After years of dreaming, planning and fundraising, the wait is finally over. Westchester County has its own children’s museum and it’s a delight – and there’s even more potential that’s yet to come.
Fun Exhibits
The Westchester Children’s Museum (WCM) is located in the historic North Bathhouse at Rye Playland, a great spot with a great view. Enter from the boardwalk located to the right of Playland Amusement Park, pay the small admission fee and get ready to learn, explore and have fun! The first exhibit, called “Build Your Own Roller Coaster,” was a hit with my 9-year-old daughter. She connected the interchangeable ramps of different heights and shapes (some with upside down loops) to test how fast and far they could carry rubber balls. Turns out, she was pretty successful with the very long track she created.
My 5-year-old son’s favorite exhibit was the “Wind Tunnel Design Challenge.” The museum puts a wide variety of cool supplies tout to use – plastic cups, coffee filters, paper plates, masking tape – and challenges kids and adults to create objects that will hover inside a big tube with a fan blowing up from the bottom. My son and all the other kids there had big smiles on their faces when their objects shot out of the top of the tunnel, even though that meant they didn’t exactly meet the challenge!
Hands-On Learning
Each exhibit at the museum encourages kids to use their hands, their smarts and their imaginations. There’s a “KEVA Planks Construction Zone” featuring multiple tables with bins of wooden KEVA planks and cards suggesting designs to follow (you can also marvel at some of the models on display including cool buildings and a ship). There is also a table full of different sized magnets to experiment with.
My personal favorite spot was an area called MakerSpace. The activities here are ever-changing, but choices are offered in art, design, technology, science, math and architecture to name a few. During our visit, there was a giant pegboard with stretchable loops to create various shapes. We also participated in the craft activity, using leaves, construction paper, contact paper, feathers and more to make Thanksgiving cards.
Toddler Time
For little ones, ages 3 and under, there is a designated area called “Toddler Beach.” It’s enclosed and has lots of colorful, soft climbing toys (shoes must be removed and children must be supervised at all times). Kids can also climb through a small wooden lighthouse or enjoy quiet time in the “Reading Nook,” which has plenty of educational books to choose from.
More to Come
At this point, the Westchester Children’s Museum galleries cover 6,500 square feet, but there are grand plans for the remaining 15,500 square feet of space. Fundraising is ongoing, and once it is met, the museum expects to add additional exhibit space, a performance theater and a cafe and gift shop. Plans are also in the works for two exciting features. One is “The Climber,” a multi-story maze that will run the length of the museum, and the other is an entire area dedicated to water features and water play.
Though there is still a lot of work to do, the people behind the WCM know a little something about perseverance. It’s taken nearly 20 years to get the museum up and running. It all started with local moms talking around their kitchen tables, then forming a non-profit organization, then creating a business plan and securing more than $11 million in donations.
“The process of getting the museum from idea phase to open doors was challenging but always energized by the people on our Board and staff who never wavered fromthe notion that Westchester, home to so many families and children, had a void in its cultural landscape by not having a children’s museum,” says Corinne Zola, President of the Campaign for the Westchester Children’s Museum. “We lacked the kind of valuable, memorable, playful and enriching experiences that a children’s museum provides.”
Fortunately, thanks to a great idea and an amazing grassroots effort, that is no longer the case. Make sure you and your kids go and enjoy this local gem time and again.
Andrea White is a freelance writer.
