Last month we visited the Franklin Institute when I had an event on location. My husband and the kids started exploring while I was at my event and I joined them afterward. Today I’m sharing 5 family favorite things at the Franklin Institute.

If you are looking for things to do in Philly with kids, you definitely need to add The Franklin Institute to your shortlist. It was an exceptionally busy day since it was chilly, rainy, and the weekend, but we were still able to enjoy most of the exhibits without long waits. Today I’m sharing each of our favorite parts.

I have always loved anything to do with the ‘amazing machine‘. It has always intrigued me to see how things work. I never was one of those children who disassembled things to figure it out, thank goodness, but  the words ‘why’ and ‘how’ are STILL, quite possibly, my favorite words in the English language. Of course I was mesmerized by the section that talks about and shows examples of how things work! It’s okay for adults to still be mesmerized by moving objects, right?

My daughter’s favorite section was ‘Your Brain‘. She especially loved the climbing zone that is suppose to replicate a neural network. Be forewarned, while this is fun for kids, it is a little dark so you want to choose a meeting spot right before they head up and then keep a good eye out for them as it is easy to get all turned around up there. I loved the whole exhibit. It allows you to make a very comprehensive study of the brain based on just that exhibit and caters to kids of all learning levels.

My oldest son’s favorite exhibit at The Franklin Institute was ‘Space Command‘. He liked the exhibit in general, but really loved the mini games where they had to find things in space and experiment type stations. They are really picking good ones! I loved this one too. I was never a huge science buff, but I have always loved space. I remember the first time we went on an astronomy field trip at night. I threw myself into learning everything I could about constellations and planets. As a lover of all things LEGO, he also enjoyed the LEGO Vatican.

My middle child’s favorite exhibit was ‘Sir Isaac’s Loft‘. It was fun to see the kids try the different activities then figure out what made it work that way. He loved that it was very interactive (his words!!). He loved that they could sit in a seat and use a pulley to hoist themselves up. We discussed the difference in having a pulley to hoist yourself up with versus just tying the ends of a rope to a chair and a tree branch and trying to pull yourself up that way.

My husband enjoyed ‘The Giant Heart‘ exhibit the most, especially the opportunity to “walk through” a heart replica. I loved the interactive display and the scale that showed the size of different creatures’ hearts and the kids loved the exercise games.

The Franklin Institute has many more exhibits, including temporary exhibits. No matter what type of education you choose for your children, there is so much opportunity for educational enrichment and to experience learning with “no walls”. Best of all, you get the opportunity to have fun being a kid WITH your kid.

Which exhibit at The Franklin Institute most interests you?

Share in the comments!