KERA Arts Story Search



Looking for events? Click here for the Go See DFW events calendar.

A Delay Re-Opening, But Plenty Online From Fort Worth Museum of Science


by Mia Estrada 13 Jul 2020 6:00 AM

Every day on Art&Seek, we’re talking to people who have tips on art in the time of social distancing.  Share yours with us on Facebook, Instagram, or @artandseek on Twitter. Click above to listen to Morgan Rehnberg from the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, share his tip with KERA’s Nilufer Arsala.  

The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History was to be the fifth museum to re-open in Fort Worth’s Cultural District on July 14, but the museum will hold back due to recent spikes of COVID-19 cases in Texas.

The Museum presents Discovery Lab Online, a new source of online content for families at home. 

The museum planned to re-open with new artifact-based exhibits, disposable kids activities and self-guided technology. A new opening date wasn’t disclosed in a press release.

The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History holds Discovery Lab Online, a YouTube video series, that showcases artifact-based collections to history lessons. (Left-to-Right: Morgan Rehnberg, Leishawn Spotted Bear, Julie Mirpuri, Leigh Ann Naylor, Jessica Esquivel and Rebecca Reed).

Morgan Rehnberg, the museum’s chief scientist, said the cultural center will continue with its virtual education program called Discovery Lab Online on YouTube. Participants can leave comments on videos or email questions about what they’d like to see. 

We put together weekly videos on various topics, which range from hands-on activities, history, science and interviews, all by the museum’s staff,” Rehnberg said. 

With over 50 videos provided for people, some of the latest hits have been about Kiowa War Chief Big Bow’s artwork on lined paper in a U.S. government book and the museum’s collection of the Great Horned Owl.

Leishawn Spotted Bear, the assistant curator of science at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, shares how the owls hear, see and hunt. The video on YouTube has over 400 views. 

Morgan Rehnberg, the chief scientist at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, takes a question from a second-grader named Sam who wanted to know how astronauts get water in space. 

Erica Shumann with the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History teaches viewers about the historical significance of Texas Barbecue, and even how to make it.

In addition to the Discovery Lab online, the museum offers customized Online Field Trips. The online interactive, paid classes are offered in two formats: online sessions that hold up to 25 participants or a pre-taped class with unlimited participants. Members can choose from stories and crafts, astronomy and science classes.

Got a tip? Email Mia Estrada at [email protected]. You can follow her on Twitter @miaaestrada.

Art&Seek is made possible through the generosity of our members. If you find this reporting valuable, consider making a tax-deductible gift today. Thank you.

SHARE