A Playground for your Mind!™ The Children’s Museum of Houston is packed with 90,000 square feet of hands-on exhibits. Build robots in Invention Convention; anchor the news; run a business; get elected as mayor in Kidtropolis, USA; explore nanotechnology in Matter Factory; portal through a mathematical quest in Cyberchase: The Chase Is On!, based on the PBS cartoon; take a wet, wild adventure in FlowWorks; and climb a three-story tower in PowerPlay.
Transforming communities through innovative, child-centered learning.
“America’s No. 1 Best Children’s Museum” by Parents magazine, winner of Nickelodeon Parents’ Picks “Best Museum in Houston 2009 & 2010,” Click2Houston’s Best “Best Museum 2010,” the Children’s Museum of Houston is a Citysearch.com’s nationwide 5-star children’s museum. Housed in a whimsical building designed by internationally acclaimed architect Robert Venturi, the Children’s Museum of Houston offers a multitude of exhibits bursting with action-packed fun that engage kids in the ultimate learning experience. The Museum was founded in 1980 by a group of Houston parents who hoped to elevate early childhood development to a community-wide priority.
Since then, the Museum has grown to serve more than 850,000 people annually, focusing on bilingual (Spanish/English) learning programs for kids ages birth to 12 years and workshops in literacy, science, math, health, engineering, civic engagement, culture and social studies. The Museum operates as a 501(c)(3) under the direction of a Board of Directors.
Since then, the Museum has grown to serve more than 850,000 people annually, focusing on bilingual (Spanish/English) learning programs for kids ages birth to 12 years and workshops in literacy, science, math, health, engineering, civic engagement, culture and social studies. The Museum operates as a 501(c)(3) under the direction of a Board of Directors.
In 2005, the Museum launched its Take Another Giant Step Capital Campaign to fund the doubling of the Museum’s exhibition space, the expansion of the Museum’s outreach programs and the formal launch of the Museum’s Institute for Family Learning. On March 14, 2009, the Museum opened its doors to a new building addition featuring more than 39,000 square feet of new exhibition space, including seven new, permanent exhibits: Cyberchase – The Chase Is On!, based on the award-winning PBS KIDS GO! animated series; Invention Convention; PowerPlay, FlowWorks, Kidtropolis, U.S.A. and a new TotSpot.
CMH has no permanent collections, since the museum considers most of its collections as "consumable." The collection consists of 5,000 educational pieces, 98% of which is used in hands-on activities. The collection objects that are utilized in conjunction with certain
exhibitions, are invariably consumed in the process. These objects include cultural objects from different regions (i.e. Mexico, Taiwan) and a large toy collection for infants to adults that includes puppets, games, stuffed animals, and toy household items.
After school program,School tours,Resource guides for teachers, Educational workshops/ programs,Demonstrations/activities in the gallery Workshops for children,Summer school,Performances,Music,Theater,Dance,Storytelling Artist-in-residence,Festivals
In addition to providing an informal learning center for children, the museum serves
families through classes that encourage interaction among family members. CMH also serves educators and schools through regularly scheduled seminars and structured field trips.
Auditoriums
Lecture Halls
Performance Areas
The Museum operates as a 501(c)(3) under the direction of a Board of Directors.
Access: General Public, Students, Scholars, Members
Appointment required: False
Gift Shop
Online Gift Shop
Event Rental
Restaurant
Group Tours