Just a swimmin': Kids can learn about, touch minnows at today's Discovery Center program

Jenna Blount, Clinton Herald, Iowa
·2 min read

Jan. 22—CLINTON — The Felix Adler Children's Discovery Center, a hands-on children's museum, was started in 1993 with the goal to educate children in a safe and positive environment where the whole family would be encouraged to explore and play.

One way in which the Center achieves this goal is through its partnership with Clinton County Conservation, an organization that also offers educational opportunities to students.

This week, those two entities have partnered for the weekly Funtime Friday and Saturday programs. Clinton County Conservation's Jessica Steines, an interpretive naturalist, was at the children's museum Friday for the Mighty Minnows event that also will be offered today.

Steines visits the Discovery Center about once a month to lead programs featuring everything from turtles to snakes and owls. The programs expose children to parts of nature they might not otherwise have the opportunity to experience within the city.

While it might have been a little too cold for many families to attend Friday, the live animals Steines brings with her to the Discovery Center usually attract a significant audience.

"They respond well," Steines said about how kids react to the animals and her knowledge of them. "They're excited, you know, and they're young too, so I'll be on the floor, and I try to stay at their level, and they'll be on my lap. They just want to touch and hold [the animals]... I want them to learn by experience rather than me telling them... Rather than me telling them that [minnows] have slimy scales, they get to feel it."

At the same time, Steines said, "It's OK to be afraid of something new," and is compassionate with those who may choose not to be so involved.

Roberta Schwartz, the Discovery Center's education and program coordinator, summed up the experience they're sure to have when the program is offered again at 10:30 a.m. today: "Children come here and they play to learn, and adults learn to play again."