We will walk down the stone path, across the Big Meadow to the Museum. I can see a statue of a big, green praying mantis on the lawn. His name is Francis. “Hello Francis!”
The Museum is a big, red, brick building with lots of windows.
At the Admissions Desk, the receptionist says hello to me. She is wearing a green shirt. All the people in the green shirts can answer my questions or help me play the games.
There are some rules to follow inside the Museum so it’s fun and safe for everyone:
1. I will stay with my grownup at all times.
2. I will use my inside voice.
3. I will walk, not run, inside the Museum.
4. When I am done playing with a toy, I will put it back where it came from.
I will see a lot of fun things at the Staten Island Children’s Museum. There are games and activities in many different areas. These areas are called exhibits. I will look at the map and decide which exhibit I want to see first.
I can pretend to be an actor on the stage in the Playhouse. I can open and close the stage curtains.
I can put on a costume and make believe I am in a real play! There is a sound and light board.
I can push the buttons to make dif-ferent sounds. Some sounds are loud, like an audience clapping and cheering for the performers.
I can also change the stage lights.
I can turn them on and off, or light up the stage in different colors. If I do not like the noises, I can ask my grownup to leave Portia’s Playhouse and explore another exhibit.
Ahoy!
I see a pirate ship.
I can ring the bell if I want to try it, but it is LOUD, so I don’t have to.
I can climb below the ship and make a pretend meal in the ship’s kitchen, which is called a galley.
I can build a castle or anything I imagine with the blocks. The blocks have different shapes and colors.
I can sit in the book nook and read a book, or at the little table and do a puzzle.
I can tell the Museum just how much fun I am having!
I can sit in the little chair and make a movie starring me.
My grownup will help me touch the screen and share my adventure.
This exhibit has a big red fire truck.
I will wait my turn and then climb aboard and sit in the driver’s seat.
Sometimes the fire truck’s siren makes loud sounds, and there
is a fire bell I can ring.
If the siren is too loud, I can go to another exhibit.
There is a fire pole that I can slide down! I see the firefighter costumes.
I can try one on and pretend to be a firefighter.
I see lots of BIG games! The chess pieces are almost as big as I am, but they are not heavy and I can move them myself.
I can roll a ball down the bowling alley and knock over all the pins. There are some big dominoes, which are soft like pillows, and I can stack them up high.
I can count their white dots.
I can even build a log cabin from the wooden builder boards. I can go inside my cabin if I want to!
There is a lot of art in the Museum. If I look up in Big Games, I can see funny colorful artwork hanging from the ceiling! I wonder if some of them can actually fly. Some of the creations move and spin when I walk by.
I see a soft screen on the wall that I can touch. When I put my hand on it, it changes colors!
I see a wall with round pegs where I can create bright images and make a picture or spell out my name.
Just outside of Big Games is the Garden Terrace – it is a big patio filled with plants and other fun things to do, like play music, or look at bugs, or learn about composting.
If it is a nice day, my grownup and I can sit outside on a bench on the patio and enjoy some quiet time if I need a rest.
Rain Forest
This exhibit looks like a jungle, with trees and plants above and a pretend river painted on the floor. I can pretendthat I am on a raft crossing the river and walk on the logs. It is kind of dark in here, just like a real rainforest.
Tundra
Now I am at the North Pole, where it is very cold all the time – BRRR!! There is a lot of pretend ice and snow. I can pretend I am riding a dog sled through the snow, or climb the rock wall with help from my grownup.
Under the Sea
Now I am under the sea. I can pretend to be a scuba diver and explore the ocean floor. It is a little dark in here, just like it is down in the ocean.
Radio Station WXEP
I can talk into the microphones and make a pretend radio broadcast. I can tell every-one listening to their radios what I did in the exhibit!
Here is the Snack Zone Café, where I can have a snack or eat my lunch.
They have kids’ meals just for me, and salads, fruit, wraps and other healthy foods that my grownup will like, too.
I can even bring my own lunch from home and sit at a table.
Everyone is really nice here. I can ask my grownup for help in getting a drink or a snack from the vending machines; they are really fun to watch!
On nice warm days, we can go outside to the Sea of Boats. I can pretend to row a boat and try the tug boat.
I can collect water in a bucket and splash at the water tables. I may get a little wet, but the sun will help me dry off.
I can make the foghorns toot on the boats. I can also ring the bell on the buoy. It can get a little loud in the Sea of Boats. If it is too loud for me, I can go to another exhibit.
Sometimes there are special shows in the Sea of Boats. My grownup can check with the Museum staff to find out what fun performances are coming up that I might want to see.
We can take the elevator or the staircase to the Walk-In! Workshop.
I can paint a picture, make a sculpture from clay or do a fun art project.
I can wear a smock so I will not get paint on my clothes.
I will wash my hands when I am finished.
I see a house being built and can turn the lights on and off and see the pipes inside.
I can go up and down the stairs in the house; I will go slowly.
There are pretend bricks that I can stack up and knock over with the soft wrecking ball.
I can also use the tool bench and ride up and down on the big “level,” which is a see-saw!
If I need a break, I can sit down at the small table or on the bench and have a tea party in the Green Living Room!
I can turn on the wind-powered radio and the small TV using the buttons.
I can pretend to be an animal doctor, called a veterinarian.
I can put on a white coat like a real vet does and give the animals a checkup.
I will take good care of the pets and put them back in their places when I am done playing with them.
There are real animals at the Children’s Museum! Every day, I can meet and learn about a new animal. There are fish, bugs and even a tortoise that live inside their tanks.
I will look, but I will not bang on them, because I don’t want to scare them. My grownup will help me look at these not-so-scary bugs. But if I don’t like them, I can go to another exhibit.
I can pretend to be a bug and stand inside a shell. Or I can crawl through the giant ant hill. There are also many games here that I can play to learn more about bugs.
If I do not see my grownup, or if I have any questions, I can always ask for help from the nice people in the green shirts.
If it is too loud and I need a quiet place to sit on a sunny day, I can sit outside on the Garden Terrace or at a picnic table under the tent on the Meadow.
If I am feeling uncomfortable for any reason and need a quiet place to relax, my grownup can ask for a private place where we can sit and rest until I feel better.
When my visit to the Staten Island Children’s Museum is over, I can wave goodbye to all of the workers and I can wave to Francis the Praying Mantis, too!
