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Starting as a way to find a place for children to play and learn, the Children's Museum of the Brazos Valley has come a long way since its inception in 1995 in Downtown Bryan. Since opening in its new spot at Lake Walk in 2021, the museum has continued to support lifelong learning and positive social interactions in children from babies to age 14.
“Our semi-structured activity layout allows for both children and parents to get to play and interact in their areas of interest,” Executive Director Patricia Lindblom says. “We have different activities throughout the day that our staff guide, but we also have areas that children are able to explore and use their imaginations.”
The museum offers a variety of exhibits for children to learn and play including both permanent and rotating activities. The very popular Main Street features various businesses, some of which can be found in B/CS, including a vet, grocery store, bank and restaurant for kiddos to role-play and learn about various professions. Another interactive area is the ball wall, which showcases a fun way to learn about engineering and architecture through a ball suction system. A favorite, the spaceship, allows kiddos to get inside the multi-level exhibit to learn more about space including the solar system and planets.
“The Main Street area is really impactful,” Patricia says. “It teaches children real life ways to see what kinds of jobs are out there. For example, we have a pet clinic complete with carrier cages for pets, stethoscopes, thermometers and even medicine bottles for kids to use their imagination with as they play.”
Changing monthly, the Innovation Station is a laboratory for children to create and build while trying out a variety of experiments based on the monthly theme. This area also includes a Makers Station, where children can put their creativity to the test creating a variety of crafts, to include books that coordinate with the theme.
“These activities are based on monthly themes,” Patricia says. "For example, we did a craft with pinecones recently. We created bird feeders and painted and made nature collages at the Innovation Station."
For young children learning to crawl, specifically those ages 0 to 24 months, the museum offers the soft play zone as a safe area to practice walking, crawling and climbing as well as the development of motor skills.
In addition to normal activities, the museum also offers fun happenings yearly including a daddy daughter dance, Noon Year's Celebration complete with their version of a ball drop and even hosts a fun coffee fundraiser, which allows community members to receive free items from local shops.
With a few location moves, the new museum is at a temporary location in Lake Walk as staff works to gather resources to build its own building. As the museum works to expand into a new building, Patricia says she hopes to expand the offerings to include more activities and classes for older teens, parents and even college-aged students.
The Children’s Museum of the Brazos Valley is located at 4114 Lake Atlas Drive in Bryan and is open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. Daily admission is based on age with babies from 0 to 11 months being free, children ages 1 to 14 as $10 and adults (age 15 and up) is $4, but the museum also offers yearly membership options for two, four and six people. The museum is also a hub for many fun summer camps and even hosts birthday parties. For more information or to plan your visit to the museum, visit cmbv.org or call (979) 779-5437.
