As parents of active preschoolers, we are always on the lookout for engaging activities that entice both the big and the small. Once the weather turns less pleasant, museums can be a great place to play. In particular, children’s museums offer an excellent opportunity to explore, create, pretend, discover, and learn—with objects that kids see grownups use every day, but that are often off-limits to them at home. In a children’s museum, your little explorer can drive a fire truck, ambulance, or police car; ‘make’ a pizza and put it in the oven; deliver mail; or build a house. There are outstanding children’s museums in the greater Bay Area, as well as some in every major city in the US (and abroad). 

Admission ranges from $5 to 8 per person (with occasional discounts for adults), but family memberships are often a more cost-effective route, if you plan to go more than once. Also, membership to one children’s museum often earns you free entrance to all the others.

• Bay Area Children’s Museums
• Other California Children’s Museums
• Out-of-State Children’s Museums

Bay Area Children’s Museums

Bay Area Discovery Museum; www.baykidsmuseum.org

557 McReynolds Road, Sausalito  (415) 339-3900

This museum is a wonderful place to spend several hours or an entire day with your children. It houses a number of outstanding permanent exhibits, including:

• Art Studios (separated by the participants’ age level: either 5 and under, or 6 and older)—an engaging space offering regular activities (painting, paper cutting/gluing, clay table, magnets) as well as special craft activities.
• Discovery Theatre—a 180-seat performing arts theatre.
• Lookout Cove—a 2.5-acre outdoor, interactive exploration area featuring natural, cultural, and built icons of the Bay Area including a rocky shore and sea cave, a shipwreck with clues to dig up and discover, the Golden Gate Bridge "under construction," real water tidal pools, native animal homes to build, and more. The space also features five site-specific artistic works commissioned for the Cove. 
• San Francisco Bay Hall—an exhibit that playfully simulates the Bay Area with an "underwater" tunnel, 300-gallon sea star tank, fishing boat, Fisherman's Wharf, and the ever-popular train section.
• Tot Spot—a large space for the toddler crowd, offering discovering crawlers and beginning walkers a series of exhibitions themed around animal homes and habitats. It has both an indoor and an outdoor area, including a popular water-play section.
• Wave Workshop—a science lab designed to teach visitors how organisms adapt to live within such an environment.

The Bay Area Discovery Museum also hosts a number of celebrations throughout the year that celebrate cultural and local traditions. Its Bay Café serves organic and locally grown foods. 

Chabot Space and Science Center; www.chabotspace.org/

10000 Skyline Boulevard, Oakland  (510) 336-7300

Chabot is a hands-on space and science museum set among thirteen trail-laced acres of East Bay parkland.

Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose; www.cdm.org

180 Woz Way (intersection of Woz Way and Auzerais Street.), San Jose  (408) 298-5437

This is the largest of the local museums, especially the water play area. Your child will get very wet but have the most wonderful time while doing so! The museum has exhibits that are engaging for children of all ages, with special areas for the smaller (3-18 month olds) and bigger kids. In addition to the water play, there is a very popular post office exhibit. As a side note, the café here is run by Hope House (an organization aimed at helping people with developmental disabilities integrate into the real world), and offers very healthy meals for kids.

Habitot; www.habitot.org

2065 Kittredge Street, Berkeley (lower level)  (510) 647-1111

This is the smallest of the local museums, but has the essentials to entice and engage your toddler.  Their exhibits include: a medical center, an infant-toddler garden, a Little Town Grocery and Café, wiggle wall, drop in art studio (where large-scale finger painting murals are always in progress), water works, dramatic arts, and trains and games.

Lawrence Hall of Science; www.lawrencehallofscience.org

Lawrence Hall of Science #5200 (in Tilden Park), Berkeley  510-642-5132

This museum focuses on science and mathematics education for preschool through high school children. The Outdoor Science Park, featuring a water play area, is a favorite with the under-five set. There are also foam building blocks and a puppet show area that appeal to younger visitors. Many of the hands-on exhibits are more suitable for older children.

Lindsey Wildlife Museum; www.wildlife-museum.org

1931 First Avenue, Walnut Creek  (925) 935-1978

The Lindsay is a wildlife rehabilitation and educational center that focuses on native California wildlife and natural history. Children will enjoy seeing live birds of prey, as well as mammals (coyotes, foxes, wild cats, raccoons, etc.), reptiles, and amphibians. It’s best to schedule a visit around a special activity such as an animal feeding or petting circle for pocket pets (rabbits, hamsters, rats, guinea pigs, and the like), since this museum is quite small. Enjoy a picnic outside at Larkey Park—which includes fun play areas for kids of all ages after your visit. 

Other California Children’s Museums

The Children's Museum of Stockton;

www.stocktongov.com/childrensmuseum

402 W. Weber, two blocks west of Center Street near the downtown waterfront), Stockton  (209) 465-4386

Laid out like a small city, kids can “be” everyone in town: a merchant, banker, doctor, policeman, garbage man, farmer, grocery shopper, or artist. “At each exhibit in the museum's tiny town, there are tools and/or machines that can be manipulated by the children, who weigh postcards at the post office, count money at the bank and perform tasks of that particular occupation.”

Monterey Youth Museum; www.mymuseum.org

601 Wave Street, Monterey  (831) 649-6444

In the art studio, kids can create art and take it home with them using recyclable and non-recyclable arts and crafts! They will also love The Magnet Table, Fire Trucks, Water Blocks, Build a House, Body Works and Pet Vet and The Magic Finger Painting exhibit (computer based art).

Out of State Children’s Museums

Boston Children's Museum; www.bostonkids.org

300 Congress Street, Boston  (617) 426-8855

Imagine a museum the size of Ikea—with exhibits the size of each section within Ikea. For example, the construction zone has an actual Bobcat, as well as roads with all the heavy machinery to dig, lift and haul. It has a four (!) story climbing tunnel, and a water exhibit that is big enough to keep a large fire boat in operation. Without a doubt, it will be the most amazing day at a museum you will ever have, and it is free with membership to our local children’s museums. In addition to a host of changing special exhibits, you will always find: Amazing Castle, Arthur's World, Art Studio, Boats Afloat, Clifford, Boston Black, Climbing the Walls, Construction Zone, Grandparent's Attic, Hall of Toys, Japanese House, KidStage, New Balance Climb, PlaySpace, The Recycle Shop, Science Playground, Supermercado, Weaving, We're Still Here, and Zoom Zone.

Did we miss one? Let us know!