Exhibit Halls and Experience Areas
HotZone
A current science hub, the HotZone is the place to pose questions, debate answers, scan headlines, view events and get the real story via multiple screens and stage presentations.
Click for more…KidSpark
Science fun for our youngest visitors! Kids eight and under, along with their caregivers, can play and learn in an area designed just for them.
Click for more…The Living Earth
Stroll through a Rain Forest and try to spot the Poison Dart Frogs. Touch a tornado, crawl through a cave, and check out a coral reef as part of the all-natural fun!
Click for more…Mindworks
Delve into the mysteries of the human brain: Are I.Q. tests accurate? Why are some people scared of heights? How good is your memory? Can you pick the right suspect out of a lineup?
Click for more…A Question of Truth
Explore how beliefs and biases can influence scientific research. Test controversial theories related to race, gender and culture, and compare Western with "alternative" sciences.
Click for more…Science Arcade
A visitor favourite since we opened in 1969! It's the place to test your reaction time, navigate a distorted room, or have a hair-raising experience at the Electricity Show.
Click for more…Shoppers Drug Mart® OMNIMAX® Theatre
Discover how thrilling movies can be with the giant dome screen and a state-of-the-art sound system of the Shoppers Drug Mart® OMNIMAX® Theatre.
Click for more…Space
Pilot a rocket chair, experience the night sky in our planetarium, check out meteorites and rocks from Mars – in a space that's out of this world!
Click for more…Weston Family Innovation Centre
Explore experiences that hone your innovation skills. Prototype a new kind of shoe. Make magnetic fluids dance and test your aviation skills. Change your mind…and your world.
Click for more…Demonstrations
Amateur Radio Station
Got something to share? Chat it up with other radio operators from around the world at VE3OSC, the Science Centre's Amateur Radio Station.
Click for more…CA Technologies Planetarium
Sit back in Toronto's only public planetarium, as a presenter takes you on a fantastic voyage through the Universe to learn more about our cosmic neighbours.
Click for more…Electricity Demo
Get a charge out of loud zapping noises and lightning sparks? Then find out "what's watt" and have a hair-raising experience with the famous Van de Graaff generator.
Click for more…Jacquard Loom
See how volunteers use punch cards to create patterns with our 150-year-old loom, and discover what weaving and computers have in common!
Click for more…Papermaking Demo
See how cloth and plant materials are transformed into paper. Younger visitors can learn how to make their own paper, and often get to take a piece home!
Click for more…Rock Shop
Meet and chat with volunteers from local gem and mineral clubs as they grind and polish rocks into things of beauty.
Click for more…Science HotSpot
Plug into current science at these live presentations covering the latest hot topics in science and tech.
Click for more…Special exhibitions
Game On 2.0
The world's largest celebration of video games makes its Canadian debut! Game On 2.0 features more than 150 playable games spanning over 60 years of gaming technology. March 9 - September 2, 2013. Included with Science Centre admission
Click for more…Stuff for kids
Aging Machine
How will you look when you're grown up? State-of-the-art software adds decades to the faces of 8-12 year olds and shows how smoking, sun and food might affect the results.
Click for more…Amateur Radio Station
Got something to share? Chat it up with other radio operators from around the world at VE3OSC, the Science Centre's Amateur Radio Station.
Click for more…Bird's Eye View
Head up to the mezzanine above the Living Earth hall and look for a giant steel bird. Climb in, lie down, and go for a virtual flight as trees and the ground zoom by below you.
Click for more…Cave
It's spelunking time! Explore this 15 metre-long reproduction of a cave in Guelph, Ontario. See what thousands of years of glacial run-off and erosion can do to solid rock!
Click for more…Electricity Demo
Get a charge out of loud zapping noises and lightning sparks? Then find out "what's watt" and have a hair-raising experience with the famous Van de Graaff generator.
Click for more…KidSpark
Science fun for our youngest visitors! Kids eight and under, along with their caregivers, can play and learn in an area designed just for them.
Click for more…Papermaking Demo
See how cloth and plant materials are transformed into paper. Younger visitors can learn how to make their own paper, and often get to take a piece home!
