STEM activities in Darwin
Darwin is a great location to get your children interested in STEM (Science Technologies Environment & Mathematics) activities. Following are some of our favorite suggestions.
Photo: Patch Clapp
George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens
The Botanical gardens in Darwin are a great location to teach children about natural history, especially flora. With the aid of a map, children can orient themselves within the garden and follow one of several walks. They can follow the Tree walk, cycad walk, Larrakia coastal walk, or Matboerrma walk. As they follow each walk’s path, they will learn about trees of significance, several species of cycads, mangroves of the NT, and how local Larrakia people use native plants. Throughout, they will also learn to develop their spatial skills by using a map to orient themselves in the garden. Moreover, they can get a bird identification sheet from the visitor center, which they can use to identify the avifauna they will encounter during their walks.
If at some point during the excursion you need to hide from the heat of the day, you can cool down within the visitor center and enjoy their interactive display.
Lastly, for a bit of treasure finding, kids can challenge themselves to find the 5 dinosaurs hidden within the cycad Garden.
For more information visit https://nt.gov.au/parks/find-a-park/george-brown-darwin-botanic-gardens
Darwin Aviation museum
The Darwin Aviation Museum is an excellent outing to teach kids about history and science. The museum showcases a range of real airplanes (19 in total!). Moreover, the museum tells fascinating tales and exploits of aviation, such as the 1919 great air race, during which pilots had to fly from London to Darwin within less than 30 days. Back then, this was an exceptional feat, especially when keeping in mind that airplanes had open cockpits and were partially made of wood! You can find out more about this event and several more by visiting the museum’s displays. More importantly for budding scientists, the museum has several displays and games to teach children and adults about engineering. For instance, have you ever wondered how telephones and communication work? You can find this out and much more at the museum!
For more information visit https://www.darwinaviationmuseum.com.au/
Museum and Art Gallery of Northern Territory Discovery Center
The MAGNT Discovery center in Darwin offers a range of arts and craft activities for kids. They hold a large collection of puzzles and children’s books, which makes it an ideal space to practice problem solving and learn about a variety of subjects. Moreover, the museum has the MAGNT Explorers challenge. During this challenge, kids receive cryptic clues and embark on a journey through the galleries to solve them. It is a fun and rewarding way to explore and learn!
To learn more visit https://www.whatson4kids.com.au/listings/northern-territory/the-gardens/activities-and-classes/museum-and-art-gallery-of-northern-territory/#post_content
City of Darwin Library STEAM Zone
The STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) zone is a series of fun educational activities organized by the city of Darwin libraries. The activities cover a wide range of subjects and cater to children and teens of all ages. Are you interested in chemistry, outer space, construction, or robots? You can learn about all these subjects and more, but make sure to visit the program online to identify which activities you would like to attend!
The STEAM Zone also has two great clubs: the LEGO club and the Coding & Robotics club. The Lego club is ideal to develop fine motor skills as well as one’s creativity. As for the Coding & Robotics club, it will teach your children about various computer programming software, coding, and robotics: skills more and more useful by the nowadays! Lastly, if you cannot make it in person, note that the STEAM zone has several educational videos available online.
For more information visit: https://www.darwin.nt.gov.au/libraries/kids-and-teens/steam-programs/steam-zone-0
Crocodylus Park
The Crocodylus park is, as you may have guessed, an ideal opportunity to see saltwater crocodiles up close. However, it offers more than jumping crocodile shows. Indeed, besides the undeniable wow factor of making these giant reptiles jump out of the water, your tour guides will teach you about the biology and conservation of saltwater crocodiles. The park also has a museum in which you can learn about the research made on crocodilians and about their place within human history. Lastly, Crocodylus not only hosts crocodiles, but also several other native animals such as barramundi, dingos, emus, and cassowaries, but also some impressive exotic species such as lions, ostriches, baboons, and meerkats.
For more information visit: https://www.crocodyluspark.com.au/
Photo: François Brassard
Territory Wildlife Park
The territory wildlife park is a location like no other to learn about the wildlife of the northern territory. By visiting the park, children will learn about the most charismatic animal found in our oceans, rivers, wetlands, and savannas. This includes some of the most elusive fauna most people rarely get to see, such as quolls and sugar gliders. In addition to the beautiful and informative displays, the park organizes several shows throughout the day. The daily flight deck is a fantastic event to see the fascinating prowess and behaviors of our local birds. You can also witness freshwater whip rays feeding during the Oollo San Bar show. Throughout their day at the park, children can use a map to get to their most preferred exhibits, thus practicing their orientation skills. All in all, the territory wildlife park is a must to learn about the biology and ecology of the ecosystems of the Northern Territories.
For more information visit: https://territorywildlifepark.com.au/
Photo: François Brassard
Crocosaurus Cove
At the heart of Darwin city center lies Crocosaurus Cove, an unlikely location to have close encounters with large saltwater crocodiles. Nevertheless, the cove has several impressive crocodile displays, the most famous being the cage of death, which is Australia’s only crocodile dive. If you are looking for a less terrifying encounter, you can feed freshwater whip rays assisted by experienced guides.
Besides these activities, the cove also has a fantastic Reptile House, which is the World’s largest display of Australian reptiles. With more than 70 species from the Top End to the Red center, it is the ideal place to learn about the impressive herpetofauna found down under. Even better, if your kids want to know more they can do the Junior Reptile Ranger program, where they will encounter additional animals of the NT, learn how to handle them, prepare their meals and even feed them!
For more information visit: https://www.crocosauruscove.com/