Exploring Trees Inside and Out
By Thomas Wingham, senior director of PR, Doubletree Hotels

Editor's Note: On Feb. 9 a great new exhibit opens at Pacific Science Center. Family members of all ages will discover the wonders of trees through a very hands-on exhibition that is both fun and enlightening. Entry to this exhibit is included with the price of general admission and is free for our members. The following article was written by Thomas Wingham with Doubletree Hotels, one of two sponsors. The other is The Arbor Day Foundation. We hope you can join us for Exploring Trees Inside and Out!

For many of us, there are memorable experiences throughout our formative years that provide lasting connections to our past and help make us who we are today. And many of those experiences are attached to outdoor activities.

Remember some of those activities like that first hike with mom or dad? How about climbing a tree for the first time? Or a nature walk through the neighborhood collecting acorns, pinecones and fall leaves? Unfortunately, today's kids aren't taking advantage of the chance to explore, interact and learn from the incredible things right outside their front doors.

Debuting for the first time as part of a three-year national tour at Pacific Science Center, the Exploring Trees Inside and Out exhibit is a new interactive experience that helps connect the wonder of trees and the natural environment for kids of all ages. This visual-spatial experience has been designed for active and open-minded participation as well as to raise further awareness and understanding for one of our world's most precious natural resources.

Presented by →The Arbor Day Foundation and →Doubletree Hotels, the exhibit presents a variety of educational concepts related to learning more about trees and their connection to the natural world - so that guests will be inspired to use their new-found knowledge at a park, at school and even at home.

In Exploring Trees Inside and Out, pieces and parts of a tree become larger-than-life. Children, parents and educators can investigate the inside of a tree trunk and gaze through the veins of real leaves. Participants can even experience the simulation of light filtering through leaves or hear water move from roots to leaves.

Trees are natural indicators of changing seasons, light, temperature, color and smell. In the exhibit's "sensation stations," kids get to touch birch bark, smell cedar and the cinnamon. A blue screen activity allows more immersion -dress up as a bird or a leaf and be part of the exciting day of a tree. You can crawl through a log and experience it as a habitat for other living things, learn about how an acorn becomes a tree from the inside-out or play in a life-sized bird's nest.

This meaningful, fun, family experience encourages visitors to notice and enjoy the outdoor world around them and inspires them to begin taking positive action on behalf of trees and the natural world. Children will begin to understand and appreciate trees for the role they play in our own realities - trees enhancing our communities, as food, as shelter for other living things, and as the basis for many of the materials we use in our homes today.

By presenting Exploring Trees Inside and Out at Pacific Science Center, Doubletree Hotels and the Arbor Day Foundation are working to ensure that future generations can better understand the importance of trees and enjoy and explore the great outdoors.