Madison Children's Museum

Glow Zone Adventures: Spin Art
2024-12-28 10:00 - 11:30 (America/Chicago) | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Get into the Glow Zone! MCM’s Celebrations Room will be bathed in UV blacklight to become a special glow-in-the-dark playspace for Winter Wonder Weeks (Dec 26 thru Jan 5). Join us for daily drop-in programs that feature fun with fluorescence. Wear your brightest whites and neons for the maximum glowy effect! This event is free with general museum admission.

Glow Zone Adventures: Spin Art
2024-12-27 10:00 - 11:30 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Get into the Glow Zone! MCM’s Celebrations Room will be bathed in UV blacklight to become a special glow-in-the-dark playspace for Winter Wonder Weeks (Dec 26 thru Jan 5). Join us for daily drop-in programs that feature fun with fluorescence. Wear your brightest whites and neons for the maximum Glow Zone effect! This event is free with general museum admission.

Free Thursday Evenings
2024-12-26 16:00 - 20:00, 2024-12-19 16:00 - 20:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Visit MCM for free every Thursday evening, 4–8 pm!

Enjoy extended hours each Thursday, completely free of charge. Please check in at the admissions desk when you visit during free hours.

Looking for more affordable ways to visit? During the rest of the week, MCM offers reduced cost admission and memberships every day to families who qualify through our Access for Everyone initiative.

Glow Zone Adventures: Winter Dance Party
2024-12-26 10:00 - 11:30 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States

Museum Closed - Dec 25, 2024
2024-12-25 00:00 - 23:59 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
MCM will be closed on December 25, 2024, for the holidays.

The museum will re-open on Thursday, December 26, at 9 am! December 26 kicks off our Winter Wonder Weeks programming, including festive acivities, special seasonal parties, cozy concerts, and 11 consecutive days of museum fun thru Sunday, January 5!

Holiday Gift-Making: Tea Towels
2024-12-22 13:00 - 15:00, 2024-12-22 10:00 - 12:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Looking for handmade gifts that’ll bring the holiday cheer? Join Junko in the Art Studio Classroom to create custom printed tea towels for the holiday season.

This event is free with general museum admission. Image credit: Cami Graham

Holiday Gift-Making Station
2024-12-21 13:00 - 15:00, 2024-12-21 10:00 - 12:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Looking for handmade gifts that’ll bring the holiday cheer? Come pop into the Art Studio classroom! Make a winter solstice lantern to brighten the darkest day of the year, and festoon a custom decoupage ornament with layers of festive images.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Hot Chocolate Bar!
2024-12-21 11:00 - 12:30
Enjoy this sweet, warming treat in festive style! Deck your cups of piping cocoa with marshmallows, whipped cream, sprinkles, and other cheery toppings in the Wonderground’s Down Under.

Sensory Worlds with Junko
2024-12-20 13:30 - 14:30 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Join Junko as we explore different sensory materials every week!Please note, this program location may vary. Check at the admissions desk for the most up-to-date information.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Clay Day: Ceramic Ornaments
2024-12-20 13:00 - 15:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Explore the squishy, smudgy, sculptable world of clay! Today we’ll create colorful handmade ornaments with ceramic.

Each Friday, join us for a different drop-in clay experience in the Art Studio. We’ll work with a variety of media–ceramic clay, dough, paper clay, polymer clay, and more. This event is free with general museum admission. Image credit: Elsie Larson

STEAM Time: Cinnamon Ornaments
2024-12-20 11:00 - 12:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Create fragrant and festive ornaments using cinnamon sticks for the holidays!

Join us each week for new STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) activities. These hands-on programs foster creativity, ignite curiosity, encourage divergent thinking, build problem-solving skills, and offer new ways for kids to explore the world around them.

This event is free with general museum admission. Image credit: Natalie Vecchione

Music with Junebug: Winter Concert
2024-12-20 10:30 - 11:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Join us for Music with Junebug, led by Junko Yamauchi!

