Where To Go: The Children's Museum of Atlanta
- Shanicia Boswell
- Feb 19, 2016
- 4 min read
The Children's Museum of Atlanta reopened back in December after a long season of being closed for renovations. I have been eagerly waiting to write this review for such a great place to take your children for all times of the year.
The Staff
What I absolutely love about the Children's Museum is their staff. I mean this from the bottom of my heart. Everyone that works there seems to not only just love their job but also love interacting with children. I have never seen a staff member in a bad mood which is hard to say for some places which are specifically designed for children. As a parent, this is one of the most important features of the museum. It ensures that with each visit, we will be greeted with warm smiles and happy faces.
Permanent Exhibits
The newly renovated Children's Museum has the same open floor layout as the previous design with some big time major improvements. They teamed up with Waffle House, Publix Supermarket, and Home Depot to bring more realistic pretend play in the form of a Waffle House diner, a new and improved Grocery Store, and a great piping and block building activity area. My favorite of these new updates is definitely the addition of the Waffle House diner. It is so completely realistic down to the coffee makers, waffle skillets, and even the booths.
The most educational part of the newly renovated museum are the toy train stations. Instead of there being only one train set, there are seven- one for each continent. On each continent station, there are facts and activities specific to each particular region. The Great Wall of China is pointed out in Asia and children can make earthquakes in South America.
For children who love to climb, there are several new additions to satisfy their need to get their feet off the ground. The first is the world globe. Children can climb into the globe and turn the world from a spinner inside. There is also the Climber. This is a two story space that children can climb up and down to view
the museum from an interesting perspective.
Another one of my favorite parts of the renovated museum is that they creators made great use of empty space. They turned their drink and snack room into a build it station and another section of the museum into an art studio. You can actually sign your children up for various arts and crafts activities so they can take a piece of the museum magic home with them.
For older children, the Children's Museum has completely renovated their upper level to a section they call Step Up To Science. Walk the piano stairs (they actually play notes for each step you take) into a world where children can move balls with their mind, learn about magnetism through robotics, and participate in different science experiments with demonstrators.
Some displays that stayed the same in the museum are the ball machine, the fishing pond, the painting station, and the sand lot with the addition of strolling lights. These areas were already top notch so it is no surprise they decided not to renovate them
Overall, I give the Children's Museum in Atlanta 5 out of 5 stars. It is clean, fun, and there are enough activities that you can bring your child back continuously without tiring them out. My suggested age range for activities are two years old to ten years old. They do have stations for infants but it is not my suggestion for children one and under to attend this venue without accompanying older brothers or sisters.
Membership and Hours Of Operation
If you are a resident of Atlanta or surrounding areas, I urge you to purchase a membership for the museum. It can get pricey if you are visiting here and there and for a family of 4, you have spent your membership cost in just a couple of visits. A great feature provided by The Children's Museum of Atlanta is that they will allow you to visit and take the cost of your tickets to apply to your membership costs. So if you want to check it out first before making the commitment, you can do so hassle free. Check out their website The Children's Museum to find out more information on their ticket and membership costs.
I do have one critique of the museum. It would be amazing if the hours of operation extended past 4pm during the week. On the weekends the museum is open until 5pm which is a plus but I feel that with the short hours during the week, it limits the museum play to only stay at home moms and nannies. During the summer months, it would be nice if the museum operated until at least 7pm for those moms who get off of work and still want to entertain their children.
Transportation
You will start to see an overall theme on my blog posts if you stick around long enough: I am very pro Marta when it comes to getting around in Atlanta. Only because I absolutely hate paying for parking and dislike the time restrictions associated with it. The Children's Museum of Atlanta is conveniently located about a 10 minute walk from either the Peachtree Marta Station or the GWCC (Georgia World Congress Center) Marta Station. I will admit, if you are not used to walking, it came seem a bit of a stretch but on a beautiful day, you will enjoy the stroll. Not to mention, Centennial Park is located right across the street so if your children are still not worn out after a long day of play, let them run that energy out on the playground. We all do it!
Have you ever visited The Children's Museum of Atlanta? Share your experience below!
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