Interactive Exhibit Labels


All science centers and many other types of museums make use of hands-on exhibit devices to help visitors better understand difficult concepts.  Hands-on elements can also help to engage visitors in the learning process.  Labels for hands-on devices must clearly describe how to interact with the device, what to look for, and how to interpret the results of the interaction.  I have developed interactive labels for many clients, including The Franklin Institute, The New Jersey State Aquarium, the Arkansas Museum of Discovery, etc.

In 2001, I worked with The Gecko Group, exhibit designer for  the Discovery Room at the Delaware Museum of Natural History, to develop interactive labels for a set of hands-on "labs."  Each "lab" included a set of activities designed to help elementary students explore their senses.  The activity were simple, low-tech experiments that could be easily managed and inexpensively replaced.

Interactive Labels for The Delaware Museum of Natural History


A TOUCHY SUBJECT

 Where's your sense of touch?  It's in your skin -- and your skin covers your whole body.  The bottom layer of your skin can sense pressure, pain, heat and cold.  Nerves in your skin send information to your brain.  It's your brain's job to figure out what your skin is touching!

 INSTRUCTIONS

 Put your finger in the first hole.  What do you feel?  When you think you know what's inside, find a game piece with a picture that matches your guess.  For instance, if you think you feel fur, find a game piece with a picture of fur on it.  Put the right game piece in the first hole.  Now, check out the next hole.  When every game piece is in a hole, check the back of this flip book for the right answers!

 ANSWERS:

  1. Rock (hard)
  2. Fur (soft)
  3. Bark (bumpy)
  4. Coral (sharp)
  5. Snake skin (smooth)
  6. Sand paper (rough)
  7. Feathers (fluffy)
  8. Sponge (spongy)
  9. Metal (cold)

HOW DO I TASTE?

 Human tongues can only taste four flavors: bitter, salty, sour and sweet.  We taste each flavor on a different part of our tongues.   So how do we know whether we're eating chocolate cake or peach cobbler?  The taste buds in our mouths send information to our brains.  Our brains process the information and tell us what we're tasting!

 INSTRUCTIONS: 

Try putting together the puzzle.  When you get it right, you'll have a map of your own tongue!  Check the last page of this booklet for the right answer.

When you get home, try this!  Get four cotton swabs.  Dip one in salty water, one in sugar water, one in vinegar and one in horseradish.  Touch the different foods to different parts of your tongue.  How accurate is the tongue map? 

COOL STUFF ABOUT YOUR TONGUE

         Human beings have almost 10,000 taste buds, some on the roof of their mouths.   Girls usually have more taste buds than boys.

   Insects are better at tasting than any other animal.

  The older you get, the fewer taste buds you have.

 
NOW HEAR THIS

Clap your hands.  When you do, vibrations called sound waves start moving through the air in all directions.  Some sound waves hit your ear drum and start it vibrating.  The vibrations send a message through your inner ear and on up to your brain.  Your brain tells you "I hear clapping!" 

 INSTRUCTIONS 

  1. Pick up the bottle labeled #1 and shake it.  What do you hear?
  2. Find the picture of the sound you heard.  For instance, if you heard a sound like paper clips clinking together, find a picture of paper clips.
  3. Put the picture in the slot above the bottle, and put the bottle back.
  4. Do the same thing for all the bottles.
  5. When you're done, check the next page for the right answers!

 ANSWERS

  1. Paper clips
  2. Rocks
  3. Marbles
  4. Pennies
  5. Cotton
  6. Sand
  7. Leaves
  8. Beans

SUPER SNIFFER!

 Your brain can recognize almost 10,000 different smells.  But how do smells get to your brain?  Smells start as tiny particles – little bitty bits of rose, or peppermint, or tar or smoke.  The smell particles make their way through the mucus in your nose to the olfactory (smelling) bulb.  There, they fit into a special nerve cell that's ready to receive the particles.  The nerve cells send a message to your brain to let you know it's time to smell the roses.

 INSTRUCTIONS 

  1. Pick up the bottle labeled #1 and sniff it.  What do you smell?
  2. Find the picture of the smell.  For instance, if you smelled chocolate, find a picture of a chocolate bar.
  3. Put the picture in the slot above the bottle, and put the bottle back.
  4. Do the same thing for all the bottles.
  5. When you're done, check the next page for the right answers!

 ANSWERS 

  1. Lemon
  2. Coconut
  3. Peppermint
  4. Rose
  5. Vinegar
  6. Chocolate
  7. Vanilla
  8. Strawberry
  9. Cucumber
  10. Cinnamon
  11. Orange
  12. Pepper