educational_programs

State Museum's Homeschool Fridays

Join us the third Friday of the month for lessons designed specifically for Homeschool students.  All programs are free to South Carolina Homeschools unless otherwise noted.

To make a reservation or for more information on programs, call (803) 898-4999 or email groupvisits@scmuseum.org
September 17th
10:30 a.m.
  • Pirates, Privateers, and Buccaneers ($3 per person)
  • STARLAB: Pirate Skies ($3 per person)   FULL
  • Revolution at Sea – Privateers of Colonial America  FULL
  • Introductory Tour
  • The Solar System
1 p.m.
October 15th
10:30 a.m.
  • Pirates, Privateers, and Buccaneers ($3 per person)
  • STARLAB: Moon Phases ($3 per person)
  • Revolution at Sea – Privateers of Colonial America
  • Umbrellas or Snowshoes
  • Mind over Muscle
1 p.m.
  • Pirates, Privateers, and Buccaneers ($3 per person)
  • STARLAB: Seasons ($3 per person)
  • SC SMart - Aluminum Foil Sculptures  ($3 per person)
  • Revolution at Sea – Privateers of Colonial America  
  • WILD II  FULL
  • Native Americans: First South Carolinians
November 19th
10:30 a.m.
  • Pirates, Privateers, and Buccaneers ($3 per person)
  • STARLAB: Native American Mythology ($3 per person)
  • SONOCO presents: "Sadie the Pioneer Lady"  FULL
  • Our Art, Our History  FULL
  • Sticks & Stones
1 p.m.
  • Pirates, Privateers, and Buccaneers ($3 per person)
  • STARLAB: Pirate Skies ($3 per person)
  • SC SMart - Fabric Assemblage ($3 per person) 
  • SONOCO presents: DIY paper making  FULL
  • That's Sound Science
December 17th
10:30 a.m.
1 p.m.
 

Program Descriptions for Fall Homeschool Fridays

Cultural History Tour
Students will explore exhibits that describe the rich cultural contributions of Native Americans, African-Americans and European-Americans who once lived in our state.

Introduction to the State Museum
Designed for the first-time visitor. Students will view and learn about exhibits in each of the museum’s subject areas.
 
Mind over Muscle
Can you lift a concrete brick with one hand?  It doesn’t take muscle if you know how to flex your mind!  Learn how simple machines and basic fundamentals of physics are applied to make everyday tasks easier.  Mind over Muscle features several hand-on activities and demonstrations that illustrate how force is multiplied by using pulleys, levers, and other machines.  We’ll also talk about Newton’s 3 Laws of Motion, Bernoulli’s principle, and the law of Conservation of Energy.  And as for the brick…you just might be surprised at how much you can lift when you put your mind to it!
 
Native Americans : The First South Carolinians
Visit a tribal village, home to the first inhabitants of South Carolina. Learn about the rich cultural contributions of Native Americans.
 
Our Art, Our History
Our history is expressed and celebrated through art. Students will explore works ranging from the Philip Simmons Gate to presentation swords to portraits to discover how works of art tell the story of South Carolina.
 
Palmetto Portraits
Take a guided tour through the Lipscomb Gallery and see your fellow Palmetto State residents in their everyday environments.  The exhibit includes more than 275 photographs by 24 South Carolina photographers depicting South Carolinians at work and play.
 
Palmetto State at War
Life changed dramatically for most people during the Civil War. Thousands of men went off to war leaving women in charge of running businesses, farms and plantations. Students will examine how citizens coped with shortages on the home front. They will equip a “soldier” for war and find out about the burning of Columbia.
 
Revolution at Sea – Privateers of Colonial America
Commandeer the seas in the late 18th century!  Learn how the Continental Navy,
American privateers, and merchant sailors contributed to the winning of the American Revolution through role-playing and interaction! Presented by SC Confederate Relic Room & Military Museum.
 
SC SMart:
We are proud to offer three different sessions of the immensely popular art class exclusively to Homeschoolers!
• September - Watercolor Vases: Students will learn about positive and negative space while creating ”vases” using watercolors.
• October - Aluminum Foil Sculptures: By learning the basics of 3-D art, students will create sculptures by shaping aluminum foil.
• November - Fabric Assemblage:  Using the techniques of quilt makers, students will use fabrics to learn visual space and pattern to form compositions.
 
SONOCO presents: "Sadie the Pioneer Lady"
Enjoy a short one woman play about the importance of reusing goods and materials.  Then, learn about how materials are recycled today!
 
SONOCO presents: DIY paper making
This hands-on activity shows how paper is made and how easily it can be recycled.  Students will get to make and take home their very own hand-made paper!
 
The Solar System
Students will take a trip through the solar system during this Science Theatre presentation.  Exploration is enhanced by computer images and interactive activities.
 
Sticks & Stones
In NatureSpace, students will learn about the animals that share their backyards. Using their knowledge of the elements which make a good habitat, students will build a squirrel’s nest and create their own backyard habitat using our collection of “critters."
 
That’s Sound Science
Sound is everywhere – but what is sound?  Learn how matter and vibration are involved in the way sound moves.  Describe how the ear interprets sound.  We’ll even show you how to make sound disappear!
 
Umbrellas & Snowshoes
How’s the weather today? In NatureSpace, students will measure temperature, make a cloud chart, and learn about the water cycle.  
 
WILD I
Using Project WILD, a nationally recognized environmental education curriculum, participants will engage in activities that emphasize the importance of wildlife such as insects, spiders, birds, reptiles, fish, amphibians, and mammals.  Activities are appropriate for K-12 students.
 
WILD II – In the Water
Our aquatic environment includes streams, lakes, pond, and salt marshes. This interactive environmental education lesson focuses on exploration and understanding of the fascinating world of water and the aquatic habitats it supports.  Activities are adapted from the Aquatic WILD curriculum for K-12 students.
 

STARLAB Programs

Constellations
Students will learn how to identify the most prominent stars and constellations including Polaris, Orion, Betelguise, and more.  Students will discuss the current conditions in their night and day skies, including any visible planets, the moon, scheduled meteor showers, and other activity.
 
Continents Adrift
Investigate Earth’s crustal plates, trenches, rift zones, volcanic activity and more for evidence of the theories of continental drift, sea floor spreading and plate tectonics.
 
Native American Mythology
See the night sky through the eyes of various Native American tribes— Navajo, Shoshoni, Cherokee, Hopi, and others— and learn how the stars ushered in the seasons and how they explained the various phenomena of nature.
 
Phases of the Moon
In this lesson students will be able to see all of the phases of the moon.  They will learn the names and order of each phase, the relative locations of the phases in the sky, and why these phases occur.
 
Pirate Skies
No GPS?  What’s a Pirate to do?  In Pirate Skies, find out how pirates navigated using the stars. Learn how to find north and the other directions in the night sky. Ahoy, Mateys!!
 
Seasons
Learn about the reasons for the seasons: Students look at the earth’s spin, axis, distance from the sun, rotation and revolution, and how the sun affects the earth.  Students may also be introduced to the Chinese seasons, as well as the solstices and equinoxes.