Kidspace Children’s Museum

Tucked away in beautiful Brookside Park is 3.5 acres of kid-sized adventure at Kidspace Children’s Museum, a nonprofit museum that launched at Caltech in 1979. Designed to delight and engage children intellectually, emotionally, and physically through handson, kid-driven experiences, the museum invites all children to play, discover, create, and to explore the world with curiosity and kindness.

Throughout the year, Kidspace offers numerous hands-on exhibits and programs to stimulate learning through play. Its newest exhibit, “Muddy Boot Farm”, is an imaginative, farm-to-table play space where children dig, plant, harvest, sort, collect, weigh, sell, and serve fanciful items such as giant carrots and turnips, artisanal bread, and a variety of eggs collected from whimsical chickens. Elsewhere on campus, children dip their toes into a blue sand lake and go “fishing,” tackle STEM-based principles with Ramps and Rollers, sit and spin in Los Trompos, giant interactive interpretations of traditional Mexican toy tops, and challenge themselves in climbing towers and on a swinging rope bridge.

This summer, the hugely popular “Kidspace Campout” event returns to celebrate iconic American summer experiences such as visiting national parks, camping out, fishing, and creating camp crafts. Children can learn about animal tracks, meet some animal ambassadors up close, and explore the campus to look, listen, and learn about native wildlife. They can splash through the arroyo stream and hop on a trike over a miniature “Golden Gate Bridge.” Best of all, families can gather around the fanciful “campfire” throughout the day for songs and activities. kidspacemuseum.org

Spend a fun, care-free day at Kidspace, where you’ll find ample free parking outside the museum, tasty meals and snacks at the Bean Sprouts Café, and a delightful museum store for unique gifts and souvenirs. Reserve tickets online and check the calendar for special weekend performances, new exhibits, and seasonal experiences.

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