Since premiering in January 2000, Grossology continues to create a “buzz” in every community it visits, setting new attendance, membership, and revenue records.OK, so gross is all about the stuff adults don’t talk about in polite company. But kids do. And they love it. The weirder, slimier, gnarlier, the better. That’s exactly the inspiration behind this fascinating new traveling exhibition.
Grossology is a fun, exciting and educationally stimulating exhibition based on the best-selling book Grossology by science teacher Sylvia Branzei. Grossology is basically science in disguise, using gross terms to explain to children ages 6 to 14 how and why their bodies produce the mushy, oozy, crusty, scaly and stinky things they do. “If we teach students in their words, they’ll understand better and actually learn something,” says Branzei. Guess what? It works. And it attracts kids. Lots of kids.
And if it works in a book, just think what it will do in a larger-than-life, three-dimensional form. That’s just what Advanced Exhibits and Science World British Columbia have dreamed up. Visitors discover the world of Grossology by physically stepping into the Grossology book, just like Alice stepping through the looking glass.
- The exhibition is arranged according to three themes—The Nose, The Gut, and Other Gross Stuff—and uses sophisticated and imaginative exhibits to actively engage visitors. Just imagine:
- Walking through the giant nose to learn about air filtering, air heating, olfaction and mucus…
- Playing gastrointestinal pinball to discover that different foods produce different amounts of gas…
- Learning the central role of the brain during vomiting…
- Listening to sounds in the body…
- Climbing a large-scale replica of human skin…
- Looking inside the body to see exactly what happens during digestion…
- Having a 10-foot-tall character teach you how gas pressure and the stomach’s cardiac sphincter play a major role in the production of burps…
Yes, it’s gross, but behind every exhibit is a sound scientific base. In addition, scientific information is in great supply on large oversized book pages surrounding the exhibits. “Gross Factoids” are used to emphasize science facts, cultural differences and healthy actions. Visitors not only have fun, they learn something in the process.
Grossology is also available in a smaller, 2,500-square-foot version. Contact Advanced Exhibits for details.