Nebraska Mobile Museum: Truckin’ Across Nebraska

As a part of the Nebraska 150 sesquicentennial, a Nebraska mobile museum was developed for children. This well designed museum provides quite the experience for children across Nebraska.

The fun actually starts before you even enter the inside of the museum. First they have supplies out, so that kids can create old-fashioned games and crafts from Nebraska displays.The displays allow kids to make designs out of all sorts of foam shapes.

One of the highlights is the Outdoor chore race. Kids get to attempt to reenact several chores that Nebraska pioneer children would have done. From bringing out the cows to tossing “buffalo chips” to churning butter to shooting a buffalo, children can pretend to do many chores that might have been done by their counterparts long ago.

Inside, the space is well designed. Most of the activities are on a smaller scale. But they managed to pack many into this trailer. All of the activities have to do with Nebraska.

Agri-Quest is a computer game where eight participants can compete against each other. The game consists of three different rounds. This one ended up being the favorite of my youngest son. Somehow he ended up getting one of the highest scores every time. I am not sure if he is a good guesser, or if he really has learned about Nebraska agriculture.

Homestead Hero is another game where participants can plot out their perfect homestead. Since they have to visually chart how to use their land, they are learning as they are arranging. Homesteading must have been quite challenging.

The other exhibits contain other fun ways to learn more about Nebraska life. Those exploring this museum can accept several challenges.

-Can you build a house to withstand a tornado? The miniature wind booth will verify your creation is solid.

-Can you build a structure to withstand an earthquake? No, those are not quite as common here. But you can still test your structure on the “vibrating” plates.

-Can you tackle old-fashioned games? How about are you able to toss the ball on a string into the attached wooden cup? Do you know how to make a whirli-gig? Can you make the spinner keep twirling around?

-Are you able to make your own picture collage? My daughter really enjoyed that project.

-Can you write your own Nebraska poem?

-Are you able to write a postcard from Nebraska? Okay, that is not exactly a challenge, but that is a fun project.

So many of the projects capture the imaginations of all visitors! According to the Nebraska 150 website, this mobile museum was designed with 5-12 year olds in mind. I brought my 12 year old and his buddy, and my 10 year old and my 8 year old. All of them enjoyed different parts more. I would consider bringing my three year old niece and nephew to this museum, but I do think several of the stations would definitely be over their heads.

Where to find the Nebraka Mobile Museum

This Nebraska mobile museum is truckin’ across Nebraska through the end of September. Each week on my Odyssey Through Nebraska Facebook, I will be posting where the museum is visiting that week. I hope that my readers are all able to visit. If you do go this museum, please comment below and let me know what you think!