Clay Day!
2024-10-11 13:00 - 15:00, 2024-10-18 13:00 - 15:00 (America/Chicago) | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Explore the squishy, smudgy, sculptable world of clay!

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.

Sensory Worlds with Junko
2024-10-11 13:30 - 14:30, 2024-10-18 13:30 - 14:30 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Join Junko in the Celebrations Room 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.

Percussion-Palooza with the Handphibians
2024-10-12 10:00 - 10:30 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Join the Handphibians for a free Brazilian percussion extravaganza at Rotary Plaza Stage, just outside the museum’s front entrance!

Guided Movement Games
2024-10-12 10:00 - 11:30
Join our friends from Force of Nature Movement for guided movement games and open playtime in the Wonderground. We’ll be practicing organic skills such as climbing, crawling, jumping, and running, and playing games like the classic Floor is Lava. These games are designed for children ages 3-10 years, but all are welcome!

This event is free with general museum admission.

Exploration Station: Autumn Leaf Art
2024-10-12 10:30 - 12:00, 2024-10-13 10:30 - 12:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Learn why leaves turn fiery colors in autumn, and use those leaves to create a seasonal masterpiece.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Saturday Art Adventures with Laurie
2024-10-12 13:00 - 15:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Dive into an exciting drop-in art experience each week with Laurie and our Art Studio team. Embark on projects with a wide variety of art media and processes for all ages and abilities. Materials are included—and the best part? We take care of cleanup!

This event is free with general museum admission.

Let's Make! with Lexie: Puppet Workshop
2024-10-13 13:00 - 15:00
Explore new materials and creative techniques through facilitated art activities and bring home hand-made treasures. Projects vary each week and may include sculpture, painting, comics, printmaking, and more! Today, you’ll create your own functional puppet friend!

This event is free with general museum admission.

Early Explorers Playgroup
2024-10-16 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-10-23 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.

Co-op Kids: Produce Piano
2024-10-16 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 experiment with an electronic produce piano composed of fresh fruits and veggies.

This event is free with general admission.

Let's Move! in the Wonderground
2024-10-16 10:00 - 11:30, 2024-10-23 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.

Nice Age Tales
2024-10-16 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.

Music Time with Tim
2024-10-16 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.

Free Thursday Evenings
2024-10-17 16:00 - 20:00, 2024-10-24 16:00 - 20:00
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 also offers heavily discounted admission and memberships to families who qualify through our Access for Everyone initiative.

Free Night: Science on the Square
2024-10-17 16:00 - 20:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Enjoy FREE admission 4-8 pm as part of Science on the Square, an event for all ages that kicks off the Wisconsin Science Festival. Join us for hands-on STEM activities, including:

UW Neuroscience Outreach, 5-7:45 pm: Join our friends from UW Neuroscience for brain-building activities and interact with REAL neurological specimens.

MCM Wild Wonders: Squishy Circuits. 5-7 pm: Making circuits using play dough and LED lights.

MCM Idea Lab, 5-7 pm: Create art and storytelling projects with the Idea Machine

Sound Science: Enjoy an eerie, unusual theremin and plastic bag percussion demo, 5-6 pm

Sound Science: Makey-Makey synthesizer demos, 6-8 pm

Sound Science: UW Speech & Hearing Clinic: How do we hear?

Story Time with Alice in Dairyland, 5-5:15 pm and 6-6:15 pm

Women in Chemistry: How does the sun power chemical reactions?

Wisconsin Agriculture in the Classroom: Right this very minute on a Wisconsin farm…

UW IBio Go: Get to know our aquatic invertebrate friends

UW-Madison Hite Lab: How does a tiny parasite travel from the lake to the sky?

UW-Madison Freedman and Whitman Lab: What can you see in the soil?

UW-Madison Picasso Lab: Why are perennial plants and soil best friends?

UW-Madison Research in Developmental Disabilities and Language Lab

Lexie's Idea Lab
2024-10-17 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 with Junebug
2024-10-18 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.

For today’s Music with Junebug location, please ask at the desk! This event is free with general museum admission.

Member Party: Monster Mash
2024-10-18 17:00 - 19:30 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Little monsters take over the museum at our members-only Halloween bash!

Step into your silliest costume and celebrate the spirit of the season with frightfully fun activities and (free!) light refreshments, courtesy of MCM.

This event is for current museum members only. Registration is $10 per family (after MCM member discount.)

Register Now

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Wednesday, January 21 @ 11:00 am – 11:30 am

Saturday Art Adventures: Alebrijes Sculptures
2024-10-19 13:00 - 15:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Dive into an exciting drop-in art experience each week with Laurie and our Art Studio team. Embark on projects with a wide variety of art media and processes for all ages and abilities. Materials are included—and the best part? We take care of cleanup! Today, we’ll create our own colorful creature sculptures, inspired by Mexican artist Pedro Linares’ folk works, called alebrijes.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Exploration Station: Creepy Crafty Catapults
2024-10-20 10:30 - 12:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
3… 2… 1… Launch! Make your own mini catapult and see how far a your pom pom (aka mini pumpkin, with a sprinkle of imagination!) and other projectiles can fly. Learn about the physics of force and motion while launching objects of different weights and sizes.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Let's Make! with Lexie: Scientific Fabric Art
2024-10-20 13:00 - 15:00
Explore new materials and creative techniques through facilitated art activities and bring home hand-made treasures. Projects vary each week and may include sculpture, painting, comics, printmaking, and more! This week, we’ll try exciting experiments with fabric to celebrate the Wisconsin Science Festival.

This event is free with general museum admission.

Music Time with Tim: Halloween Songs
2024-10-23 11:00 - 11:30
Explore the world of music and rhythm! Join Tim each week to enjoy play-based songs, games, and stories. Today we’ll bop along to seasonal, spine-tingly Halloween songs!

This event is free with general museum admission.

MCM Roadshow: Meadowood Health Partnership Community Supper
2024-10-23 17:00 - 19:00 | Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 5701 Raymond Road, Madison, Wisconsin, 53711, United States
Meet up with MCM Roadshow at Meadowood Health Partnership’s Community Supper. Join your neighbors and friends for a bite to eat and enjoy hands-on arts activities when the kids have finished their meals!

Madison Children’s Museum Roadshow brings mobile exhibits and maker activities to community events in Madison and the surrounding area.

Messy Art with Laurie
2024-10-24 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 for MCM’s youngest visitors and their caregivers. Through open-ended & process-based projects, empower your little artist to freely explore materials and art-making with their senses. And the best part? We take care of cleanup!

This event is free with general museum admission.

Wild Wonders: Pressed Flower Bookmarks
2024-10-24 17:00 - 19:00 | Madison Children’s Museum, 100 N. Hamilton Street, Madison, WI, 53704, United States
Get creative with colorful botanicals from the Rooftop Ramble gardens and create your very own pressed flower bookmarks.

This event is part of our Free Thursday Evenings, 4 pm–8 pm.
