Grossology at the MCFTA

When I was 10 years old my grandfather gave me a book that had plastic vomit on the cover. It was so gross but I had to read it. I read it cover to cover that night and became a fountain of knowledge for all the disgusting (but natural and normal) things our bodies did. Much later, a few more grossology books were written and since I had much younger siblings, at the age of 20, I was learning again about more things our bodies do and what animals did as well. It was amusing to me but not as amusing as it was to my brother at the age of 8.


I had such a love for these books and how they brought a smile on a young kid's face who were learning in such a fun way.  I was very excited when I received my brochure that showed all the 
fun things MCFTA has to offer through the year and this was staring back at me:

It took some time for us to make it and see the exhibit, but we finally made it today. I packed up our 4,3 and 2 year old and headed out. The experience got some mixed reviews. Here are some things to know about this display before you go.

What is the cost?

 The cost is $9 for adults and $6 for children 4 and older. Under 4 is free. This gives you admission to the Grossology exhibit and The Hall of Ideas. If you have been to the MCFTA before December 2012, note that a renovation was done and things have been updated and fixed.

When can we go?
The museum is open
Wed. – Sat. • 10 am – 4 pm
Thurs. • until 8 pm
Sun. • 1 – 5 pm
CLOSED Mon., Tues.& major holidays

On Thursday March 28th Great Lakes Bay Moms is having a family event that will offer reduced pricing. 

 Who is going to enjoy this?
I was sure my boys would love this because they were boys and it was gross. 2 of them did enjoy the interactive play but my 3 year old was frightened by the noise and large animatronic people. When we were there a lot of schools were doing field trips. I would guess the children were ages 7-11 both boys and girls alike enjoyed every inch of the exhibit.

I don't want to discourage any parent from bringing their child to Grossology because I did see some small children having fun but I can also see why my 3 year old was not happy. To him walking through a large mouth, seeing plastic dolls that were 3-4 times his size start moving and having all the noise around him was a sensory over load. If your child has no issues with these things, then I say they will enjoy it because my 2 and 4 year old didn't want to leave.

Is the MCFTA difficult to find?
If you are coming from out of town, Midland can be a bit difficult to navigate in some areas. The Midland Center For The Arts, however is located near freeways and main roads making it pretty easy to find. It also shares a parking lot with Dow Gardens.

What will we do/see?
 There are many interactive displays that show how the human body works. This is done in very silly, fun but educational ways. Some things include going into a digestive track and pretending to be a piece of food on a intestine slide. Climbing on warts, zits, scabs and other skin blemishes. Helping the kidneys out by playing a game where you grab unwanted particles (similar to a Kinect gaming system). Pumping large amounts of soda into a 4 foot head to make them burp and more. Representations of how much urine, mucus and other bodily functions are displayed as well.