Home is where the habitat is! How many different homes can you find at Leeds Pond Preserve? Learn how you can protect the habitats and wildlife in your backyard.

Learn what a map is and practice reading one. Go on a treasure hunt and find some surprises.

Discover the amazing world of animals as you meet mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. Learn the differences between our furry friends and these cold-blooded creatures. Find out who eats who and where they live.

Perform strange and startling experiments. Each experiment is geared to make you giggle and teach you science at the same time. Discover how goofy real science can be.

Learn how our senses work together to keep us aware of our surroundings. Study your five senses and how easily they can be fooled. Test your senses and discover how well you see, smell, hear, touch, and taste.

Discover the dynamic Earth and all the powerful forces of Mother Nature. Examine what causes earthquakes and volcanoes. Learn how rocks are formed as you eat some edible earth. Bring home your own erupting volcano.

What were the dinosaurs like? How did these mighty beasts live? Learn about fossils and how they help piece together the past. Make your own fossils to take home.

Where are we in the universe? How big is our solar system? Learn about the stars, planets, and moons that float around in space. Study the stars in our portable planetarium, STARLAB.

April showers bring May flowers. Explore the grounds of Leeds Pond Preserve in search of them. Learn what a flower does, how it works, and why it smells.

Did you ever wonder about who lives at the beach? Come take a walk on our Manhasset Bay beach and find out. Discover snails, crabs oysters, and clams as you investigate the intertidal zone.

Come join our team of wildlife biologists in search of wild creatures that inhabit our preserve. On our safari we will hunt for fox, raccoon, osprey, and other wild creatures, Build habitats and feeding stations to help wild creatures.

Squirm on in and learn all about the things that wiggle and crawl. Earthworms, caterpillars, and bugs will be the subjects studied. You will become a creepy crawly biologist.

Come and meet SMLI's wild kingdom of animals. Visit and learn about mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and birds. Discover the differences between these animals and you.

Investigate the world of chemistry. Work in a real chemistry lab alongside a mad scientist. Get ready for foaming, swirling reations and create an explosion that can hit the ceiling.

Did you know your body is an amazing machine? Learn about the different organs that make us do the things we do. Discover how the body works and what you can do to keep it happy and healthy.

Discover the dynamic earth and the powerful forces of Mother Nature. Learn the science behind earthquakes, volcanoes, tornadoes, and other natural disasters. Examine rocks and minerals from around the world as you learn how the earth was shaped and how it changes everyday.

These are many invisible forces that surround you. One of these forces keeps you on the planet. Another makes metal "sticky". Discover the spinning force that makes toys and washing machines work.

Do you ever wonder about the universe? Then come to this workshop and get your questions answered. Learn all about stars, planets, comets, and more.

Discover if you have a "green thumb". Learn how to plant a garden and take care of it. Study how plants grow and maybe even taste a few. Gardeners dig into their work, so be prepared to get dirty and be outside.

What lives at the beach and in the ocean? Explore the watery world along the shore of Manhasset Bay. Find out which plants and animals live on the sand, in the water or both, and how they survive.

3-2-1 Bast off! Use model rockets to learn about aerodynamics and flight. Build and launch your own rocket with solid fuel engines while following safety procedures.

Step right up and take a chance. Try your arm and test your strength. We are holding a science carnival that will teach you the physics behind your favorite carnival and circus games.

Come to this workshop to compare our innner workings with those of other vertebrates. Using forceps, scissors, and probes, you will dissect a different animal each week. Learn all the the insides of frogs, squid, and sharks.

You're invited to help us solve a mysterious crime. Help us find evidence, and use the tools of forenic science to discover who the culprit is.

Necessity is the mother of invention. Or is it? Many inventions came about because of need, others purely by accident. Come to this workshop and discover the inventor in you. Create contraptions, machines, and instruments that either help you or just amuse you.

Help build an edible city out of chocolate, candy, and cookies for the Oompa Loompas to live in. Learn to build using architectural and engineering theories. When you're done you can eat the Oompa's out of house and home.

Paleontologists, Archeologists, and Geologists "dig" their jobs. Excavate and examine real rocks, fossils, and artifacts. Use detective-like skills to discover gems, piece together fossil clues of mighty prehistoric creatures, and unearth artifacts that let us look into past cultures. You will go home with rock specimens, artifacts, and fossils that you learn about and discover in class.

Do you love cars and racing? Then this workshop is for you! Build your own car out of simple materials, then race it for speed and distance.

Learn how botanists can create clones of plants from cuttings and tissue cultures. Create your own garden of plants without seeds. You will learn the methods used in modern botany to propagate expensive and rare plants using real science techniques, and even keep your cloned experiments.

Discover the mysteries hidden under the sea and beneath the sand. Join us as we collect and examine crabs, fish, and other creatures of the deep. Explore the shores in search of worms, sea anemones, and more.

Are you ready for an adventure? Come to this workshop to see if you can survive the great outdoors. Learn about nature and how to make a fire, seek shelter, purify water, and find food.

Combining field and laboratory experiements, you will study animal behavior. Instincts, communication, learning and emotions will be explored. Students should be prepared to handle live animals to perform various experiments.

Join a team of young scientists in pursuit of answers. The instructor explains and introduces a science topic during the first class, but the group plans the direction in which the research will continue. The field of study will be biochemistry. Where will the group take the research.....DNA, enzymes, botany, medicine, food chemisty?

Find out what makes a robot tick. Examine the motors, circuits, and gears that make it move. Make your own robot, a self proplelled friend to take home. If physics and mechanics interests you, this is a great opportunity to challenge your skills and mind.

Follow in the footsteps of a great scientific mind. Davinci was a famous painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologoist, cartographer, botanist and writer. We will take a practical hands on approach at exploring the scientist within Davinci and recreate some of his experiements and research.

Calling all science enthusiasts! Here is your opportunity to explore science at your own pace. This program provides a young scientist a chance to choose a topic and conduct experiments and research designed by our staff. You will work in our laboratories and have access to scientific equipment.

Interactions between chemicals seem almost magical and driven by unseen forces. Delve into the mysteries and power held in everyday materials. Be prepared to see chemicals change color, change their state, explode with great force and create new and unusual substances. Each experiement will demonstrate how chemistry applies to your daily life.

Scientists have the job of finding the answers to how and why. Their job is driven by personal quests, and professional interests. Here is your chance to learn and experiement in topics you choose. Our staff will guide you through experiments you want to do! How do lasers work? What causes lightning? Why do things glow-in-the-dark? You ask the question and we will help you create an experiment to discover the answer!

Our mission is simple: utilize the natural desire to examine the world around you. Students get the opportunity to conduct field research and work towards understanding protecting our natural environment. Students should be prepared to be outside.