Champaign-Urbana families have a free Thursday-evening option on October 8, 2026: Family STEM Night at Anita Purves Nature Center, with hands-on science activities and pizza from 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Illinois Science Explorers and Urbana Park District are inviting children and adults to participate together at 1505 N. Broadway Avenue in Urbana.

The official calendar says all ages are welcome, and the organizers ask families to register so they can plan for attendance.

Sign up for the October session

The university’s fall announcement links separate registration forms for each date, so choose the October 8 option rather than a different month.

The event is advertised as free and open to the public, with no admission price listed.

Free pizza is part of the announced program, but the available information does not specify dietary alternatives, ingredients or how food will be distributed.

If an allergy or food restriction affects your family, ask the organizers before attending instead of assuming a suitable option will be available.

For event questions, the park district lists 217-367-1544.

An online registration link is provided, but its current capacity and submission status could not be checked for this report; call that number if the form will not load.

Participate together, without a lesson plan

The organizers describe building, experimenting and interactive science activities, with children and adults learning alongside one another.

They have not published an activity-by-activity plan for October 8 in the listings checked, so specific experiments should not be treated as confirmed attractions.

A useful approach is to let your child choose a question, make a prediction and explain what happened afterward.

That is a suggestion for participating, rather than a description of the night’s exact teaching format.

You might ask what changed, what stayed the same or what the child would try next.

For an adult who feels rusty on school science, asking questions alongside a child is a practical way to join in without pretending to know every answer.

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels. Illustrative stock photo, not the Urbana event.

A local university partnership

Illinois Science Explorers is a University of Illinois program focused on continuing science, technology, engineering and mathematics opportunities for children in the Champaign-Urbana area who might otherwise lack access.

Its program page describes collaboration with researchers to develop educational activities and materials.

The Family STEM Night series gives residents a public opportunity to meet that work through a community venue.

The university and park district list another fall session on November 12 at Phillips Recreation Center, also from 5:30 to 7 p.m.

The location changes between sessions, so saving Thursday’s address does not replace checking the next event’s venue.

Know the venue before Thursday

Anita Purves Nature Center is at the north end of Crystal Lake Park, with Busey Woods and the Friendship Grove Nature Playscape nearby.

Its regular weekday hours are listed as 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., while Thursday’s scheduled program begins at 5:30 p.m.

Use the event listing for the program time and ask staff about arrival arrangements if you plan to come early.

The center’s general visitor information describes a Field Station exhibit hall and a wildlife observation room, but it does not confirm that every exhibit will be available during this evening event.

For building or access questions, the nature center lists 217-384-4062.

Keep the questions going at home

Illinois Science Explorers also provides a separate page of at-home activities, including a balloon-and-straw lung model and projects involving surveys and data.

Those resources can be useful after the visit, but they are not a preview of Thursday’s confirmed activities.

Choose a project only after reviewing its instructions, required supplies and supervision needs.

Before leaving home Thursday, check the official calendar, complete the correct registration and review your route to the nature center.

Bring one question your family wants to explore and leave room for a child to explain the answer in their own words.