CHOM Teams With Nickelodeon For Play Day

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - The Children’s Hands-On Museum (CHOM) celebrated Nickelodeon’s Worldwide Day of Play Saturday.

Every year in September, Nickelodeon’s programming ‘goes dark’ for one day and encourages children all across the world to get outside and get active. For the past few years CHOM has partnered with the cartoon channel as one of the museum’s weekly special events.

“[Nickelodeon] list on their channel where in your area you can go to get out, and get active and exercise. We register through Nickelodeon so they can put our name up on people’s TV and encourage them to come here and play with us. We have our regular exhibits open for kids to play in, but then on top of that, we have some extra games out that we don’t normally offer,” said Kimberly Crabbe, CHOM’s public programs coordinator.

“They love it, we come almost every Saturday. It helps their imagination, helps them not be so hyper focused on a screen and think of their own ways to play,” said Jennifer Eggers, a parent as her children played in one of the science exhibits.

The museum is full of games and learning activities and many designed with Worldwide Day of Play in mind. Crabbe said the kids gravitate toward some games more than others, including one surprising favorite. The classic combination of a string, ball and cup captivates children on a weekly basis at CHOM.

“The kids love it,” Crabbe said.

“The number one goal is to get kids active and the subgoals, I guess, would be to get [kids] off of their electronics, away from the video games and the TV,” Crabbe said. She also stressed the importance of brain activity and learning to play without needing electronics.

“I think Worldwide Day of Play is a great opportunity for parents to encourage their children to get outside and explore places that they haven’t been before or their favorite places they don’t get to go to all the time. It’s also a great time for parents to play with their kids.” Crabbe said.

While the next Worldwide Day of Play is a year away, CHOM will welcome in the fall season with it’s Somthin’ Pumpkin event next Saturday.