This program gives toddlers and preschoolers the opportunity to sing, dance, explore instruments, and play. Music and movement activities promote brain development and connect us to our family and community. Today, we’ll enjoy a special winter concert with MCM staff ringing bellplate renditions of your favorite holiday tunes.This event is free with general museum admission.

Lexie's Idea Lab
2024-12-19 17:00 - 19:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Get your creativity flowing with Lexie in the Idea Lab! Practice different methods for generating new art projects and storytelling concepts with guidance from the Idea Machine.

This event is part of our free admission Thursday evenings, 4 pm-8 pm every week.

Music Sprouts with Junko
2024-12-19 13:30 - 14:30 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Music and movement for preschoolers!

Join Junko learn and experience to trial for registered class designed especially for 3-5. We’ll focus on singing together, feeling rhythm and music in our bodies, and exploring instruments. It’s a wonderful way to get out of the house and connect with your child through music and movement.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Snow Globe Photo Op!
2024-12-19 13:00 - 15:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Looking for a last-minute handmade gift for an auntie or a grandparent? Pop into the Art Studio classroom, where we’ll snap and print a pic of your child, and transform them into the center of a laminated photo snow globe.

This event is free with general museum admission. Image credit: Michelle McKinley

Messy Art with Laurie: Cinnamon Creations
2024-12-19 11:00 - 12:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Join Ms. Laurie and our art studio staff for a weekly drop-in art experience designed especially for our youngest visitors and caregivers. Little artists can explore materials and art making with their senses through open ended process-based projects. Best of all, we do all the cleanup! Today, we’ll use fragrant and festive cinnamon clay to create peppy holiday decorations. Please note, these are non-toxic but NOT edible! There is glue in the formula, so please smell but don’t taste.

This event is free with general museum admission. Photo credit: Jean Van’t Hul

Let's Move! in the Wonderground
2024-12-19 10:00 - 11:30, 2024-12-18 10:00 - 11:30 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Join us for movement games in the Wonderground! From obstacle courses to dances, group games, balance activities, and yoga, we’ll enjoy different opportunities to move our bodies every day.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Tales with Teresa
2024-12-19 09:30 - 10:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Join us for story time and hear Teresa read some of her favorite books using her DynaVox. With this speech-generating device, Teresa will share stories and help build listening skills, develop early literacy, and celebrate each other’s differences.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Jump 'n Jive with Junko and Abby
2024-12-18 13:00 - 14:30
Join Junko and Abby in the Wonderground each Wednesday for movement and music games!

This event is free with general museum admission.

Music Time with Tim
2024-12-18 11:00 - 11:30
Explore the world of music and rhythm! Join Tim each week to enjoy play-based songs, games, and stories.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Nice Age Tales
2024-12-18 10:30 - 11:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Join us for a story and circle time that connects children to kindness and nature. Sing songs, interact with puppets, listen to a story, and move your body in this interactive weekly program.

This event will be held in the Nice Age Trail exhibit and is free with general museum admission.

Co-op Kids: Culinary Coloring
2024-12-18 10:00 - 11:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Join MCM staff and friends from Willy Street Co-op to get creative with food in the Lunchbox cafe!

Today, we’ll channel our culinary creativity with a coloring activity. This event is free with general admission.

Early Explorers Playgroup
2024-12-18 10:00 - 11:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Social time for babies and their grown-ups!

This playgroup is thoughtfully designed for our earliest visitors. We will provide a space for infants and toddlers (2 years and under) and their caregivers to explore and play together, and engage in activities that support various aspects of child development. Parents and caregivers will have the opportunity to connect with one another over a variety of topics. Come meet other families and make new friends!

This event will be held in the Celebrations Room and is free with general museum admission.

Let's Make! with Lexie: Embossed Foil Ornaments
2024-12-15 13:00 - 15:00
Explore new materials and creative techniques through facilitated art activities and bring home hand-made treasures and trinkets. Projects vary each week and may include sculpture, painting, comics, printmaking, and more! Today, we’ll create embossed foil ornaments to shine up your home for the holidays!

This event is free with general museum admission. Image credit: KiwiCo
