Love the Museum’s Explorer Backpacks?

You’ll go wild over our new take-home Adventurer’s Backpack, guaranteed to keep your child busy on rainy and sunny days. Create an ancient oil lamp, make an exotic Egyptian death mask or fashion your very own fossils. The Adventurer’s Backpack is chock-full of awesome activity cards and materials sure to unleash young imaginations!

Ever witnessed the first flight of a butterfly? Here is your chance!

Be there for that special moment and help release the young butterflies to take flight in the Tropical Forest. Join us every morning to learn about the amazing transformation butterflies go through before they can finally fly!

Join DigiClub at Discovery World for inspirational, creative fun exploring the wide range of amazing activities new technology has to offer.

Sign-up for the Virtual Worlds module and explore a range of different worlds that can be accessed from your computer.

EVERY Sunday from 18 October – 8 November, 10am – 12pm, Discovery World

NOTHING SUCKS!
Slip into Discovery Theatre and find out just how much nothing sucks!
Not even when you use a straw to drink! Check out some amazing experiments that will demonstrate this crazy concept, right in front of your very eyes... Science shows you nothing sucks!
EVERY Saturday and Sunday until 15 November, 11am and 3pm
From 21 November onwards, 1pm, Discovery World Theatre

UNBELI-BUBBLE!
Be amazed discovering the science of bubbles! Big bubbles, small bubbles, frozen bubbles, hot bubbles, round bubbles, square bubbles... The world is your bubble. Come and see them all!
EVERY Saturday and Sunday from 21 November onwards
11am and 3pm, Discovery World Theatre

BIG IS ATTRACTIVE… IN SPACE!
Gravitate to Discovery World for cool galactic experiments! Help build our solar system to scale as we get to grips with the gravity of our planets!
EVERY Saturday and Sunday until 15 November, 1pm
Discovery World Theatre

From opalescent gemstones to mesmerising gold, humans have always been fascinated by the treasures of the Earth. Become a 'mineral Olympian' and put our samples through their paces. From weightlifting to streak tests, find out who tops the mineral hardness scale as you discover the techniques geologists use to identify minerals.

EVERY Saturday and Sunday during November, 12pm and 3.30pm

The ancient Japanese art of origami is rich in etiquette, stories and symbolism, and important in Japanese culture. This is your chance to 'join the fold' and create some of origami's most iconic shapes.

EVERY Saturday and Sunday during November and December
DAILY during the school holidays
2.30pm, FREE!

StART Workshops: Felted fabrics, wools and buttons

Need a creative outlet? Wondering where to start? Get some inspiration from the history and collections at the Otago Museum.

Each session begins with a special background intro tour. You'll view gems from the collections and find out about their history and the industry behind them. Freshly full of inspiration, you'll be introduced to handcrafts in the workshop session, from funky felts to button jewellery and hot stitches of knitting.

A great chance to get crafty before Christmas!

EVERY Saturday from 7 November to 28 November
1pm - 3.30pm, Atrium Level 2

MODULE : Beautiful buttons, wools and knits
MODULE 2: Felt, fantastic fabrics and creative critters

$12 per session or $20 for a module of 2 sessions
Bookings essential - tickets available at the Information Desk.
Includes all materials

What to StART with?

MODULE 1: Beautiful buttons, wools and knits

Beautiful buttons
Intro: Begin with a visit to the clothing and textile collection area to view a selection of garment buttons and woollen articles.
Workshop: Join the latest fashion craze and create your own button necklace or brooch - or decorate an item of clothing with buttons.
Saturday 7 November

Woolly knits
Intro: Check out beaded and button collection items and get an introduction to the Otago wool industry in Southern Land, Southern People.
Workshop: Knitting is so hot right now! This is the chance for beginners to begin simple with finger knitting, plain and purl, and offers advanced knitters a chance to increase their repertoire of stitches.
Saturday 14 November


MODULE 2: Felt, fantastic fabrics and creative critters

Felt animal critters
Intro: Check out a selection of items inside the Museum Conservation Lab - including felt stuffed toys from the 1940s and 1950s.
Workshop: Draw on the Otago Museum's soft and furry animals in the Animal Attic to create your own unique felt critter.
Saturday 21 November

Fabulous felting
Intro: Visit the Nature Gallery to collect inspiration in shapes and patterns of nature and check out felted collections on display elsewhere in the Museum.
Workshop: Let your imagination run wild, drawing on the shapes and textures in nature as inspiration, find out how to felt and make your own themed funky felt brooch.
Saturday 28 November