A pioneer in education, the Brooklyn Children's Museum was the first museum created expressly for children when it was founded in 1899. With award-winning, hands-on exhibits and innovative use of its collections, the Museum engages children from pre-school to high school in learning adventures.

The Brooklyn Children's Museum is now bigger and better than ever, as vast renovations were completed in 2008. The museum offers over 100,000 square feet square feet of interactive exhibition space, designed expressly for kids between the ages of 2 and 10. Nine different galleries offer fun-filled adventures in world culture and natural science.

Highlights include:

Totally Tots Kids under age 5 have a place all their own at Brooklyn Children's Museum. Totally Tots is inspired by the Museum's natural science, cultural, and historical collections and includes several areas that promote literacy and physical and social development. Gallery spaces include the Baby Patch, the Sand Spot, the Play Pond, the Kids' Quarry, the Reading Nook, the Peek-A-Boutique, and Parent Junction. Totally Tots is open during all public hours and has additional morning hours. Groups must call in advance (718) 735-4400.

Together in the City Visit Yankee Stadium, celebrate Chinese New Year, or experience a Bat Mitzvah! You can hang out in the pizza parlor, construct your own fort, or perform on a parade float. This landscape of festive urban places teaches kids how diverse communities live, work, and play together.

Collections Central: Artifacts & Specimens Look, feel, make, and know in this ever-changing gallery featuring engaging activities using a selection of cultural artifacts from our 27,000 piece collection. Curate your own exhibit or explore these fascinating treasures through magnifiers, puzzles, games, and special drawing programs. Kids are invited to share their own interpretation of the messages and meanings they find within each artifact or specimen.

Children's Library and Education Resource Center Choose from over 4,000 books of stories, science, folktales, poetry and pictures. The Education Resource Center also has a collection of reference materials including encyclopedias, field guides, art books, and nearly 40 magazines and journals. Four eMac computers offer Internet access to the public. Relax, read, and explore in the Museum's library!

Animal Outpost Ever wonder if snakes feel slimy? Want to know why the Green Basilisk is blue? Do you have burning questions about tadpoles, what they eat, and how they become frogs? The answers to these questions and more are in the new Animal Outpost where kids can observe live animals eating, sleeping, swimming, and playing. If you're lucky, you may catch a natural science curator feeding Fantasia, the 17-foot-long Burmese Python!

Con Edison Greenhouse and Garden Don an apron, grab a clipboard, and record your observations as you study plants, insects, soil, and ecosystems. Ask questions and draw your own conclusions about our collection of flora including a rubber plant, a cocoa tree, cactus plants, and edible herbs! Enjoy a lush community space and special botany programs.

Music Mix Study the pitch, rhythm, and melody of music from all over the world. Check out authentic artifacts from China, Peru, Jamaica, India, Spain, Venezuela and the US. Compose your own masterpieces using the steel pan, xylophone, accordion, conga drum, and more!

Visiting Exhibit Gallery You'll always find something new in this very special part of the museum. Every three to six months, Brooklyn Children's Museum creates a unique environment for kids to explore. Check out the program calendar for information on current exhibits and programs!

Main Stage Mix equal parts make-believe, dress-up, sound, and lights, then sprinkle with imagination, and it's SHOWTIME! Costumes and props, mirrored dressing tables, a stage complete with a red velvet curtain, provide all that's needed to be a star!