The Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute (TFI), Philadelphia's most popular museum, is one of the oldest centers for science education and development in the United States. Today, it houses many innovative, hands-on exhibits that emphasize student-centered learning. It's also home to the Tuttleman IMAX® Theater, Fels Planetarium, Franklin 3D Theater, the Joel N. Bloom Observatory, a demonstration theater, and numerous demonstration "carts" or stations. The museum hosts two special exhibits per year. These have included: King Tut, Dead Sea Scrolls, Design Zone, Body Worlds, Titanic, Star Wars, and more. TFI maintains the oldest science and technology awards program in the United States as well as the second oldest continuously published science journal. It's home to the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial, the only national memorial outside of Washington, DC.
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Science Leadership Academy
Science Leadership Academy (SLA) is a public magnet high school founded by The Franklin Institute in partnership with the School District of Philadelphia. Operating on the principles of project-based learning in the context of a tech-integrated one-to-one laptop school, SLA has redefined educational best practices for the 21st century. The school fully embodies The Franklin Institute’s spirit of inquiry through its culture of entrepreneurship and learning by doing. One of the most diverse schools in the District, it mirrors Philadelphia's demographic distribution with 46% African American, 33% White, 10% Latino, and 10% Asian students. 49% are economically disadvantaged. SLA was named one of America's ten "Most Amazing Schools" by Ladies Home Journal and one of 33 "Apple Distinguished Schools." It's been presented twice on Apple's website, as well as in a PBS Documentary on digital media in K-12 and many newspaper and magazine articles.
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The Museum Experience
The partnership between SLA and TFI provides for students what's called, "The Museum Experience." This includes FamilyMAX Memberships for every student (worth over $700 per student over four years), exclusive internship opportunities, year-round admission to the museum including behind the scenes access, special events, mentors for Capstone Projects, special guest speakers such as Barack Obama and Bill Gates, Graduation in the majestic Ben Franklin Memorial, $10,000 scholarships for six college-bound seniors each year, and more. The flagship program of The Museum Experience is the Wednesdays@TFI program, which constitutes over 8,000 person-hours of programming per year.
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Wednesdays@TFI
Wednesdays@TFI is an award-winning weekly educational program at The Franklin Institute, created specifically for SLA's 9th grade. Wednesdays consist of visiting museum exhibits, watching educational IMAX® and 3D films, and participating in "Mini-Courses." Mini-Courses are short, one-to-two month long, once-a-week workshops in a variety of topics from immunology to astronomy to computer programming. Mini-Courses are typically linked to exhibits and other resources in the museum, which serve as a pedagogical tool to enhance the students' level of engagement and understanding. These courses, in combination with the other Wednesdays@TFI curricula, lay the foundation for an engaged and exciting four years of partnered learning with Science Leadership Academy and The Franklin Institute.