The Nauticus and USS Battleship Wisconsin museum is offering free admission for kids throughout January. The offer applies to children aged four to 12 accompanied by a paid adult. (Limit two kids per one paid adult admission.)
Nauticus holds its annual Homeschool Day on January 21, 2009. According to the Nauticus website, all Homeschool Day reservation-only workshops are filled. Many other programs, however, will be held throughout the museum that day. Several high-definition films, shown in the 350-seat Nauticus Theater, are included in admission.
Currently, the films The Living Sea, The Blue Planet: Seas of Life—The Deep, and The Octupus Challenge are showing.
The Living Sea takes viewers from surfing in Hawaii to deep-sea diving in Palau. Along the way, you will meet giant clams, thousands of jelly-fish, and some humpback whales. The film also shows Coast Guard operations in treacherous seas.
The Blue Planet: Seas of Life—The Deep goes for everything weird, strange and bizarre that lives in the depths of the ocean. The film takes you on an underwater voyage, teaching about the ocean’s “climate” and topography along the way.
The Octupus Challenge is bunches you want to know about these boneless molluscs. And who knew? Octupi can be amusing—as films of these swirling creatures “squeezing into tiny spaces, sniffing out hidden food, and even opening doors” show.
The Nauticus Theater also regularly screens Gateway to the World. Gateway to the World tells all about the Port of Virginia, the world’s largest natural harbor. It depicts the “trains, cranes and container ships that reveal the beauty of transportation” in what is, in fact, Virginia’s world gateway.
Museum visitors also can touch a shark and see skate swooping and swimming.
All programs and exhibits are subject to change.
Admission to the Nauticus includes exciting interactive programs, such as Battlescopes, Aegis and Design Chamber. It also includes access to the USS Wisconsin. After serving in World War II and earning five battle stars, “The Whiskey” is now a museum ship moored next to the Nauticus. “Sailors” are on deck to answer questions as you tour the battleship.
In addition to free admission for kids throughout January (some restrictions apply), the Nauticus offers discounts for groups of 15 or more.
For more information, visit Nauticus.org .
For more information on other family-friendly attractions in the Hampton Roads area, visit Museum Hopping in Hampton Roads, Virginia.
Sources:
Nauticus and USS Battleship Wisconsin.
“Local Events,” Pilot Online.
