Rhythm and Hues Arts & Crafts:
Our little Picasso’s can show off their unique creative talents in the Rhythm and Hues Art room. The art room is filled with colorful paints, construction paper, paper mosaic tiles, glitter glue, iridescent fabric shapes, wiggly eyes, and glittering rhinestones just to name a few. For those who desire more structure, there are bins filled with instructional art packets, which include all the necessary supplies and detailed instructions on how to make everything from telescopes to fingerprint flowers. Children will create like never before to the sounds of inspiring music. Our arts & crafts room provides a place for continuous exploration of many mediums of art and science materials. We offer a staff-led craft and sensory messy table project thorough the week. Please see our newsletter.
Key educational components:
While creating their works of art and listening to music, children are exercising both their gross and fine motor skills along with expressing their creative side.

International Marketplace and Cafe:
Shopping, following a list, and paying a cashier are all important life skills that children learn in the International Marketplace and cafe. All kinds of food, aprons, bags, shopping baskets and play money allow the children to play shopper and shopkeeper alike. Tell time at the world wall clock, learn colors at the grocery store, "drive" the mail truck to the post office.  Children love this exhibit that lets them pretend to be a chef, wait staff, and busboy/girl. Little cooks especially enjoy preparing a special meal for a parent or caregiver. The café includes seating for customers and a full kitchen for the cooks – including a microwave, refrigerator, and a stovetop along with pots, pans, and plates. Varied food choices teach children about preparing a balanced meal and provide parents a chance to do sorting games with preschoolers. Order pads, menus and a cash register complete the scene.

Little West Side:
Welcome to the Little West Side, where our smallest visitors rule the town.  Children enjoy domestic role play with dolls, tea time, window washing, sweeping the porch and making friends with neighbors.   

Key educational Components:
Children will learn symbolic and associative play skills. These play skills have been defined to include elements such as spontaneity, intrinsic (or internal) motivation, pleasure, free joyous qualities, and self-direction. This exhibit allows a child to access and explore his or her world.

Sea to Sky Construction Zone:
Children can put on hard hats and construction worker vest to get right down to the business of building. In the “construction zone” builders of tomorrow can transport Giant Lego Dacto Blocks to the job site by wheelbarrow and construct walls in the already framed house. A pulley system allows children to maneuver their building supplies up into the house.

The Magic Sand Table w/ twisting tops and constructive puzzles
A spacious table where children can mold the magic sand and enjoy some solitary play. They can also enjoy spinning multiple tops and figuring out mind teaser puzzles.
Key educational Components:
While children are working hard at building with their imagination they are also fine tuning their gross and fine motor skills. The pulley system also assists their problem solving and logical skills. Children will tap into their physical, manipulative and constructive play skills.

Ship of Discovery:
Built by Amish Craftsmen, the design allows for two levels of play, with a crawlspace underneath the upper deck. The ship is near the dress-up stage and has a dramatic tower with that allows for a view of the whole museum complete with a hidden, quiet area, just for little people
Key educational Components:

1. A stage for dramatic play. Children can pursue both realistic, cooperative and imaginative play with a variety of props and costumes.
2. Come aboard the ramp, climb the step ladder, escape down the slide, crawl below deck to explore the ship's hull and raise fishing nets, swing on knotted ropes, steer the ship to improve and contribute to Gross Motor Skills.
3. The "pilings" on the dock have ropes around them with various marine knots for the children to try to tie and develop Fine Motor Skills.
4. By utilizing the periscopes, telescopes and binoculars children are exploring the science of optics.
5. Children love to gaze at their reflection. They will be surprised by the mirrored ceiling below deck and the dock mirrors, which allow them to see their reflections in both convex and concave perspectives.
6. Little sailors can learn to identify aquatic sounds with instruments, which create whale calls, thunder, and wind.

Pups Palace
This playplace is a safe, clean and gated space specifically designed for infants and toddlers visiting the museum. The children can enjoy crawling and sliding on their own play gym built just for their size and maneuverability. There are also wall mounted toy panels that capture their young mind, age appropriate toys and books.
Key educational Components:
Infants and toddlers enjoy playing in this colorful and charming atmosphere while learning eye-hand coordination and improving their gross and fine motor skills. The play space is also designed to encourage group play and interaction with other children.

The Spirit House
The spirit house brings visitors luck, happiness, accomplishments and security for all the inhabitants. In the spirit house, children can explore this quite area and enjoy our literature and endless puzzle games and maps and especially our new aquatic exhibit.

The Sunshine Stage
The drama and excitement that come with imagination are on display on the Sunshine stage! Watch as children perform in shows, perform puppet shows, dress up as animals, ballerinas, or community workers, and explore the outer reaches of their imagination.