Last updated: 7/18/2012
950 Trout Brook Drive
West Hartford, CT 06119
Tuesday - Saturday
9 AM - 4 PM
Open Mondays during local school vacations.
Visit our website for admission and exhibits.
Through hands-on, minds-open, fun experiences, The Children?s Museum engages the wonder and discovery of children and supports families as first teachers. The Museum offers free parking and is within walking distance of the many fine restaurants and shops of West Hartford Center and Blue Back Square. With its iconic mascot Conny, a 60 ft. replica of Connecticut?s state mammal the Sperm Whale, greeting visitors, the Museum offers numerous science and nature activities and programs for children and families.
The Wildlife Sanctuary is home to more than 100 rescued and injured animals and surrendered illegal pets, including wild cats, many varieties of reptiles and mammals. The Travelers Science Dome offers full dome planetarium shows for all ages. The Children's Museum preschool gives little ones a head start on loving science.
Canton's Roaring Brook Nature Center is part of The Children's Museum family, with five miles of trails for bird and foliage watching and hiking where New England's woodland environment, history and wildlife are the focus. 93 Gracey Road, Canton, CT 06019 860.693.0263 www.roaringbrook.org
Both locations offer school outreach programs, field trips, and school and summer vacation programs for pre-K through grade 6. Additional offerings include customizable birthday parties, Scout "Camp-ins," and more.
As a leader in science and nature education, the mission of The Children’s Museum is to engage children, their families and their teachers through fun, hands-on educational programs, activities, exhibits and community outreach. We strive to encourage discovery, spark a lifelong interest in science and nature, improve science achievement, and develop civic awareness of science and nature.
Founded in 1927 as the Children’s Museum of Hartford, our museum is a catalyst for science inspiration and learning amongst children aged twelve and under. On May 10, 2006, we changed our name to The Children’s Museum, with the tag line, "Where Science and Nature are Fun."
The Children’s Museum is the fifth oldest children’s museum in the nation. Hartford Magazine readers have consistently voted it among the top two “Best Kid’s Attraction” for several years.
The Children’s Museum has flourished in its current Trout Brook Drive location since 1958, when it moved from its former home on Farmington Avenue. In addition to the museum itself, The Children’s Museum comprises the highly respected, science-curriculum based preschool, The Children’s Museum Preschool; Connecticut’s largest space theater, the Travelers Science Dome Planetarium; the UTC wildlife; and the wonderful Roaring Brook Nature Center in Canton. We are the only children’s museum in the nation that has such a wide range of distinct science and nature-based offerings.
Field trips are a time-honored tradition in the life of a school child. A Children’s Museum field trip helps bring science to life and challenges students with hands-on exhibits and programs that are steppingstones to inquiry-based learning. A field trip generates an excitement about science that students carry back to the classroom and that teachers can build upon throughout the year. Our programs provide the spark, the interest, and the motivation to learn more.
The Children’s Museum is committed to life-long learning and the importance of an educated community. Through educational field trips, children develop a sense of curiosity and become excited about the world around them, empowering them to include museums and other informal learning venues in their lives as they grow older.
The Children’s Museum staff is committed to providing superior customer service to you, the formal educator, through a simple field trip reservation process and an environment that maximizes learning. Our classroom programs are interactive, educational, and fun! Utilizing hands-on applications, students can explore the animal kingdom, forensic chemistry, Connecticut’s watersheds, and even slime through inquiry-based learning.
Can't come to us? We'll come to you.
The outreach program of The Children's Museum travels all across Connecticut, Massachusetts and New York, bringing science to schools, libraries, scout meetings and more. Looking to save on the cost, time and effort of making a trip to us? Having outreach come to you is the answer.
With more than 20 programs for grades K-8, our outreach covers a wide variety of topics that are sure to spark excitement for science. Our assembly programs can serve large audiences and are filled with spectacular demonstrations on chemistry, sound, electricity, flight and more. Live animals from the Museum's UTC Wildlife Sanctuary can hit the road to visit you. We bring the night sky indoors with the STARLAB portable planetarium. Hands-on classroom programs let smaller groups get up close and personal with engineering, slime, insects, forensics, music and other science subjects. In our science showcases, hands-on, museum style exhibits explore electricity, magnets, lights, motion and bubbles. All outreach programs are aligned with Connecticut's State Science Standards.
Vacation Science and Summer Camp
The Children's Museum has fun and learning planned throughout the school year. Each camp day has a science theme and is packed with scientific investigation, experiments, crafts, and educational games all in the safe and educational environment of our museum. Of course, there's time to explore our hands-on, interactive exhibits, see one of our amazing planetarium shows, and meet a live animal.
Vacation Science Camp is for children in grades 1 - 5. Sign up for a single day, multiple days, or an entire week. Available during local school vacations and summer vacation.
Each week-long session offers hands-on exploration for young scientists entering grades 1 through 6 in the fall.
Join us for a fun and interactive experience to remember!
Experienced staff * State licensed * Safe and positive environment
Fees vary. Visit website for detailed information.
Lecture Halls
Performance Areas
President & CEO reports to Board of Trustees.
Quarterly Newsletter, monthly E-blast, annual Donor Report.
Gift Shop
Special Event Rental
Group Tours
Has Parking;Has Restrooms
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