**This Post was written in 2017. As such, the content and exhibits in the review below may be outdated.
A few weeks ago, we took a little road trip and spent the week out at my parent’s house. They live in Massachusetts, on the South Shore. I had not only my toddler with me, but also my niece was hanging out with us all week as well.
I decided we would check out a children’s museum in one of the neighboring towns, that surprisingly I never went to as a child: the Children’s Museum in Easton.
South Shore is basically the area between Boston and Cape Cod. It may not be a “destination” but honestly, you can plan a full week out this way. Between Plymouth and the new Thomasland at Edaville Railroad, to name a few things, this is really a great family friendly area.
(from Google Maps)
If you do find yourself out this way, and you are looking for a children’s museum, the Children’s Museum in Easton is a really great place! It’s located in Easton Massachusetts, and is accessible via Rte 24 (which runs between Rte 495 and Rte 93/95).
The museum is located in the Old Fire Station in the historic North Easton Village. There is a parking lot located behind the museum, which serves as a lot for other businesses in town. There is also parking on the street. We did struggle to find a spot at first, and drove around for a little while, but eventually something opened up in the back lot that we could snatch up. The parking was free.
By parking in this lot, we were behind the museum. There is a path that brings you right to the front of the building.
The main entrance is towards the left side of the building.
When you enter the museum, you’ll be on the main floor. If you head into the exhibit area and turn right, you’ll find the front desk. Admission to the Children’s Museum of Easton is $9 per person. Children under 1 are free. If you have a membership to a children’s museum in Connecticut through the Association of Children’s Museums, note that the Children’s Museum of Easton is a reciprocal member. That means, if you present your membership card, you’ll receive 50% admission for your party (up to 6 people). Once you pay your admission, you’ll have your hand stamped and then you can go have some fun!
Worth mentioning, right next to the front desk, you’ll find a small gift shop. This is in the main play area but it is tucked away enough that it doesn’t present too much of a distraction. And honestly, I liked poking through it while the kids were playing!
The Children’s Museum in Easton has three floors of exhibits. The main floor is a huge open room with several different things going on. Of course, the first thing we found was: the train table. It’s like he has a special tracking radar that hones in on anything train-related. This is where we spent the majority of our time.
We pried him away from the trains long enough so he would try out the Golf Ball Raceway. Once he saw his cousin trying this out, he was interested. Up on top of the stairs, you drop the ball and watch it zig-zag through pipes and then finally drop at the bottom of the stairs.
He also found the Space Ship and Command Center very interesting! Of course, buttons are always fun for toddlers!
There is an old-fashioned fishing boat that the kids can climb in and pretend to be sea captains!
There is a performance center, with a place to practice your face painting and dress up before you go on stage for your show! There are plenty of props too! And a little sink nearby to clean up!
The last exhibit on this floor is the Brass Fire Pole. Kids can climb up, ring the bell and then slide down the pole. My niece took that as a personal challenge to climb to the top! She made it!
We stayed on the main floor for quiet some time, since it did have the train table after all. I found some seating in the center of the room because I knew we’d be there for a while! Once we broke him away from the trains, we headed to the top floor. The stairs leading to the upper level are kind of narrow since this is an old building, but he had no issue going up and down!
Upstairs, instead of a large open room, this floor was divided into several rooms. The first room was home to Kidspace. This area had a firetruck and pretend firehouse.
It also had a play kitchen, garden, farmer’s market and a table to serve all that food!
In the next room was MakerSpace. This was a huge arts and craft room! In the room that day there were several volunteers helping the kids create brown bag sharks, beach umbrellas, paper sharks and surfers! This was a fun, hands-on activity and we spent a good amount of time in this room while he created one of each craft. They had an area for the kids to display their work, or you could take it home with you.
The next room contained a KidsClinic where the kids could pretend to be doctor and check their baby, take measurements, and do the ever fun clinical paperwork.
The last room down the hallway was the Dinosaur Den and Prehistoric Pathway. The pathway to the room was very interesting with tracks, prints and lots of dino facts!
In the Dino Den, there was a huge exhibit with dinosaurs to play with, as well as fossils, costumes for dress up, a microscope and more facts about dinosaurs. This room actually kept his attention for awhile! What a nice break from trains!
Lastly, on the top floor you’ll find a bathroom. There are two bathrooms in the museum. This one, and another located on the lower level. They both have changing tables.
After spending a while upstairs, we headed back down the stairs, had a quick layover at the train table, and then we had to tear him away once again so we could go check out the lower level. And he was certainly glad we did! The lower level is awesome! And he really enjoyed himself!
The lower level of the Children’s Museum in Easton is an open room full of hands-on STEM learning activities. There are building activities with foam blocks and bricks, piping to build raceways, puzzles and so much more! Also on the lower level is an open area where they hold special activities and events.
He really loved building big towers…
…and knocking them down!
He was also really into working with the pipes to create a raceway for the balls to go through! What a great way to use that brain of his!
They also have an outdoor learning area called “The Wild Place” which features a fossil pit, a place to play music, a treehouse and more! Unfortunately, we were overdue for lunch and a nap so we were in meltdown mode when we headed outside, which meant no outdoor exploration.
We had a great time exploring the Children’s Museum in Easton! We spent a good two hours that morning and we had a really awesome time! It definitely is more for the younger kids (my niece had fun playing with her cousin, but not much was geared towards her age). Honestly though, sometimes it’s nice to have a place just for the little ones. The town of Easton is really lucky to have this children’s museum. It is definitely something we’ll keep on our list for whenever we visit Nana and Papa. If you are ever out this way, make sure you check it out (especially if you have a ACM membership to a Connecticut museum)!
This about sums it up…
The Old Fire Station – 9 Sullivan Avenue – North Easton, Massachusetts
Hours:
The Museum is currently running it’s summer hours:
Monday-Thursday: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Friday: 9 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Saturday: Noon – 4 p.m.
Sundays: Closed
Costs:
$9 per person
Members and children under one are free.
If you have an ACM membership to another children’s museum, note that this museum does offer a reciprocal discount!
If you live in the area, make sure to check with your local library for a museum pass!
Features:
- Strollers are not suggested since there are a lot of stairs. Backpacks are preferable.
- Perfect for children ages 1 to 8
- Parking is available for free in a lot behind the museum, however spaces are limited. There is also free parking on the street.
- Three floors of play play area
- Bathrooms & changing tables available on upper and lower floor (there is no bathroom on the main level)
- Party Room available for rent
- No food for sale
- Cash or Credit Cards accepted
- Outdoor play area- open seasonally
