Our Mission:
Ignite the natural curiosity of every child through the power of play in a dynamic, awe-inspiring environment
PLAY. It's what we do.
MUSEUM HOURS
Daily Admission: $13/person
ADMISSION: $13/PERSON over 12 months
A membership to the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota includes unlimited access to the Museum’s galleries during regular business hours, special discounts in the Museum gift shop, and invitations to exclusive members-only events for less than $13 a month! The Museum offers a variety of membership packages to suit the needs of individuals, families, and groups.
Browse the Museum’s membership packages to find an option that works best for you. Contact Museum staff for further details.
Playing with art series
Artist applications Due by May 3, 2024
The Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota is thrilled to unveil a dynamic, multi-faceted project aimed at sparking the imaginations of young artists in our region. The Museum will roll out a series of events designed to celebrate creativity, foster artistic exploration, and culminate a children’s art show through the visiting artists series, Playing with Art. This activity is made possible in part by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Prairie Lakes Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.
Through the Playing with Art Series, the Museum will host six artists selected through a call-to-artists and interview process. These local artists will lead separate Saturday morning art-making sessions in Cecil’s Imagineering Loft throughout June 15, 22, 29 and July 13, 20, 27. The Museums goal is to infuse fun and excitement into the creative process for our young guests. While we’ll give a nod to the artists through our marketing, their focus will be on guiding our child artists on a journey of artistic self-discovery by inspiring them and exposing them to new mediums each Saturday.
Ignite your Curiosity
Let your child ignite their natural curiosity through the power of play in an awe-inspiring environment! Each camp will have the opportunity to engage in specific programming topics for the group. Opportunities for exploration of the Museum environment and programs will be a part of each experience. The Community Room will be “Camp Central” and campers will be able to engage together as a group in that space for directly supervised experiences created for each camp. Whether you are looking for something for your child to do on a day off of school or an opportunity to explore the camp theme there will be something for everyone!
Gateway to Baby Play Memberships are available to families of newborns and first-time parents up to their child’s first birthday. This Membership includes free admission for two parents and their baby until their first birthday. To obtain a Gateway to Baby Play Museum Membership, simply fill out the application here and return to CMSM.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Puzzle Swap with Parker!
Art Explorers
STEAM Explorers
Literacy Explorers
Math Happens
Math Happens
STEAM Explorers
Earth Day Plant-and-Take
Baby Play
Art Explorers
Exhibits
At the Children’s Museum of Southern Minnesota, each exhibit is intentionally designed as a robust educational resource that contributes to the well-being of children and the community. Our exhibits are created with an understanding of children’s development and based on local settings and landmarks with play potential for children, their parents, grandparents, caregivers, and teachers to explore, think, discover, learn, and enjoy.
Explore
Children learn best through hands-on play.
Discover
The Museum environment captivates children with a wide variety of interactive exhibits.
Think
Young minds need challenges and experiences to grow!
Learn
Exhibits are thoughtfully designed to spark curiosity and imagination.
Enjoy
Not only is play an incredible source of fun, but it is also crucial to children’s well-being.
Impact Stories
"A Place for Everyone"
“The Children’s Museum is a place where everyone can and be welcome and find some thing that they’re interested in. If you’ve never been here, I’d say get down here right away!”
"I can’t explain how grateful I am for the Children's Museum"
“I love that my kids can come to the Children’s Museum, be creative and imaginative and make friends in the process. We visit weekly and every time we leave each of my four kids has made a new friend.”