The chase is on at Long Island Children's Museum

It is the classic good vs. evil adventure as the dastardly Hacker attempts to overtake Cyberspace, but is continuously outsmarted by three curious kids and one cyberbird pal determined to stop him. Join forces with the CyberSquad – Matt, Inez, Jackie and Digit – in their quest to save Cyberspace as they zoom into Cyberchase – The Chase Is On! TM, an out-of-this-world exhibit now at the Long Island Children’s Museum.
Based on the Emmy® winning PBS Kids Go! math mystery cartoon “Cyberchase,” the exhibit – which runs through May 1 – presents math in a fun, kid-friendly environment, allowing children to make use of their critical thinking skills and approach math with an investigative, positive attitude.
“Long Island Children’s Museum is delighted to welcome Cyberchase: The Chase Is On! to our traveling exhibit gallery,” said LICM Executive Director Suzanne LeBlanc. “The exhibit‘s ability to make math fun and accessible will resonate strongly with teachers and parents, while children will love the opportunity to interact with favorite characters.” LeBlanc noted that the exhibit’s arrival coincides with both the busiest visitation period for school field trips, as well as popular family visit times, including the spring break school holidays. “It all adds up to a wonderful experience for the community,” she noted.
Arriving at the exhibit, children enter Cyberspace through a special portal to explore favorite cybersites, including the Control Central, the Grim Wreaker and Poddleville. Visitors can help the CyberSquad protect the virtual universe from the villainous Hacker while exploring math concepts such as place value, algebra, geometry, fractions and probability. As they make their way through the exhibit, kids will find a variety of activity stations that will entice everyone to explore math in a new way.
“The game-based approach of the exhibit offers children and math-phobic adults the opportunity to succeed at math,” said LICM spokesperson Maureen Mangan. “The brightly colored exhibit and familiar cartoon figures have kids racing into the museum to do math – go figure! Cyberchase is a big hit and Digit is making lots of friends here at the museum. The exhibit really does a great job of making math fun – for folks of all ages – and providing real life examples of how math comes into play in our every day lives.”

While moving about the exhibit, everyone will explore the basic foundations of algebra, use critical thinking skills to recognize patterns, and examine how an object can look different depending on your point of view. Not only will kids “do” math, but they’ll be able to experience it firsthand through the many activities and interactive components.

These include:
n Investigating interactive computer stations in Control Central with Motherboard.
n Discovering that fractions are fun by reinstalling the “power circuits” villainous Hacker has removed.
n Storing a million energy units with pedal power and send to a central holding center.
n Exploring spatial relationship while playing Flip It, Rotate It, Fit it In.
n Using deductive reasoning skills to discover where Hacker is Hiding.
n Applying the principles of probability to active the right combination in Stop the Launch.

By the end of their visit, children and parents alike will have a better understanding and knowledge of math. By interacting with Cyberchase’s familiar characters, they will be able to approach math with a positive attitude. The exhibit can help everyone understand the role that math plays in all our lives from financial literacy to building and construction design.
And, special take home activities will allow the learning to continue long after their LICM visit ends.
As always, LICM staff has planned a variety of theme activities to enhance the key concepts introduced in the exhibit.
On Sunday, March 20, visitors can join Digit from the PBS show, Cyberchase, as they solve fun and creative math problems to save Motherboard from Hacker’s virus. Children will learn algebra and geometry in an exciting interactive game show challenge, followed by an episode of Cyberchase on the big screen! Families can meet Digit and even take a picture with him. Tickets are required and can be obtained at the LICM box office on a first come, first serve basis.

Cyberchase – The Chase Is On!
Long Island Children’s Museum, Museum Row, Garden City. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Admission: $10 for adults and children over 1 year old, $9 seniors, free to museum members and children under 1 year old. Additional fees for theater and special programs may apply.
For information, contact (516) 224-5800 or www.licm.org.