Click for more…Rain Forest
Check out 250 square metres of palms, poison dart frogs and other tropical life. It's hot, it's humid and it's a great place to explore a fascinating ecosystem.
Click for more…Rock Shop
Meet and chat with volunteers from local gem and mineral clubs as they grind and polish rocks into things of beauty.
Click for more…Science Arcade
A visitor favourite since we opened in 1969! It's the place to test your reaction time, navigate a distorted room, or have a hair-raising experience at the Electricity Show.
Click for more…Art installations
BEAM Robot Fish
Controlled by solar cells, this BEAM robot sculpture (Biology, Electronic, Aesthetics, Mechanics) is designed to live, feed and fend for itself in the ocean.
Click for more…Cloud
Check out this mesmerizing art installation composed of hundreds of rotating glass panels designed to mimic the changes of state from solid to liquid to gas.
Click for more…Dr. J. Tuzo Wilson Geodetic Monument
Imagine the Earth's crust moving at this monument and exhibit honouring Dr. J. Tuzo Wilson—renowned geophysicist and Director of the Ontario Science Centre from 1974 to 1985.
Click for more…Fish Mobile
This granite, copper and steel fish is so delicately balanced that the smallest puff of wind can make it "swim".
Click for more…FUNtain
Defy your expectations of what either a fountain or a musical instrument can be. Stop jets of waters with your fingers to create a harmonic landscape, or play your favourite tune – with water!
Click for more…George Rhoads Sculpture
This is interactive art in motion! Drop a ball down one of the ramps and you'll set off a chain-reaction of music, movement and amazement.
Click for more…!dea Gallery
A space where art meets science. Encounter, experience and engage with art installations by creative young people and see what inspires you!
Click for more…In a Dark Wood…
This video installation juxtaposes a forest of Douglas fir with a montage of archival film related to British Columbia.
Click for more…Jacquard Coverlet
Marvel at this wall hanging woven on our antique Jacquard loom by volunteers. Like a computer, the loom’s mechanism uses binary to create the pattern.
Click for more…Lotic Meander
This beautiful outdoor art features a serpentine walkway made of polished glass pebbles, granite slabs, and hemispherical black domes carved from boulders.
Click for more…Pipedream
Pose for a picture at our webcam station then watch your photo blow up in bubbles instead of pixels!
Click for more…Stuff for teens
Amateur Radio Station
Got something to share? Chat it up with other radio operators from around the world at VE3OSC, the Science Centre's Amateur Radio Station.
Click for more…CA Technologies Planetarium
Sit back in Toronto's only public planetarium, as a presenter takes you on a fantastic voyage through the Universe to learn more about our cosmic neighbours.
Click for more…Cloud
Check out this mesmerizing art installation composed of hundreds of rotating glass panels designed to mimic the changes of state from solid to liquid to gas.
Click for more…Electricity Demo
Get a charge out of loud zapping noises and lightning sparks? Then find out "what's watt" and have a hair-raising experience with the famous Van de Graaff generator.
Click for more…Jacquard Loom
See how volunteers use punch cards to create patterns with our 150-year-old loom, and discover what weaving and computers have in common!
Click for more…The Living Earth
Stroll through a Rain Forest and try to spot the Poison Dart Frogs. Touch a tornado, crawl through a cave, and check out a coral reef as part of the all-natural fun!
Click for more…Mindworks
Delve into the mysteries of the human brain: Are I.Q. tests accurate? Why are some people scared of heights? How good is your memory? Can you pick the right suspect out of a lineup?
Click for more…A Question of Truth
Explore how beliefs and biases can influence scientific research. Test controversial theories related to race, gender and culture, and compare Western with "alternative" sciences.
Click for more…Rock Shop
Meet and chat with volunteers from local gem and mineral clubs as they grind and polish rocks into things of beauty.
Click for more…Science HotSpot
Plug into current science at these live presentations covering the latest hot topics in science and tech.
Click for more…Weston Family Innovation Centre
Explore experiences that hone your innovation skills. Prototype a new kind of shoe. Make magnetic fluids dance and test your aviation skills. Change your mind…and your world.
