NASA in Houston—Saturn 5 rocket park the big hit, the waiting, not so much.

We took a trip to NASA in Houston over spring break. I have to say, the tour isn’t fabulous for kids with autism. Don’t get me wrong, it’s informative and cool stuff to look at, but the way it’s paced isn’t really conducive for them. They have a large group, and it’s a lot of waiting for the last person to catch up, then a quick spiel, and back on their way. If you take the tour, I would suggest calling ahead if you’re worried your child may have issues. Its always better to plan it and not need it than find yourself stuck with your autistic child having an overload and meltdown. Yeah, we’ve been there, too. Maybe there is another way to do it. All three of the kids got anxious waiting around, and there wasn’t anything tactile for them to touch. Thankfully, that part is over soon enough, and they take you to the Saturn 5 rocket park, where you explore on your own pace. That was much better. And then back to the main center – by the way of a field with huge longhorn steer, one of which is apparently named Satan, as he likes to jump the fence and chase trams, kind of like a little dog chasing cars, except he’s two tons with five foot horns…

The center itself is very cool for the tactile and sensory stuff the kids go for. They were able to touch the moon rock, go up into a mock space lab, a shuttle with hundreds of little buttons, video game consoles, simulators and a giant playground that sort of looks like an ant farm, with a pipe that shoots foam balls into the air that all the kids go nuts for. The one drawback is that if your child is unwilling to exit on his/her own, you’re going to have a heck of a time fetching them unless you try bribing another kid or crawling in yourself. I’m sure they have a backup plan for that scenario, though!

They also have a theatre that shows about a 20 minute film of the history of the space program. It’s very good, and not too long for the kids to get antsy. They also have the podium from which President Kennedy gave his “We are going to the moon, not because it is easy, but because it is hard” speech at Rice University. Of course, Kennedy posed for pictures behind “her” podium. After all, it’s Kennedy’s podium. She also believes she has her own Space Center at Cape Canaveral and an airport in New York. Like I tell all my kids – if you’re going to dream, dream big. If she wants to be the first autistic President of the United States, why not?