Event Description
Join us as we kick off our Bicentennial with a public celebration featuring family activities, educational programming, music, games, crafts, and birthday cake!
We will reveal our newest exhibit, The Academy at 200: The Nature of Discovery, an exhibit that highlights the groundbreaking discoveries of the past and present and provides a glimpse into our future. See rarely seen specimens and look over Academy scientists’ shoulders as they travel the globe, seek to understand the natural world, and help others learn from their findings.
Throughout the Museum
- Barbershop Quartet
- Sing a song of celebration! Tune in and you might just hear the amazing four-part harmony of barbershop singers. You never know where you’ll find them!
- Re-enactors
- Join us this weekend for a one-of-a-kind chance to meet some true natural-science greats: John James Audubon, Joseph Leidy, Ruth Patrick, Lucy Say, Edward Drinker Cope, and Matthew Henson!
- Juggling Extravaganza
- Think juggling homework and chores is tough? Try juggling scientific collections. Roving juggler Randy Lyons wanders the museum on Saturday teaching and juggling some fascinating specimens.
- Pop-up Diorama Tours
- These brief pop-up tours will give you an insider’s view of our dioramas and Dinosaur Hall. Discover some of the mysteries and secrets behind these Academy wonders.
Hourly on the half hour
Special Events
- Live Animal Show
- Meet some of our animal ambassadors from the Academy’s Live Animal Center.
11 am and 5 pm
- Bicentennial Bowl
- Do you love science? We do, and we have 200 years of discovery to show for it! Show off your natural science smarts in the first-ever game show about the Academy of Natural Sciences, where kids ages 6–12 can compete for prizes. Bring your knowledge about dinosaurs, animals, and the Academy! The game show is hosted by Joseph Leidy, “the last man who knew everything.”
1 pm
- Mini Mega-Bad Movie
- You know the drill! Join us in the auditorium for some awesomely awful flicks.
All ages are welcome to watch these family friendly “;Land of the Lost” episodes from the 1970s. Rick, Will, and Holly go on some crazy, fun, and very unscientific adventures with dinosaurs and other creatures. Join our staff as we have fun making fun of this classic TV series.
3 and 7 pm
- Diggity Dudes
- The Diggity Dudes play hip music for hip kids and their equally hip parents. A typical set covers everything from pet rocks to disco moves, science experiments, and presidential physical fitness, all delivered via ultra-catchy melodies over funky and danceable grooves. Interactive skits, audience participation, and a lighthearted comedic twist are what make a Diggity Dudes show more than a show—it's truly an experience.
Saturday: 4 and 6 pm
Sunday: Noon, 2, and 4 pm
Ongoing Activities
- Make your own collection
- Get a head start on creating your own collection! Pick up and decorate your own bicentennial collection box. Return every month for a new specimen to add to your growing collection.
- Bicentennial Birthday Book
- Help us make memories by signing our handmade bicentennial book. Wish us a happy birthday! The book and your messages will be kept and archived in perpetuity for our future birthday celebrations.
- Audubon Page Turnings
- Join us in the Library as we turn the page of John James Audubon’s masterwork, The Birds of America. Published from 1827–1838, this monumental work is arguably the most influential book on birds ever created. Mr. Audubon himself will even drop in from time to time!
12:30, 1:30, 2:30, 3:30, 4:30, and 5:30 pm
- PECO Presents: Lights From Life
- From fireflies to mushrooms, many different organisms produce their own light, known as bioluminescence. Many animals have unique adaptations to see things that are invisible to humans, including ultraviolet (UV) and infrared (IR) light. Investigate how these species see the world, and view some of the different lights from living things.
- Academy Collections
- The Academy is home to more than 18 million scientific specimens. How much space do they take up? What collection is the largest? Come investigate these questions at our hands-on interactive station.
- Joe on the Go
- Joseph Leidy was said to be the last man to know everything. Even when he was just a boy, he was always trying to understand his world. Whether he was solving a mystery by taking a close look at cell structure or piecing together fossil remains of an ancient beast based on a modern-day descendant, Joseph Leidy was always on the go!
- In the spirit of Joseph Leidy, the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University wants you to engage with the world of science and take one of natural history’s most important figures with you! As you explore the museum, bring young Joseph Leidy with you, take a picture with him, and share it with the Academy.
- Visitors can color Joseph Leidy and upload their pictures LIVE to our Flikr page.
- Face Painting
- Get into the bicentennial spirit and have your face painted!
- Tools of the Trade
- Scientists at the Academy use many different tools to do their research. Can you match the correct tool to the scientist who uses it?
- Light Show
- From March 22–27, watch an amazing light and animated laser show on the Academy’s facade.
Every night on the half hour starting at 7:30 pm
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