Click for more…Stuff with seats
CA Technologies Planetarium
Sit back in Toronto's only public planetarium, as a presenter takes you on a fantastic voyage through the Universe to learn more about our cosmic neighbours.
Click for more…Cloud
Check out this mesmerizing art installation composed of hundreds of rotating glass panels designed to mimic the changes of state from solid to liquid to gas.
Click for more…Electricity Demo
Get a charge out of loud zapping noises and lightning sparks? Then find out "what's watt" and have a hair-raising experience with the famous Van de Graaff generator.
Click for more…!dea Gallery
A space where art meets science. Encounter, experience and engage with art installations by creative young people and see what inspires you!
Click for more…Mindworks
Delve into the mysteries of the human brain: Are I.Q. tests accurate? Why are some people scared of heights? How good is your memory? Can you pick the right suspect out of a lineup?
Click for more…A Question of Truth
Explore how beliefs and biases can influence scientific research. Test controversial theories related to race, gender and culture, and compare Western with "alternative" sciences.
Click for more…Science HotSpot
Plug into current science at these live presentations covering the latest hot topics in science and tech.
Click for more…Shoppers Drug Mart® OMNIMAX® Theatre
Discover how thrilling movies can be with the giant dome screen and a state-of-the-art sound system of the Shoppers Drug Mart® OMNIMAX® Theatre.
Click for more…Weston Family Innovation Centre
Explore experiences that hone your innovation skills. Prototype a new kind of shoe. Make magnetic fluids dance and test your aviation skills. Change your mind…and your world.
Click for more…Especially for school visitors
Auditorium and Studios
School programs may be offered in one of our three Studios, two with seating for 50 students and one with seating for 100; or our Auditorium with seating for 450.
Click for more…Challenger Learning Centre
In this space-mission simulator students make up the crew, performing tasks and solving problems in order to ensure a successful mission. Teambuilding programs for corporate groups are also available.
Click for more…IBM School Entrance
Start here if you're part of a school visit. You'll find lockers, the Group Reception counter for teacher check-in and the RBC Lunch Room for groups who are 'brown-bagging.'
Click for more…KidSpark Workshops 1 and 2
Located inside KidSpark, this is the place for innovative hands-on programs for children in JK to Grade 3, as well as the Professional Development program for pre and in-service primary school teachers and Early Childhood Educators.
Click for more…Level 5 Labs
These two labs are equipped with work benches and equipment for students to take part in hands-on programs such as DNA Fingerprinting, Diversity of the Microworld, and Rocks and Minerals.
Click for more…Weston Family Innovation Centre
This area is home to student programs involving problem-solving, inquiry-based learning and innovation such as Inquiry Workshops and Environmental Solutions.
Click for more…Visitor services
Accessibility
We're proud that the Ontario Science Centre is barrier-free. We offer extra-wide parking, free wheelchairs and strollers, wheelchair seating in the theatre and auditorium, barrier-free elevators, and special-needs washrooms.
Click for more…Bank Machine
Located on Level 2 near the Admissions Desk and the entrance to the Shoppers Drug Mart® OMNIMAX® Theatre.
KidSpark Kiosk
The KidSpark Kiosk offers snacks and beverages along with salads and sandwiches, hot dogs and Pizza Pizza®.
Click for more…The Lobby Café
Conveniently located in the main lobby, this café offers healthy sandwiches, salads and snacks, along with fresh-baked pastries, Starbucks coffee and a wide assortment of cold beverages.
Click for more…Lockers
Lockers are located at the front of the building. There is a cost of $1.00 (coin) to rent a locker.
Gift shop
The Mastermind gift shop is the place to shop for fun educational toys, books, games, gifts and Ontario Science Centre souvenirs.
Click for more…Valley Market Place
Our main cafeteria-style food venue offers a daily menu of hot and cold meals, as well as a wide variety of pre-made salads and sandwiches along with other healthy options such as fruit salad or yogurt parfaits. Fresh-baked pastries and muffins along with Starbucks coffee and a variety of cold beverages are also available.
Click for more…