tension.
-
Play It! Melody Maker – Children
turn a wheel that revolves an old fashioned music cylinder,
much like the ones on a player piano, which in turn cranks
out a pretty tune. What actually happens – the wheel
and axle turn a series of gears. One of the gears causes
a series of levers to come down on a series of chimes in
such a way that they make a tune.
- Twist
It! Archimedes’ Screw – Transports
multicolored balls out of their bin, up an incline, and
back down a tube, only to start all over again. Children
need only sit on the wheel and twirl themselves around to
make the giant sized Archimedes’ Screw turn. What’s
a screw? – It’s actually a circular inclined
plane!
-
Lift It! –
Two sets of pulleys allow children to take a seat and lift
them-selves up off the roof using the pulleys and a rope.
One chair is a 4-to-1 ratio and the other is 8-to-1. This
lets visitors experience the difference the number of pulleys
make in lifting an object – especially yourself.
- Launch
It!
– Using an inclined plane and a lever, children use
a hand pump to build up air pressure and shoot balls through
a cage. What actually happens – as children pump,
the lever turns a gear that rotates a circular inclined
plane (looks like a flat Nautilus shell) which in turn lifts
a steel plate. Lifting the plate builds up air pressure.
When the plate drops, the air pressure shoots a series of
balls up a tube and through the cage.
-
Drop It!
The Big Ball Tower – using a series
of wheels, axles, gears, chains and levers, children lift
a huge, 28-pound ball to the top of a tower. Then the ball
zigzags back and forth down a series of inclined planes
as it falls down to the bottom of the tower, where it can
be lifted up to the top, to begin again.
-
The Big Tent – this area gives the
appearance of a circus big top while serving a very practical
purpose – a place where children can participate in
arts and crafts activities, a place where school groups
can have lunch, or a place for visitors to come out from
under the hot sun. The top of the tent is a wind-powered
whirligig.
Note: the Rooftop Fun Factory will be
closed in the event of thunder, lightning, torrential rain
or other extreme adverse weather. Please check with the Museum
in advance for that day’s weather conditions.
Call
the Museum at (423) 756-2738 for more information or to check
weather conditions.
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