October 23–27
Scary Wooden Mummy
Glue wiggly eyes onto the back of a wooden spoon. Wrap your spoon with strips of gauze. Make sure you don’t cover your mummy’s eyes!
November 6–10
Fall Leaf-Glitter Trees
Use your hands to mash up crunchy Fall leaves. Spread glue on the branches of a tree template then sprinkle the glue with the natural glitter.
Fall Crayon Leaf Imprints
Saturday, November 8
11:30 AM – 1:30 PM
Place a leaf under a sheet of paper and rub the paper with a black crayon. Using watercolor paints, add a touch of color and dimension.
November 13–17
Pinecone Ear of Corn
Stuff colorful pompoms as corn kernels between the scales of a pinecone. Glue raffia to the top of the little ear of corn to represent corn silk.
November 20–24
Feather Painting
We’re replacing our paint brushes with turkey feathers! What can you create using tempera paint?
Play with us for free, then head over to Farmers’ Market on Higuera Street for dinner and entertainment!
November 28–December 1
Corn Husk Sunflower
Sunflowers are bright beautiful flowers that like to bloom in Fall. To make a craft sunflower, glue strips of dry corn husk to the back edge of a cardstock circle. Coat the front side of the circle with glue and sprinkle with sunflower seeds.
Pumpkin Seed Mosaic
Saturday, October 18
11:30 AM – 1:30 PM
Seeds from a pumpkin can make a bumpy mosaic filled with texture. Glue colorful pumpkin seeds onto natural cardstock to create colorful Fall-themed art.
Play with us for free, then head over to Farmers’ Market on Higuera Street for dinner and entertainment!
October 16–20
Gooey Oobleck Spider Rescue
Oh no! Our little plastic spider friends are trapped in a puddle of oobleck. Can you rescue them using a pair of tongs?
Every Fall since 2008, supporters and friends of the Children’s Museum have gathered to celebrate the previous year and raise funds for the exhibits and programs to come.
This year, we’re expecting 150 guests join us for a Wicked/Wizard of Oz costume party on October 10th. Think lively games, a silent disco, dinner prepared by Café Roma, karaoke, a live auction filled with experiences, and unexpected twists throughout the evening.
Purchase your tickets here (we usually sell out!), plan your outfit, and wear comfy shoes. We’re going to have a WICKED time!
October 2–13
Stamping with Pumpkin Pops
Choose a slice of pumpkin on a stick and dip it into orange paint. Stamp it onto a sheet of paper. What interesting shapes can you create?
September 25–29
Ant Picnic
Ants love attending yummy picnics. Weave a red and white picnic blanket. Add thumbprint ants searching for leftover crumbs.
Play with us for free, then head over to Farmers’ Market on Higuera Street for dinner and entertainment!
September 18–22
Clay Ant Hill
Ant colonies create chambers and tunnels underground by digging with their mandible (jaw). The ants carry the extra sand and soil out of the tunnel, leaving a pile of dirt at the opening. Make an ant mound with air-drying clay and place tiny worker ants going in and out of their home.
Meet & Color With Bryson Bost
Author of the Dancing Planets Coloring Book Series
Sunday, September 14
2:00 PM
You may have spotted the Dancing Planets coloring books in the SLOCM Shop – well, here’s your chance to meet the author! Bryson is an accomplished artist and educator who enjoys the meditative, free-flowing nature that drawing brings. His detailed abstractions can be found in galleries throughout the West, and he leads classes in multiple school districts.
We’ll be coloring together in his wonderful books!
Tiny Plants in Tiny Pots
Saturday, September 13
11:30 AM–1:30 PM
As part of our new program called Sprout Scouts, funded by the Robert H. Janssen Foundation and the Community Foundation SLO County, we’ll be rolling out plant-related activities over the next twelve months.
In September, decorate a little terracotta pot with paint. Plant a tiny plant. Take it home with care instructions and nurture it.
When you next visit: check out the progress being made on the back planters, whose redesign is also part of the grant.
September 11–15
Crumpled Paper Ant Tunnels
Ants are so strong that they can lift nearly fifty times their own weight! They build and live in underground tunnels and structures. Build an ant’s underground nest using craft paper.
September 4–8
Ant Life Cycle
Create ant eggs, larvae and pupae from craft materials and glue them onto an informative life cycle chart.
Visit the Museum for free!
Use marking pens to decorate wooden craft sticks with colorful patterns of dots and lines. The completed sticks will then be combined to make a piece of art made through teamwork!
Paint little egg flat cup flowers to be strung together to form a lively mobile to be hung in the Museum
There will be a new photo op in the Museum this summer created by all of our guests! But first, we need paper feathers decorated. The feathers will be attached to a set of wings to form a dreamy background for an ethereal photo.
Messy Splat Painting
May 22–26
Whack a sponge dipped in paint with a wooden spoon. Watch the paint splash over the paper, creating interesting patterns.
Visit the Museum for free!
Paint on Shiny Foil
May 15–19
Blue and white swirls painted on foil make a dreamy image. Is it a rainy day? The ocean?
Flowerpot Pour Painting
Saturday, May 10
11:30 AM–1:30 PM
Pour layers of vibrant acrylic paint over the bottom of a terracotta flowerpot. Take it home to dry then plant the provided California flower seeds with soil from your yard.
Drip Painting
May 8–12
Paint of different colors squirted along the top edge of a stretched canvas square leads to an interesting art piece.
Crumpled Paper Art
May 1–5
Repeatedly crumpled paper, painted with watercolors, creates a magical effect.
Meet Guide Dog Puppies
Saturday, April 26
11:00 AM Meet & Greet
Guide Dogs for the Blind is the largest guide dog school in North America, and provides its services free to students all over the United States and Canada.
Join Guide Dogs for the Blind - San Luis Obispo Puppy Raisers to meet puppies in training of all ages. Have you ever wondered how a dog knows when to cross a street safely? Or get its partner to work? Come find out!
Paper Chain Dachshund
April 24–28
A paper-chain slinky dog is fun and easy to make!
Visit the Museum for free!
Chalk Art Cat
April 17–21
Quick white chalk strokes on black paper, together with a cat face, make a “fluffy” piece of art.
Pet Rock with a Cozy Home
Saturday, April 12
11:30–1:30 PM
Make a rock friend using paint. Create its cozy home by decorating the outside of a handled box and adding a mossy nest inside.
Sensory Nights are offered quarterly, for free, to kiddos on the autism spectrum and their families. These events combine the ability to structure museum exhibits to be "spectrum friendly" while providing a fun, easy environment for families to bond together and meet others.
Pet Chameleon
April 10–14
A chameleon is a lizard that can change the color of its skin. They catch their food by quickly flicking out their suction cup-like tongues. Make a quick-tongued chameleon with paper and a party blower.
My Goldfish Bowl
April 3–7
Pebbles, glue, rhinestones and your hand – dipped in orange paint – come together to create a fishbowl!
