Updated: 2/11/2018 
The Colorado Springs Children's Museum and Natural History Museum
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Description

The Colorado Springs Children's Museum and Natural History Museum by Expanding Mind Unlimited is growing monthly. We offer museum displays in nature, culture, art, science, technology and more. We offer a full service kitchen, kids athletic zone, coffee and retail shop, monthly kids camps, a monthly vendors market and weekly summer farmer's market too. Learn, explore, create!

Mission

The Colorado Springs Children's Museum and Natural History Museum combined, also known as EMU, provide enhanced learning experiences for children and families, kids and adults with special needs, and seniors.

EMU is a local leader in bringing the world stage to developing young minds and those with special needs. EMU incorporates live instruction with hands on learning experiences, exposure to live exotic animals, and the freedom to explore and create all under one roof. We provide what schools and learning centers no longer can afford.

EMU is new, and it's our goal to create a fun and community-centered environment for our staff, volunteers and patrons.

History

EMU, the Colorado Springs Children's Museum and Natural History Museum, launched in April 2016 as a learning center and devoted it's initial time to providing field trip options to local schools. As our size increased, so did the number of museum displays and hands-on learning centers such as makerspaces. Then we moved to our new, ground-floor location. This location allowed us to expand further, and provide services to not only schools, but now to children and adults with special needs, seniors, and to open our doors to the public. Only 2 years in, we are realizing our dream and the public is benefitting.

Artifact Collections

Artifact Collections:

Native American Artifacts
Taxidermy
Rocks and Minerals
Cultural collection from China, Russia, Europe, Africa, and South America.
Space collections to include meteorites and telescopes
Rain forest
Programs

Education programs are core to our being. Schools bring anywhere from 30-130 students at a time, for field trips that include personalized lecture based on current school curriculum, private tour of the museum, and hands on options with our live animals.

We offer gallery tours of our collection, personal tours, birthday parties, docent programs, and classes in cooking and art.

Facilities
Over 5000 sq/ft of museum space and growing.

Men's and Women's bathrooms

Men's and Women's bathrooms

Kitchen

2 live animal rooms

Art room, play room, astronomy room, rain forest room, taxidermy room, Africa room, dinosaur and rock and mineral room, athletic zone, body detox therapy room for adults, on site coffee bar and retail center, 100-person conference room, library, and more.

Performance Areas
Library

Access: General Public, Students

Appointment required: True

Services
Your Child's Birthday Party

Wow your kid's with an amazing =Colorado Springs birthday party experience! Our Colorado Springs Children's Museum, nature and science learning center, is a perfect venue for a unique, fun and educational party. Let us plan a great party for you, or rent our learning center space and create your own party. Choose from one of our existing creative, interactive science and nature programs, or we will customize a specially themed program for the enjoyment of your guests.

Gift Shop
Online Gift Shop
Event Rental
Restaurant
Group Tours
DISCLAIMER
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MUSEUM CONFERENCES

April 27 - April 29, 2025

Oregon Museum Association 2025 Conference

TBA

Independence, Oregon

Beginning in 2025, the OMA annual conference will be held in Spring rather than Fall

The conference this year is all about trying new things. We are hoping to organize the conference into the following four tracks: Collections Care, Leadership, Emergency Preparedness, and Tourism

Check our website for more details in early 2025

The OMA newsletter is emailed every month with updates on OMA events, museum news, other events, trainings, jobs, grants and more for the museum community in Oregon.

For more information, please email connect@oregonmuseums.org.

October 1 - October 4, 2025

Western Museums Association’s (WMA) 2025 Annual Meeting

TBA

Reno, Nevada

Save the Date for WMA 202

As we celebrate our 90th anniversary, join us to build relationships and soar higher than ever before. With the theme of ELEVATE, WMA 2025 will explore ways to lift up the experiences of cultural professionals and the communities they serve.

In Reno, Nevada, 4,400 feet above sea level, we will forward the progress of museums by looking to the future.

May 6 - May 9, 2025

2025 American Alliance of Museums (AAM) ANNUAL MEETING & MUSEUMEXPO

Los Angeles Convention Center

Los Angeles, California

AAM 2025 will focus on the theme, Museums & Trust.

Museums have long inspired high levels of public trust, surpassing news outlets, government organizations, researchers and scientists, corporations, and social media platforms. This consistent finding underscores our institutions’ unique position in society as stewards of knowledge, culture, science, and history—areas where credibility and reliability are paramount

In an era marked by mistrust and misinformation, museums have a rare ability to counterbalance the proliferation of false narratives and polarized perspectives. Using our trusted position, we can cultivate a more healthy, empathetic, and informed society.

But to do so, we must maintain our credibility proactively, embracing thoughtful, transparent, and collaborative practices that will defend against influences like bias, resource challenges, abuse of power, and social injustice

An Incredible MuseumExpo

AAM is again partnering this year with the Museum Store Association to host an incredible combined expo hall. Find the most innovative services, products, and solutions in the museum field. With 350 exhibitors, you are bound to find the right partner for your museum’s current challenges and opportunities.

May 5 - May 9, 2025

Museum Store Association FORWARD 2025 in LA

The Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles, California

Join MSA in LA

We’re excited about our next MSA FORWARD Conference & Expo in “The City of Angels” – Los Angeles, California in conjunction with the American Alliance of Museums

Join the Museum Store Association (MSA) and hundreds of nonprofit retail professionals for the 70th Annual MSA FORWARD Retail Conference & Expo, taking place May 5-9, 2025 at The Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California

Once again, MSA FORWARD will be held in conjunction with the 2025 American Alliance of Museums (AAM) Annual Meeting & Expo

Learn best practices and new ideas for store merchandising, operations, marketing, and sale

Participate in dedicated networking events and create connections that will inspire new ideas

Meet with over 200 MSA vendors about your product needs

Hear from knowledgeable industry experts during session breakouts and keynote presentations

Network with AAM attendees and exhibitor

September 10 - September 13, 2025

2025 Am Assoc for State and Local History Annual Conference

TBD

Cincinnati, Ohio

The 2025 AASLH Annual Conference, in partnership with Ohio Local History Alliance, will take place as the history field makes the final preparations to kickoff off the 250th commemoration of the founding of the United States.

The 2025 conference theme, inspired by AASLH’s Making History at 250: The Field Guide for Semiquincentennial, is an opportunity to broadly explore one of the guide’s themes, The American Experiment. For many in the American colonies in 1776, independence from Britain represented a “leap into the dark” into an unknown future

We are excited for you to join us in Cincinnati as we encourage discussion about our democracy and civic institutions and how they can help strengthen understanding, inspire action, and reveal ways that all of us can participate in and shape the ongoing American experiment.

For more information, please call 615-320-3203 or email info@aaslh.org.

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