Curiosity Blooms as National Children's Museum Welcomes New Spring Offerings

Extended hours and seasonal, family-friendly fun await at the Downtown DC hub for playful learning

WASHINGTON – This spring, curiosity is in full bloom at D.C.’s favorite place to play – National Children’s Museum! Throughout April and May, the Museum is celebrating the season with expanded hours, new offerings, and spring-themed programs that invite young learners and their families to grow their curiosity and engage in unique, playful, and environmentally-focused learning experiences. These seasonal highlights make for one unforgettable spring at National Children’s Museum!

Expanded Hours of Play

Bonus play time — From Saturday, April 12th to Saturday, April 19th, National Children’s Museum will be open two extra hours from 9 am - 6 pm, including on Tuesday, April 15th (when the Museum is typically closed). Families can purchase their advanced tickets by heading to https://nationalchildrensmuseum.org/tickets/.

Special Programs

Story Art Series — From April 14 - 18, the Museum will host its fourth and final Story Art Series program inside the Museum’s tinkering space. With Earth Day around the corner, this program teaches the importance of sustainability and caring for the environment through the repurposing of materials in upcycled art. Inspired by Barney Saltzberg’s “Beautiful Oops!” and “Not a Box” by Antoinette Portis, young learners can turn various materials from past Story Art Series programs—including yarn, tissue paper, and letters—into something new and beautiful. Story Art Series is sponsored by Events DC.

Collaborative Cherry Blossom Tree — The beauty of the Tidal Basin makes its way into the Museum as guests take part in building a collaborative cherry blossom tree. Little arborists can tap into their creativity as they tinker with various materials to make their unique blossoms, adding them to a large-scale community art piece. This is an unscheduled, pop-up program that will take place throughout April.

"Rose Weaves a Garden" Book Launch and Author Reading — On May 10, children’s book author and illustrator Rashin Kheiriyeh launches her new book “Rose Weaves a Garden,” a beautiful story about the power of cultural traditions and multigenerational learning. Museum guests can enjoy a reading of the book, meet the author, and engage in a complementary activity that demonstrates the same art and technique of rug-weaving found in the story. This program is at no additional cost to visitors.

STEAM Story Time Early Learner Programs — On Wednesdays throughout April and May, the Museum’s early learner program will focus on spring-themed stories and extension activities that celebrate the bounty of the Earth (April 9, 23, 30 and May 7, 14, 21, 28)! For example, young learners can immerse themselves in the cultural significance behind DC’s beloved cherry blossoms with an interactive read-aloud of “When the Sakura Bloom” by Narisa Togo, and learn about environmental awareness through the colorful world of Dr. Seuss’s “The Lorax”.

Spring Tinkering Programs — Join the Museum for hands-on tinkering time. This spring, the Museum’s tinkering hub will feature these sustainability-focused activities:

• March 31 - April 13 - Balance: Explore stability and gravity by creating balancing sculptures out of recycled and household items. Young builders develop problem-solving skills as they modify their creations to stack higher and higher!
• April 19 - 21 - Shadow Stories: Young learners play, observe, and make connections between light and shadows as they create stories, scenes, and engage with a varying palette of recycled materials and a source of light.
• April 22 - May 31 - Cardboard Creations: Explore new techniques to create works of art using cardboard! Tinkerers will have the chance to use real tools that help them build cardboard creations.

Sustainable programming in the Museum’s tinkering space is sponsored by the Ball Foundation.

Spring-Themed Exhibit Experiences

Weather Worlds + Climate Action Heroes Exhibits — Looking for engaging ways to celebrate Earth Month? Visit the Museum’s environmental science–focused exhibits, Weather Worlds and Climate Action Heroes. Through greenscreen and video-capturing technology, every motion matters in Weather Worlds. Young learners see firsthand how their actions control the weather, playfully investigating how our bodies impact the Earth. Then, guests can develop this concept of impact in Climate Action Heroes, where through the imagery of superheroes, they learn real-world examples of how to fight climate change. Through a physical flow quiz, they discover their inner Climate Action Heroes persona and see how their specific superpower can positively impact their community and the world. (Psst… can’t wait to visit the Museum? Head to climate-heroes.org to take a digital version of the quiz now!)

Outdoor Sound Garden Exhibit — Located just outside the Museum’s entrance on Wilson Plaza, these colorful floral instruments (that double as public art!) offer visitors a chance to perform as they explore the concepts of rhythm and harmony.

Wild Kratts®: Ocean Adventure! — 70% of the Earth is oceans, but 100% of National Children’s Museum’s Visiting Exhibit Hall will be Wild Kratts®: Ocean Adventure! starting May 24, 2025. This exhibit immerses young explorers in whole-body explorations of ocean habitats and the fascinating creatures within them. Using Wild Kratts technology and the powers of science and teamwork, guests will join the PBS Kids television show’s Wild Kratts team to solve problems, help animals, and foil the villains’ nefarious plans.

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About National Children’s Museum

A playful learning adventure awaits! National Children’s Museum is a unique hybrid institution in downtown Washington, D.C., that combines learning elements found in a science center with children’s museum experiences. Through play-based science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) exhibits and programs, the Museum sparks curiosity and ignites creativity for children under the age of twelve and their families. Founded in 1974, the Museum has served Washingtonians for five decades, and since reopening it’s new location in September 2021, the Museum has established itself as an international destination for play, welcoming more than 680,000 visitors across all eight wards, 50 states, and more than 75 countries. Learn more on how to visit the Museum and engage with virtual STEAM resources at nationalchildrensmuseum.org.