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Inside Iowa State, a newspaper for faculty and staff, is published by the Office of University Relations.

April 13, 2007

Kid stuff -- for all ages

Veishea Village map

Looking for ways to wear out your kids after the parade passes by? Veishea Village, open from noon to 4:30 p.m., has plenty for kids - and adults - to enjoy.

"Club Crawl" drawings offer prizes (such as iPods) for those who visit participating displays. Registration is $5 and includes a T-shirt and punch card, which needs to be validated by 15 different clubs. Registration kiosks will be located throughout central campus.

1 Cy's Big Top, central campus (tent on southwest corner)

Displays designed for kids include carnival games, face painting, caricatures, crafts, a dunk tank and balloons. Most activities require tickets, which can be purchased (five for $1) at the tent entrance.

2 Eat dirt, Curtiss Hall (tent near front door)

The agronomy department will host a multitude of displays. Assemble a cup of edible dirt (from a bedrock of M&Ms to a layer of Oreo topsoil, complete with gummy worms). Stick your hands into soil samples or take a walk through a crop garden. Watch Kool-Aid change colors to see the filtering power of plants. Free popcorn and root beer floats will be available.

3 Fool with Mother Nature, Central campus (tent west of Curtiss)

Animal ecology and forestry will offer a wide array of activities. Change the direction of a running stream in a simulator, watch two-person tree sawing competitions, get your face painted or join in a fishing pole-casting contest. Smokey the Bear and Woodsy the Owl will be in the tent, while additional demonstrations by the Stihl chainsaw team (logrolling, pole climbing) will take place in Lot 50B by the Forker Building.

4 Let's hula, MacKay Hall (tent in south courtyard)

At the College of Human Sciences tent, kids can use their minds and their bodies to have fun. Activities include story reading, math and science games and physical activities. Kids can create paper airplanes, run relays, color-by-number, Hula Hoop, connect the dots to reveal Cy, listen in on a book reading, create a picture with stamps, use their handprints to make a poetic keepsake or play money games.

5 Crafty do-overs, Design Building (tent on front lawn)

Design College student groups will help kids use recycled materials -- including branches downed by February's ice storm -- to create picture frames and crafts while learning about recycling and waste ($2).

6 Mind games, Marston Hall (outdoor tents and indoors)

Engineering will have activities to keep hands and minds busy. Build with LEGOs, make paper airplanes, take a toss at ladder golf or play games for prizes. Sit in a quarter-scale tractor and survey a collection of cars and vehicles. Watch students make "engineered" ice cream, then try free samples to see if it tastes like the real thing.

7 Pedal tractor pull, Davidson Hall (street outside south doors)

The Ag Systems Technology Club will hold a pedal tractor pull for children ages 3 to 11 years. Registration ($2 per entrant) is open for 90 minutes immediately following the parade. Kids, divided into age groups, will pull a weighted sled behind provided pedal tractors. Every participant earns a ribbon and a can of soda pop; first- and second-place winners get a trophy.

8 SCUM shows, Gilman Hall (room 1002, inside main doors)

The Society of Chemistry Undergraduate Majors (SCUM) will produce free shows Friday (7 p.m.) and Saturday (9:30 a.m. and 3 p.m.). The demonstrations feature flames, explosions, sparks, bubbles, smoke and plenty of noise.

9 Cooties and microbes, Science I (rooms 107, 108, 123)

The microbiology display features treats, if you dare. Try a spoonful of unidentified goo in a petri dish (Jell-O with candy sprinkles) and sample homemade soda pop. Take a walk through a giant microbe, or see how many cooties are left behind even after washing your hands.

10 Creepy crawlies, Science II (fourth floor)

Entomology's Insect Zoo will be on display. Enjoy cockroach races, crafts and displays featuring white-eyed assassin bugs, tarantulas, scorpions and walking sticks. Some insects will be available for one-on-ones, from little mealworms to long millipedes. If you get attached, or need a little buddy, purchase a Madagascar hissing cockroach to take home.

11 Petting zoo and mooo-re, Kildee Hall (Farm Bureau Pavilion)

Petting zoo

Photo by Erin Rosacker

Take a trip to the farm without leaving campus. Pet baby lambs, calves and piglets, or watch chicks hatch. Dogs, cats and rabbits also will be looking for some love. Buy a serving of ice cream from the Dairy Science Club ($2) to cool down, or go to the source and milk a cow ($1).

Animal lovers, Vet Med complex (indoors)

Enjoy a petting zoo with animals ranging from reptiles to rabbits, or tour the wildlife clinic. Test your surgical skills on (stuffed toy) animals, get grossed out by pathology specimens, feel a cow's belly to determine if she's pregnant, or have your picture taken with the Gentle Doctor statue.

Summary

Download a complete guide to the village and other events online.