Complimentary membership to Omaha Children’s Museum was received as compensation for Omaha Children’s Museum blog posts.
Omaha Children’s Museum is our local children’s museum. We don’t always have a chance to make it downtown to visit, but when we do we want to make sure we get the most of it. To help you out I’ve jotted down some tips to help you plan your visit to your own local children’s museum to make it all run a little more smooth so you and your kids get the most out of it.
Tips for Visiting Your Local Children’s Museum
Snacks and Beverages
The first thing that always seems to cross my mind is food. Do I want the kids to eat before we leave, have lunch there, pack some snacks, grab something from a drive thru? It’s important to know what your local children’s museum has to offer for eating facilities. Do they have a diner? A lunch room? Are you allowed to bring in food and drink. A quick call to the museum before you leave can help you prevent hangry kids. You know what I mean, the fussiness when they’re hungry. I know I get fussy when I’m hungry.
I love the Rainbow Cafe at the Omaha Children’s Museum, it’s upstairs next to the special exhibits with bathrooms and water fountains close. They have a lot of kid favorites for some quick lunches or snacks, plus, we can pack in a lunch to eat there if we choose.
Age Appropriate Activities
The Omaha Children’s Museum has fun activities for kids of all ages. I love that they have spaces such as the Wiggle Room designed for babies and toddlers to keep them engaged without having to worry about the older kids knocking them over. Knowing the ages and programs the museum offers for kids will help you plan your visit, especially if you have kids in a wide age range. Again, a call to the museum before you leave can help you determine if your youngest, and possibly even your oldest will find activities there to suit their age and interests. If your local museum has a website you can often check there to see what they have to offer.
Special Exhibits
Another great thing to pay attention to is special exhibits. If you don’t make it to the museum as often as you’d like, like us, then there may be some temporary exhibits and programs you don’t want to miss. Keep an eye on your local children’s museum website or even sign up for their newsletter to stay in the loop on what’s happening.
The Omaha Children’s Museum currently has Pirates and Mermaids: Voyage to Creature Cove, ending in just a few days. This is the exhibit we went to and had loads of fun! It was extremely interactive and had something for everyone. The kids could have spent the entire day up there. Upcoming exhibits include Cobweb Castle in October and a special celebration of the 40 year anniversary bringing back fan favorites from the past 40 years!
Permanent Exhibits
While special exhibits are always exciting, the permanent exhibits at your children’s museum will also spark the imagination. Personally I love keeping tabs on what will always be there so I can pair it with what the kids have been learning. We homeschool, but this is also a great way to supplement a public school education. Over on the Omaha Children’s Museum blog I recently shared my top 10 favorite STEM activities at the Omaha Children’s Museum. I’m sure your local children’s museum has some similar activities.
Get a Map
We know our way around the Omaha Children’s Museum fairly well at this point, but there was a time in my life when it was brand new. I didn’t know where the science programs were and when they announced an event in another location I didn’t know how to get there. If you’re new to your museum grab a map when you check in, or if your museum is like ours, there will be a map on the wall somewhere. Check with the staff, they will be more than happy to point out map locations to you.
Daily Programming
Every children’s museum is going to be different, but I’m pretty sure they’re all going to have some kind of structured activities going on throughout the building. Check your local museums website or give them a call before you arrive to find out what time different events happen. You’ll be able to plan out your schedule and decide what you don’t want to miss while you’re there. We love to catch the science shows, however last time we were at the Omaha Children’s Museum, we also caught a couple of temporary activities such as Fairy Tale story time, Princess dance party and story time with a mermaid. I can’t wait to see what’s happening next time we’re there! The kids are going to love it!
Do you have any tips to make a visit to the children’s museum run smooth? I’d love to hear your tips in the comments below.
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