I recently went on some field trips with other nannies to local attractions with a group of children. Seeing the Academy of Science from the perspective of a child is a amazing thing to witness. Something as mundane as a school for fishes swimming by suddenly becomes a sight worth stopping for. And an albino alligator becomes a mysteriously pale creature worthy a hundred questions. The penguin show was also a great exhibit; a wall of glass revealing underwater tunnels full of curious birds bobbing up and down. So close to the glass that a small hand could almost stroke the tiny feathers shining under the false sun. Another surprise hidden on the delicately painted walls of an African exhibit was the miniature elephants. A family of ghostly elephants walking across a distant savannah magically appears from the painted bushes only to disappear in a stand of coloured trees. A fantastical illusion to a child becomes merely a technical mechanism to an adult, a projector placed out of sight.

All and all my second tip to the Academy of Science was a wholly different experience given the context of children. It is always refreshing to experience a new perspective on life, through different eyes.

Natural Nannies LLC — Cooperative child care visits Academy of Science is a post from: Collaboration Chronicles